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Asus ZenFone 5 vs. Motorola Moto G: Value for Money Face Off

Asus ZenFone 5 vs. Motorola Moto G: Value for Money Face-Off

By Ketan Pratap | Updated: 10 July 2014 10:42 IST

Asus took the wraps off its new ZenFone smartphone series at an event in New Delhi and the aggressive pricing of the ZenFone 4, ZenFone 5 and ZenFone 6 is already creating a buzz in the Indian market.

For handset vendors, aggressive pricing is one aspect of strategy to tackle the fierce competition in a market such as India and it seems Asus knows the art very well.

(Also see: Asus ZenFone 5 First Impressions)

The newly launched ZenFone 5 can be compared to the popular Motorola Moto G smartphone that was unveiled in India earlier this year. Starting with price, the ZenFone 5 (8GB) was launched at Rs. 9,999, which is more pocket friendly option than the Moto G (8GB) at Rs. 12,499. For many tech pundits, the comparison might be over at this point, but the comparison of features and specifications is certainly worth looking at.

We've had a chance to test both phones (Moto G Review, Asus ZenFone 5: First Impressions), and this comparison will be more than a look at just the specifications.

The Asus ZenFone 5, as the name suggests, features a 5-inch IPS HD (720x1280 pixels) display with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection and offers a pixel density of 294ppi. The Moto G, on the other hand, comes with a 4.5-inch IPS HD (720x1280 pixel) display also with Gorilla Glass 3 protection, and a pixel density of 329ppi. So while the Moto G's display can be considered sharper, the ZenFone 5 could be more advantageous to those that consumer video content or otherwise require larger visual real estate. In other aspects, like colour reproduction, brightness and contrast, both displays are quite similar.

(Also see: Asus Zenfone 5 vs. Motorola Moto G)

The ZenFone 5 is backed by a dual-core 1.6GHz Intel Atom Z2560 processor with Intel's Hyper-Threading technology (implying 4 threads), while the Moto G is powered by a 1.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor. In terms of memory, the ZenFone 5 comes with twice the RAM (2GB) than the Moto G (1GB), and in our testing, this was the key to slightly better multitasking and overall performance.

Some of the common features between the ZenFone 5 and Moto G include dual-SIM (GSM+GSM) functionality, Micro-SIM card slots, and 8GB of inbuilt storage. However, the Moto G comes with non-expandable storage; on the other hand, the ZenFone 5 supports expandable storage up to 64GB (via microSD card).

In camera department, the ZenFone 5 with its 8-megapixel rear and 2-megapixel front camera in our testing easily trumps the Moto G, which sports 5-megapixel rear camera and a 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera. Finally, Moto G's battery capacity (2070mAh) is almost comparable to the ZenFone 5 (2110mAh).

As far as hardware specifications are concerned, the ZenFone 5 with its larger memory, larger display, higher resolution camera, and expandable storage, has the upper hand against the Moto G.

When we talk in terms of software, the Moto G easily flips the table as it runs the most recent Android version - 4.4.4 KitKat, which was rolled out recently; compared to the Android 4.3 with ZenUI on the ZenFone 5. Adding to Asus' woes, Motorola has also hinted that the Moto G might get the Android L update in near future.

While we would not make a recommendation for (or against) the newly launched Asus ZenFone 5 before we have had the chance to run it through our complete review process, there's no doubt the phone is a game changer for the budget segment, and that Motorola has some serious competition from Taiwan.

Motorola Moto G

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS
Variants

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Excellent pricing
Runs Android 4.4.2, the most recent version
Decent specs for the price

Bad
Non-expandable storage
Average camera performance

Read detailed Motorola Moto G review

Display 4.50-inch

Processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 400

Front Camera 1.3-megapixel

Rear Camera 5-megapixel

RAM 1GB

Storage 8GB

Battery Capacity 2070mAh

OS Android 4.3

Resolution 720x1280 pixels

More Motorola mobiles Motorola mobiles price in India

Choose a variant

Asus ZenFone 5

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Great Pricing
Solid build quality
Fantastic performance and battery life

Bad
Still running Android 4.3
Scratch-prone camera lens
Occasional heat problem

Read detailed Asus ZenFone 5 review

Display 5.00-inch

Processor Intel Atom Z2560

Front Camera 2-megapixel

Rear Camera 8-megapixel

RAM 2GB

Storage 8GB

Battery Capacity 2110mAh

OS Android 4.3

Resolution 720x1280 pixels

More Asus mobiles Asus mobiles price in India

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Further reading: Asus, Asus Mobiles, Asus ZenFone 5, Asus ZenFone 5 Price, Asus ZenFone 5 Price in India, Asus ZenFone 5 Specifications, Mobiles, Moto G, Moto G Specifications

Ketan Pratap

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Ketan Pratap is the editor at Gadgets 360 - with over 12 years of experience covering the technology domain. With a breadth and depth of knowledge in the field, he's done extensive work across news, features, reviews, and opinion pieces. But what's truly inspiring about Ketan is how he spends his free time. He's often found gazing at snow-capped mountains from over 20,000 feet while sitting on the hood of his car, taking in the breathtaking beauty of nature. His passion for the great ...More