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WhatsApp adds Joinable calls, a way to hop on group calls after they started
WhatsApp adds Joinable calls, a way to hop on group calls after they started
WhatsApp is adding a new feature with the aim of making it easier for people to join group calls with family and friends. Joinable calls allow you to hop on a call that's already started, or leave and rejoin the call as long as it's still going.
The chat app is also adding an information screen to your calls so you can see who's already on the call and who still needs to join. If you want to hold off on joining a call with your friends and family, you can hit "ignore" and join the call later from WhatsApp's calls tab.
The feature will start rolling out Monday, WhatsApp said.
In June, WhatsApp said it'll add multidevice support, letting you link four devices to one account.
Read more: 12 of the best hidden WhatsApp features you need to know
Huawei Mate 30 Pro review: Sublime camera, disastrous software
Huawei Mate 30 Pro review: Sublime camera, disastrous software
Huawei started 2019 strong with the excellent P30 Pro phone, but things went downhill from there. Due to concerns that its equipment could be used to spy on the US and other companies, the Chinese tech giant has been banned from using technology from US companies. As a result, it can't license Google Mobile Services. The Mate 30 Pro, its latest flagship, has no Google Play Store, and no apps like Google Maps, Gmail and YouTube.
It has the striking appearance of a futuristic slab of aluminum and glass, but I knew I was in for a rough ride just moments after booting up the Mate 30 Pro. Entering the AppGallery, Huawei's version of the Google Play Store, I was encouraged to download some of its most popular apps: Weibo, WeChat and the China Drama Channel. It quickly became clear that Huawei doesn't have much to offer its non-Chinese customers.
One question has enshrouded the Mate 30 Pro since Huawei's tech ban: Can Huawei, a huge, powerful company with deep resources, find a way to neutralize the loss of Google?
The answer, unfortunately, is no.
The Mate 30 Pro is an exceptional piece of hardware. Its quad-camera setup shoots outstanding photos (sometimes better than the iPhone 11 Pro) a dazzling 6.53-inch waterfall display is the centerpiece of an inspired design, and its 4,500-mAh battery goes and goes and goes. But the fiasco that is Android without full Google support makes it impossible to recommend.
Even more galling is the Mate 30 Pro's price. The phone starts at AU$1,599 in Australia, which converts to $1,100 or £830. (No availability has been announced for either the US or UK.) Yes, it's a premium phone and premium parts ain't cheap. But as a proposition to you, the buyer, that much money for a partially functioning phone is preposterous.
Huawei tries Android without all of Google
Since Android 10 itself is open-source, the Mate 30 Pro still runs Google's most recent operating system fine. But since Google Mobile Services requires a license, Huawei has no access to the Google Play Store or any of Google's apps.
Instead, you'll use Huawei's AppGallery, which the company says has over 45,000 apps. That sounds like a lot, but I could count the useful apps in the AppGallery on one hand.
There's no Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Netflix, Disney Plus or Reddit. You won't find Google apps, like Gmail, Maps or YouTube. (You can log into Gmail through Huawei's native email app, though.) Even if you do install Google apps by downloading their APKs -- the Android equivalent of Windows' .exe files -- they won't work without authentication from Google Mobile Services. Uber doesn't work either, since the ride-sharing app runs Google Maps. Losing Google's suite of apps is devastating; losing almost every useful app in the Google Play Store is debilitating.
Huawei's AppGallery has over 45,000 apps. You'll find few of them useful.
Ian Knighton/CNET
Of all the apps I download onto every new phone, only one was available: Spotify. When I tried to find Spotify in the AppGallery a week later, however, it appeared to have been pulled. TikTok (which is owned by Chinese company Bytedance) was available at first, then disappeared and then appeared again.
To get around the software obstructions I downloaded APKs from assorted websites. It was a dodgy process, and worked inconsistently. Some apps ran fine, others crashed after a few moments and others still didn't work at all.
It was a total mess.
Huawei Mate 30 Pro's camera credentials
If Huawei phones have been known for one thing, it's cameras. Huawei beat competitors to the punch with dual-lens cameras (P9), a dedicated Night Mode (P20 Pro) and 5x optical zoom (P30 Pro). Photography is undoubtedly the Mate 30 Pro's greatest strength.
The phone has a fantastic quad-camera setup. The main shooter has 40 megapixels. Then there's an 8-megapixel telephoto lens, which has a 3x optical zoom and 30x digital zoom; a 40-megapixel ultrawide-angle lens; and there's a 3D "time-of-flight" sensor that helps with depth perception.
