I’m using a HTC ONE and started looking for a secondary phone around 7k - 8k budget. By reading all the reviews of Xiaomi redmi 1s iv’e almost fixed for it. Later I got to know about Lenovo A6000 and my wait started for it. After the launch of it I couldn’t get convinced by its colorful UI(looks like a video game).
Then got a mail regarding re-launch of trimmed "ZENFONE 5", I just left it as there is a major battery defect in it. But after reading the reviews of new Zenfone 5 I blindly went for it as ASUS is a established & trsuted brand.
After usage of 3 days, final verdict is:
PROS:
1) Phone looks far better than Nexus 5 which I previously used before my HTC ONE.
2) 5" HD IPS Display is crisp & top notch, cant find pixels even when zoomed out for max.
3) No lag at all and UI looks good with a bit of bloatware.(Unlike samsung most of the apps are useful).
4) Build quality is solid and you’ll get a feel of holding a premium handset.
5) Battery can easily last a day with moderate usage, but if gaming & browsing is continuously done you have to charge twice a day.
6) Call quality is good.
Major advantage is ASUS promised Lollipop 5.0 update for this device
CONS:
1) Becomes a bit warm with just 20 mins of gaming, but chills down within 1 minute.
2) Battery could have been at least 2500mah as it is dual sim.
3) Headset not provided.(Personally not a problem as it is my secondary phone).
4) A bit of noise while taking pictures in warm lighting conditions