ASUS and Motorola have confirmed that the ZenFone 3 and Moto G4 Plus will be released to the world on July 12, alongside the high-end ZenFone 3 Deluxe, the phablet ZenFone 3 Ultra as well as Motorola’s Moto G4.
The companies have even gone ahead to detail out the prices of the phones, which pits the ZenFone 3 as the base model while the Moto G4 Plus comes in as the high-end version of the Moto G 2016 series. As a result, the phones find themselves locked in a category that already has the likes of Samsung Galaxy J7 2016. So, how do these three compare?
Price
For budget buyers, price is usually the first thing they look at before buying a phone, with the specs sheet coming in second or even third, after design language or camera specs. Apparently, the Galaxy J7 2016 seems to be winning the price battle with its price tag of $238. As for the ZenFone 3, it starts from $249 whereas the Moto G4 Plus will cost $250 for the base model, but the price could rise up to $299 depending on the onboard storage and RAM options chosen.
Display
For the above prices, you will be getting quite a treat as far as features are concerned. The trio has a screen size of 5.5 inches, but the resolutions vary. Where the Moto G4 Plus and ASUS ZenFone 3 come with 1080p Full HD panels, the Galaxy J7 2016 comes with a 720p HD panel. This means that you get a lower pixel density of just 267ppi as opposed to the 401ppi you get with the ZenFone 3 and G4 Plus.
As a result, it leaves the Galaxy J7 2016 trailing the other two in terms of display quality.
Processing power
Under the hoods, these three smartphones have quite impressive specs. The ZenFone 3 is powered by a mid-range Snapdragon 625 SoC, which is slightly advanced than the Snapdragon 617 used in the Moto G4 Plus and Galaxy J7 2016. However, all three are octa-core chipsets, but the Galaxy J7 2016 also adds an Exynos 7870 SoC variant to the fold.
To support these capable processors, ASUS went for 3GB RAM and 32GB of expandable storage. It is also believed that a 4GB/64GB variant will also accompany this standard variant. As for the Moto G4 Plus, there are quite a handful of options that users can choose from. The base model has 2GB RAM and 16GB of onboard storage, followed by a 3GB/32GB variant while the high-end variant, which costs $299, is packed with 4GB RAM and 64GB of onboard storage. All three variants of the G4 Plus have a microSD card slot. On the other hand, the cheaper Samsung Galaxy J7 2016 has an onboard storage of 16GB and a RAM of 2GB, which is also expandable via a microSD card, just like the rest.
Camera specs and battery life
Camera-wise, these three phones have some of the best snappers in their categories. While the ZenFone 3 and Moto G4 Plus share the same camera specs on the rear, where there is a 16MP sensor on each device, you only find OIS on the former. As for the frontal part, the ASUS went for an 8MP sensor with the same f/2.0 aperture as the rear, but Motorola settled for a 5MP sensor with a slightly smaller aperture of f/2.2. As for the Galaxy J7 2016, the rear snapper has a 13MP sensor with much a much better aperture of f/1.9 as compared to the rest of the pack. It carries a 5MP selfie sensor with the same f/1.9 aperture, making it an equally appealing snapper like what you get with some of the latest flagships. Unlike the other two, Samsung went ahead of the game by availing an LED flash on the front part of the J7 2016.
In terms of battery life, you will be happy with what the Galaxy J7 2016 has to offer. In addition to the fact that it has fewer pixels to power as compared to the ZenFone 3 and Moto G4 Plus, it has a larger battery of 3300mAh as opposed to the 3000mAh used on the other two. However, you won’t find a fingerprint scanner on the J7 2016, something that is available on both the ZenFone 3 and Moto G4 Plus.