The Mate 30 Pro has less zoom capability than Huawei's current flagship the P30 Pro, which has 5x optical and 50x digital. But it has a bigger, better ultrawide-angle sensor over the P30 Pro. This is a worthwhile trade, because I find ultrawide-angle capability much more useful than better zoom functionality.
Some Portrait shots give the subject brushed, lightened skin.
Daniel Van Boom/CNET
Others work better.
Daniel Van Boom/CNET
The Mate 30 Pro's quad-camera setup generally captures crisp, vibrant shots.
Daniel Van Boom/CNET
See that fountain all the way in the back?
Daniel Van Boom/CNET
Here it is, shot with 30x zoom.
Daniel Van Boom/CNET
Photography isn't perfect. Thanks to heavy software processing, skin can look artificially brushed in Portrait shots. This processing also makes Night Mode superfluous: Low-light shots capture an impressive amount of light, and toggling on Night Mode often results in overkill. I didn't have the option to shoot a dark photo even when I wanted to because the scene is brightened with software by default.
But despite these issues, the Mate 30 Pro has one of the best camera setups on any Android phone. Photos generally look spectacular, with rich color and crisp detail.
And Huawei packed in another innovative trick, but this time for the video camera. The Mate 30 Pro features stupefying slow-motion capabilities. There are four options: 4x, 8x, 32x, 64x and an astonishing 256x. That 256x option uses AI software to slow things down to 7,680 frames per second.
Slow-motion cameras need more light, so you'll need a reasonably bright environment to take advantage of ultra-slow-mo. And since 256x slow motion makes 25 seconds out of one-tenth of a second, you'll need good timing to shoot the split second you want in slow-mo. But I found the feature super fun to play around with. It makes something as little as a water splash look spectacular.
Good parts, bad phone
In regards to hardware, the Mate 30 Pro is luxurious in every aspect.
Its 6.53-inch, 2,400x1,176x-pixel screen is beautiful, bright and crisp. Its OLED screen is a waterfall display, meaning it wraps around the side of the phone all the way to the aluminum back. Videos and browsing were a joy, and the glass body felt more luxe to hold than aluminum. The downside is that there are no volume buttons, so I had to tap the side of the display to activate an on-screen volume slider instead. This generally works OK, but makes quick volume changes more cumbersome than they need be.
Powered by Huawei's own Kirin 990 processor and 8GB of RAM, the Android heavyweight felt silky smooth to use. But where the Mate 30 Pro really shines is battery life. Running it through CNET's battery test -- turning the phone on Airplane mode and looping an HD video -- it lasted 24 hours, 12 minutes. That's crazy.
The best phone you shouldn't buy.
Ian Knighton/CNET
I wish I could say that the Kirin 990 CPU also scored well on Geekbench 5, a benchmark we run to test a processor's efficiency. Saying it performed well would be a safe bet but, after downloading the APK for Geekbench 5 from four different sites, the app never worked. I could try searching for more Geekbench APKs, but I think this anecdote is an apt encapsulation of the Huawei Mate 30 Pro.
It's a beautiful device with powerful parts and a sublime camera. But its software situation is a disaster. Don't buy this phone.
Originally published Dec. 17. Update, Dec. 28: Adds video review, comparison to iPhone 11 Pro camera.
Huawei Mate 30 Pro
Huawei Mate 30 Pro
Google Pixel 4 XL
Samsung Galaxy Note 10
OnePlus 7T
iPhone 11 Pro
Display size, resolution
6.53-inch OLED
6.3-inch OLED
6.3-inch AMOLED; 2,280x1,080 pixels
6.55-inch AMOLED; 2,400x1,080-pixels
5.8-inch OLED Super Retina XDR; 2,436x1,125 pixels
WhatsApp Status: Everything you need to know about the Snapchat clone
WhatsApp Status: Everything you need to know about the Snapchat clone
WhatsApp is rolling out a new Status feature to all users. Instead of the text-only status that lets people know whether you're busy or available to chat, the new Status feature uses photos, text, emojis and sketches to show what you're doing. If that sounds familiar, it could be because it appears to be inspired by Snapchat.
And unlike Snapchat and Instagram, WhatsApp can protect your Status updates with end-to-end encryption.
Here's what you need to know about the new feature.
When will I get the Status feature?
Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET
When your account gets access to Status, you won't have to download or install an app update from the App Store or Play Store -- it'll just show up.
