Asus ZenFone 8, ZenFone 8 Flip May Debut in India as Asus 8Z & 8Z Flip, Launch Date Still Unclear

Asus launched the Asus ZenFone 8 and ZenFone 8 Flip globally last week, but the smartphones did not reach the Indian market owing to the COVID-19 crisis. It appears the duo may still release in the country later, however, with different branding. According to a purported Google Play supported devices listing (via GSMArena), the ZenFone 8 can be seen with the model number ASUS_I006D and the moniker “ZenFone 8/ ASUS 8Z,” suggesting the device may launch as Asus 8Z in some regions including India. Notably, a court ruling in 2019 ordered Asus to drop its ‘ZenFone’ moniker due to branding issues, which also resulted in the arrival of the Asus ZenFone 6 series as Asus 6Z in India. The Asus ZenFone 7 series did not launch in India at all.

Asus India’s Business Head Dinesh Sharma had earlier indicated that the phones might launch in the country once the COVID-19 situation improves. “While the world is excited for the launch of our new smartphone, we at ASUS India have consciously decided to defer the launch till the current scenario improves,” Sharma said in his tweet. Asus ZenFone 8 series will likely retain similar features as the global variant. To recall, the vanilla Asus ZenFone 8 comes with a compact build and features a 5.9-inch Full-HD+ AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate. The smartphone is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 chipset paired with up to 16GB of RAM and up to 256GB of internal storage. There is a 4,000mAh battery on the ZenFone 8, along with support for 30W fast charging. The dual camera on the Asus ZenFone 8 comes with a 64-megapixel primary shooter and a 12-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera – both using Sony sensors. At the front, there is a 12-megapixel selfie shooter on the Asus ZenFone 8.