ASUS Zenfone 12 Ultra Officially Launches: Unggungli Samsung In The AI Feature?

JAKARTA - ASSUS officially launched Zenfone 12 Ultra, the latest flagship smartphone that brings significant improvements to the artificial intelligence (AI) feature. This device shares many elements with the ROG Phone 9 series, but comes with various innovations, especially in the AI-based software aspect.

The Zenfone 12 Ultra has a design that has been updated compared to the ROG Phone 9 series. The rear camera module has a different layout, while the rear panel now uses plain glass without any ROG signature lighting. ASUS continues to provide Gorilla Glass Victus 2 protection at the front as well as IP68 certification which guarantees resilience to dust and water.

In terms of appearance, this phone maintains a 6.79-inch LTPO OLED screen with a refresh rate of 144Hz. The ASUS also increased peak brightness levels by 2,500 nits, with high brightness modes reaching 1,600 nits. The processor used is Snapdragon 8 Elite, promising high performance even though ASUS has not disclosed the details of the cooling system used.

Zenfone 12 Ultra carries a large capacity 5,500mAh battery, with support for 65W PPS fast charging via the Qi 15W cable and wireless charging. ASUS claims that this phone can be fully charged within 39 minutes using 65W charger, making it one of the flagships with the fastest charging time in its class.

The photography sector is also experiencing an increase with a triple rear camera configuration. The phone has a 50MP LYT-700 main camera with a game-OIS, 13MP ultrawide camera with a 120-degree point of view, and a 32MP telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom. For selfies and video calls, ASUS embeds a 32MP front camera with an RGBW sensor.

Zenfone 12 Ultra offers a variety of AI-based camera features, including:

AI Tracking and Auto-Zoom for video recording.

AI Magic Fill, the feature of removing objects from photos.

AI Unblor to clarify blurry photos.

Action Pan mode to capture dynamical motion.

The background noise removal feature in the video, which is claimed to reduce the sound of vehicles, crowds, and dog Barking.

In addition, ASUS provides a variety of color profiles on the camera, including Soft & Warm, Rich & Warm, Gentleman Cool, and Vivid Cool, providing more flexibility in shooting.

Zenfone 12 Ultra maintains several features that are rarely found in other flagship smartphones, such as 3.5mm audio jacks, eSIM support, and double stereo speakers.

One of the main advantages of this device is the integration of broader artificial intelligence. ASUS claims that Zenfone 12 Ultra is the world's first mobile phone to run the Local Meta Llama 3 8B AI model. This technology is used for a variety of functions, including:

Real-time call translation, including in third-party apps.

Summarizing articles and documents.

Semantics search for photos.

A recording application with automatic transcription, speaker identification, as well as direct translation and summary.

Local or cloud-based AI processing options for some features.

Despite being superior in many aspects, the Ultra's Zenfone 12 has one major shortfall, namely a less attractive software update policy. ASSUS has only promised two operating system updates and five years of security updates. With high flagship prices, this policy feels less competitive than competitors offering more updates.

Zenfone 12 Ultra is priced at 1,099 euros (IDR 18.5 million). Unfortunately, the company has not confirmed the availability of this device for the Indonesian, British and United States markets. Zenfone 12 Ultra will be available in three color variants: Sage Green, Ebony Black, and Sakura White.

With various improvements in AI features, premium designs, and high performance, ASUS Zenfone 12 Ultra is ready to compete with other flagships on the market.