You'll know if you have access to Status on iOS when the Contacts tab gets replaced with a camera icon (see photo above), and the far-left tab reads "Status." Android users will see a new Camera icon to the left of the Chats tab, next to a new Status tab.
Who can see my Status?
Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET
WhatsApp includes privacy settings, giving you complete control over who sees your Status. By default, only your contacts can view your Status, but the privacy settings let you change that.
With the Status tab selected on an iPhone, tap on Privacy. Android users, tap the menu button > Status Privacy.
You are given three options:
My Contacts: All of your WhatsApp contacts can view your Status.
My Contacts Except...: Select the people you don't want to show your Status to. This still shares your Status with the rest of your Contact list.
Only Share With..: Select only with the contacts you want to show your Status to.
If you change your privacy settings after uploading a Status, keep in mind the new settings will only impact future updates.
Viewing your friends' Statuses is a lot like Snapchat
If you already use Snapchat Stories or Instagram Stories, then you'll feel right at home with Status. Here are the basics:
To view a Status uploaded by your friend, open the Status tab. A list of friends who've shared a Status will fill in.
Touch the screen to pause a Status, giving you more time to view it, tap to skip through a Status, or swipe left to go to the next person.
Swipe up on a status to reply to the the Status you are currently viewing.
...And so is updating your Status
Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET
WhatsApp Status includes all the familiar features of Snapchat and Instagram Stories -- stickers, text captions, drawings and more. Here's how to update your Status:
To add a photo or video to your WhatsApp Status, open the app and tap the camera icon. Take a photo or video, or pick one from your camera roll.
You can draw, write and place emojis on the photo. There's also an option to add a caption that will be shown on the bottom of the photo or video as your contacts watch it.
Finally, tap the paper airplane icon. You can either send your Status directly to a friend, as a photo or video within a conversation thread, or you can tap My Status at the top of the list to update your Status.
Videos can go longer than 10 seconds
Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET
Instead of limiting your video status updates to just 10 seconds (like Snapchat), videos you record and share as a Status can be as long as 45 seconds.
And you can upload GIFs!
In the year 2017, supporting animated images, or GIFs, in an app is a requirement. As such, WhatsApp Status will accept GIFs you've saved to your camera roll or photos app. Select a GIF, trim it down if you need to, and share just as you would a regular, boring, photo or video.
Your Status will remain active for 24 hours, after which it disappears.
Sadly, there doesn't appear to be a way to save a Status to your phone. Whatever you capture and create in WhatsApp is limited to WhatsApp.
Find out who's viewing your Status
A view counter is placed at the bottom of your screen, showing you how many people have watched or looked at your status. You can swipe up on the screen to view a list of contact names who have viewed your Status.
You can get away with screenshots
Unlike Snapchat, WhatsApp does not alert you when a contact takes a screenshot of your Status. In other words, be conscious of exactly what you are sharing to your Status, just because it disappears from your Status after 24 hours doesn't mean no one saved a copy.
Check out our complete guide to Instagram Stories.
Snapchat's Spectacles are now available for purchase online. Here's our review.
WhatsApp's new camera features let you doodle on pics, video
WhatsApp's new camera features let you doodle on pics, video
WhatsApp on Monday rolled out a host of new camera features for customizing photos and video, including adding the ability to draw on images and support for taking "the perfect selfie."
WhatApp's new camera features let you customize your images.
WhatsApp
One new feature, which should be familiar to anyone who has used Snapchat, adds the ability to add your favorite emoji "to express yourself," the app's makers said in a blog post Monday. The editing tools also let users add text, choosing their own colors and fonts.
Those intent on sharing more of themselves on Facebook's popular messaging app will be drawn to its new support of your phone's front-facing flash, promising a better selfie, be it captured in low light or at night. Video buffs will welcome a new feature that will zoom in and out on your subject while recording video with the swipe up or down of your finger.
The new features began rolling out to Android users on Monday with support for iPhones promised soon.
Meta Unveils New Parental Controls for Instagram, Virtual Reality
Meta Unveils New Parental Controls for Instagram, Virtual Reality
Facebook's parent company Meta said Wednesday it's rolling out new tools meant to give parents and guardians more control over how their teens use social media and virtual reality.
Instagram will let parents limit how much time their teens spend on the service.
Instagram
The social media giant is releasing the new features first on Instagram, a photo-and-video service owned by Meta. Parents will be able to view the amount of time their teens spend on Instagram and set time limits. They'll also be able to get updates about accounts their teens follow and the accounts that follow their teens.
