Soon, the need for a point-and-shoot camera will become obsolete, through DSLRs will forever have a place in society (but it’s really too early to tell). ASUS is gearing up for this potential change in the smartphone / digicam market with their latest offering, the ZenFone Zoom. Essentially a smartphone, they’ve packed this device with stuff that could help you retire your digital camera. It’s the world’s thinnest optical zoom smartphone that’s equipped with a 3X Hoya lens in an innovative 10-element lens arrangement for clarity and close-up shots, with up to 12x total magnification. This aspheric, molded-glass lens system uses a technique called “D-cut”, and this is paired with dual high-precision stepper motors and arrange in a periscopic arrangement to maximise incoming light, helping you capture only the best of qualities in return. The 13-megapixel PixelMaster rear camera comes with a DSLR-quality optical image stablisation ability that ensures sharper and steadier shots, even at the maximum 3x optical zoom. it can also capture clear shots at very slow shutter speeds. But if in any case you still need a bit of light, the dual-LED Real Tone flash can help you (also, 0.03 seconds laser auto-focus, anyone?). The ultra-thin 5mm aluminium unibody of the ZenFone Zoom sports a burnished leather back that took 201 precision procedures to complete and is loaded with a64-bit quad-core processor, 4GB RAM and ultra-fast 60ms touch-response time that’s protected by a super-strong Corning® Gorilla® Glass 4. And with a 3,000mAh battery that will keep you powered throughout the day, who knows, the reality of not needing a camera might be closer than we think.
ASUS ZenFone Zoom, $659 (without contract). Available at StarHub stores.. asus.com/sg