Instagram will have a Family Center where parents can access these tools in one place and view resources such as videos and articles about how to talk to their teens about their social media use. Instagram said the tools will be available in the US on Wednesday. The company plans to roll out the features globally in the coming months.
"This is just one step on a longer path -- our vision for Family Center is to eventually allow parents and guardians to help their teens manage experiences across Meta technologies, all from one central place," said Adam Mosseri, who heads Instagram.
Meta owns messaging apps WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger along with VR headset maker Oculus.
The release of more parental controls underscores how Meta is trying to respond to criticism it's not doing enough to protect the safety of young people on its services. There are a number of issues that parents are worried about on social media, including content about suicide and eating disorders. The blowback against Instagram escalated after Frances Haugen, a former Facebook product manager turned whistleblower, leaked a trove of internal documents last year.
The Wall Street Journal published a story partly based on the documents about how Instagram knows the app is "toxic for teen girls." Research presented in 2019 found that Instagram makes body image issues worse for one in three teen girls. Teens also said Instagram increased rates of anxiety and depression, The Journal reported.
Meta pushed back on the characterization of its research, noting that Instagram also connects teens with their family and friends. The leaked research prompted US lawmakers to call several congressional hearings on the topic.
In December, Mosseri testified before Congress for the first time. At that hearing, lawmakers also expressed concerns about Instagram creating a kids' version for children under 13. Even though Instagram paused the project, Mosseri stopped short of saying the idea is permanently off the table. Instagram says the project is meant to give parents more control over the social media usage of kids between the ages of 10 and 12 who may already be on the app.
Earlier this month, US President Joe Biden also urged Congress in his State of the Union address to "strengthen privacy protections, ban targeted advertising to children, demand tech companies stop collecting personal data on our children."
As Instagram rolls out more tools for supervision, parents will also have to balance a teens' need for privacy. Teens have also found ways to circumvent parental controls, and parents don't always use the tools available to them.
For now, teens will need to activate the parental controls on the Instagram app. In June, parents will be able to initiate supervision of their teens' Instagram use through the app and the desktop site. Teens will still need to approve the request from their parents.
Instagram said it will also release more tools in the coming months, such as the ability for parents to set the hours their teens are allowed to browse Instagram. More than one guardian will also be able to supervise a teens' Instagram account.
Meanwhile, Meta has been pushing forward with plans to build the metaverse, virtual worlds where people will be able to work, socialize and shop.
VR, though, has the same problems found on social media such as harassment and underage users. To use the Oculus VR headset, you're supposed to be at least 13 years old.
Meta said in May it will start rolling out more supervision tools in VR. The company will start to automatically block teens from downloading or purchasing apps in VR that are inappropriate for their age. Parents will have the ability to override the blocks and teens will also be able to request this as well.
"Different teens have different maturity levels, and parents know their teens best. We also know that customizable controls, teen autonomy and adjustable settings are important to our community," Meta said in a blog post.
The Oculus mobile app will include a dashboard where parents can manage these tools. In April, parents will be able to prevent teens from accessing games that are inappropriate for their age by using an "unlock pattern" to lock access to these apps. Oculus users create this pattern as an extra level of security to prevent others from accessing their devices or saved passwords.
Parents will also be able to view all the apps their teens own, receive notifications when a purchase is made, view who is on their friends list on Oculus and also see how much time their teens spend in VR.
WhatsApp testing new fact-checking feature for messages, report says
WhatsApp testing new fact-checking feature for messages, report says
WhatsApp is reportedly working on a new fact-checking feature for messages. In the beta version of the Android app, users have been able to select an option to check the web for more context after receiving a message, according to a report from TechCrunch on Saturday. Previously users could only fact-check images sent on the app.
WhatsApp is an instant messaging and calling service owned by Facebook.
"We are working on new features to help empower users to find out more information about the messages they receive that have been forwarded many times. This feature is currently in testing, and we look forward to rolling it out in the near future," a WhatsApp spokesperson told TechCrunch in a statement.
CNET has reached out to WhatsApp, and we'll update when we hear back. Features in testing are not always a guarantee that they'll be launched to the public.
Facebook-owned WhatsApp launches new WhatsApp Business app
Facebook-owned WhatsApp launches new WhatsApp Business app
WhatsApp is king of the messenger apps, with over a billion daily users. Now, the Facebook-owned company looks to better expand its reach to businesses.
WhatsApp Business is a free Android app released Thursday in the US, UK, Mexico, Italy and Indonesia, with more countries coming soon. WhatsApp did not state when or if an iOS version would be available.
The app is for businesses to download -- the customer side will be integrated into the existing WhatsApp app. Business has a suite of features that makes it easier for small businesses to communicate with customers, including the ability to get verified business profiles, set up frequently asked questions, a quick reply feature and more. It'll also have desktop support.
WhatsApp Business could be a big boon in developing nations, where more informal platforms, like WhatsApp, are used by small businesses to advertise, liaise and sell to customers. WhatsApp, pointing to a study done by Morning Consult, said over 80 percent of small businesses in India and Brazil use the app to help them grow their businesses.
WhatsApp is the second biggest messanging app in the world -- second only to Facebook Messenger, which had 1.2 billion users as of late April.
WhatsApp has been contacted for information on when an iOS app will be released.
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Facebook Messenger adds more features, continues focus on encryption
Facebook Messenger adds more features, continues focus on encryption
Facebook has been moving forward with plans to integrate messaging on Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp, but those efforts are still far from over.
Facebook Messenger users can already reach people through Instagram direct message and vice versa without downloading a new app. The company also wants to make cross-app communication between Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp, an encrypted messaging app, possible. That work, though, involves encrypting messages on Facebook Messenger by default so that only the participants of a conversation can view a chat.
"We always were very clear that it's a long journey because there is a lot of things that we need to work through," Stan Chudnovsky, who oversees Facebook Messenger, said in a video chat with reporters on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the company continues to add more features to Messenger. On Wednesday, Facebook Messenger said it introduced 10 new features to celebrate the app turning 10 years old. Some of the new tools include poll games in which users ask their friends who is more likely to do a certain activity in a chat, a feature to share Facebook contacts in a chat and a way to get words to trigger an emoji. Messenger also added other features to celebrate birthdays such as a soundmoji, new stickers and effects like virtual balloons that pop up when you give friends a cash gift.
From encryption to Facebook's metaverse ambitions, Chudnovsky also provided more insight into how Messenger is thinking about its future.
Voice and video calling: Facebook is experimenting with bringing voice and video calls, features available in Messenger, back to the main social network. Facebook started asking users to download Messenger as a standalone app in 2014. Chudnovsky said the test is about making these calls more "convenient" for the user. If a user is conversing publicly on Facebook, for example, having to jump to a messaging app could disrupt their talk.
Encryption: Facebook Messenger already offers users the option to encrypt their text messages, voice and video calls but adding this protection by default comes with challenges, Chudnovsky said. Since Messenger includes features that aren't available in encrypted messaging threads, encrypting the app by default too quickly would result in the loss of certain capabilities. That means the company needs to rebuild features in an end-to-end encrypted environment as new tools also get added. The company is trying to address safety concerns that encrypted messaging could be used by criminals as well. Chudnovsky didn't say when it plans to make Messenger encrypted by default but noted it's trying to do so "responsibly."
The Metaverse: Facebook is building a virtual environment known as the metaverse where people can interact with people in digital spaces. Messenger's technology, Chudnovsky said, is being used to power other Facebook apps including the virtual reality workrooms it's testing on the Oculus Quest 2. If Facebook's vision as a metaverse company comes to fruition, Chudnovsky still expects messaging to grow because people will need to communicate with others outside of the virtual space. Instead, he envisions people in these virtual spaces will consume messages in the metaverse. "Someone needs to enable that and that's going to be us," he said.
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TikTok Wants to Remind You to Take Breaks From the App
TikTok Wants to Remind You to Take Breaks From the App
What's happening
TikTok is releasing more tools in the coming weeks to enable people to limit screen time.
Why it matters
It's another example of how social media companies are responding to criticism that their apps have harmful mental health impacts, especially on young people.
TikTok users who spend too much time mindlessly scrolling through the app's short-form videos will soon have another way to limit their screen time.
TikTok said in a blog post Thursday that it's releasing a new tool in the coming weeks that'll enable you to schedule reminders to take a break from the app after a certain amount of time. TikTok currently has a tool that can prompt you to enter a passcode if you've spent 40, 60, 90 or 120 minutes on the app. The new screen-time tool includes an option to set reminders for whatever amount of time you choose such as 10 or 20 minutes. TikTok also said it will also remind users between the ages of 13 and 17 about the screen-time tool if they use the app for more than 100 minutes in a single day.
TikTok does allow users under 13 years old to use the app, but their experience is limited so they don't have access to certain features such as sharing and commenting on videos or maintaining a profile or followers. The company didn't respond to questions about how screen breaks apply to users under 13.
TikTok will let you schedule breaks from the app.
TikTok
In addition, TikTok is releasing a screen time dashboard that will give you a sense of how much time you're spending scrolling through videos. The dashboard includes data about daily time spent on the app, the number of times you open TikTok and how much you use the app during the daytime versus the night time. TikTok also published a new mental well-being guide in its Safety Center that includes tips about how to respond to friends and family who are struggling with their mental health.
"Having a positive relationship with digital devices and apps isn't just about measuring screen time," Jordan Furlong, product manager for digital well-being at TikTok, said in the blog post. "It's also about feeling in control of how we use technology and ensuring that the time we spend online contributes positively to our sense of well-being."
The release of new tools that encourage screen time limits is another example of how social media companies are responding to criticism that their apps are harming people's mental health, especially teenagers. In March, a group of state attorneys general said it was investigating how TikTok harms young users and what the company knew about those harms.
Last year, The Wall Street Journal published an investigation that showed how TikTok's algorithm can send users down a rabbit hole of content by using data such as how long users linger on a video. That can be problematic if the app continues to show sad videos to someone who is depressed or pushes more extremist content to conspiracy theorists.
The potential negative mental health impacts of social media on users have been an ongoing discussion for many years. Concerns about this issue, though, reached new heights after Frances Haugen, a former Facebook product manager turned whistleblower, leaked documents, including one that showed how Instagram can make teenage girls feel worse about their bodies. Facebook, now Meta, said that its research was mischaracterized and that Instagram can also help teenagers connect to their family and friends.
US lawmakers have held a series of hearings related to the topic and heard testimony from various social media companies including TikTok that say they're taking the mental health of their users seriously.
Social media apps have been trying to give people more control over how they use the platform. In 2018, Facebook and its photo-and-video service Instagram released tools to limit time spent on the app. Instagram also unveiled new parental controls in March.
In 2020, TikTok released parental controls that allow parents to limit the amount of time their children spent on the app. It's unclear whether these tools have been working or are widely used among TikTok's more than 1 billion users. TikTok hasn't released data about how many people use daily screen time limits.
WhatsApp adds Joinable calls, a way to hop on group calls after they started
WhatsApp adds Joinable calls, a way to hop on group calls after they started
WhatsApp is adding a new feature with the aim of making it easier for people to join group calls with family and friends. Joinable calls allow you to hop on a call that's already started, or leave and rejoin the call as long as it's still going.
The chat app is also adding an information screen to your calls so you can see who's already on the call and who still needs to join. If you want to hold off on joining a call with your friends and family, you can hit "ignore" and join the call later from WhatsApp's calls tab.
The feature will start rolling out Monday, WhatsApp said.
In June, WhatsApp said it'll add multidevice support, letting you link four devices to one account.
Read more: 12 of the best hidden WhatsApp features you need to know
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Asus Zenfone 7 Pro is a flipping cool phone, but you'll have to pay for it
Asus Zenfone 7 Pro is a flipping cool phone, but you'll have to pay for it
Like
Flipping camera
Uninterrupted display
Long lasting battery
Refresh rates
Don't Like
Not water resistant
Phone gets hot
No support for wireless charging
Steep increase in price
More than a year after Asus impressed with a flipping camera on its flagship Zenfone 6, the company is back with the Zenfone 7 Pro. The phone's standout feature is a swiveling camera that smoothly flips over the top of the phone to take selfies. It also sports a large uninterrupted display, 5G connectivity, a blazing-fast processor, fast refresh rates and a massive battery. Alongside the 7 Pro, Asus launched a base variant called the Zenfone 7.
With these updated features, Asus bumped up prices significantly from the $499 Zenfone 6 to levels that are tough to justify. The higher-end Zenfone 7 Pro (the phone I received for review) costs approximately $960 (roughly £715 or AU$1,290) when converted from euros, whereas the Zenfone 7 starts at around $840 (about £625 or AU$1,130). Although the Zenfone 7 Pro comes with improved features like Qualcomm's most advanced chipset and a better flip camera, you aren't getting the value for money that made the Zenfone 6 such an excellent purchase.
The phone comes with some drawbacks too. For example, it's not water resistant and there's no support for wireless charging. Plus the phone can get uncomfortably hot when charging or performing demanding tasks. If you're dead-set on showing off a flip-camera phone to your friends, then I'd recommend going for the more affordable Zenfone 7. The former looks identical to the 7 Pro and serves up most of its core features, but has less storage (128 GB versus 256GB), a different chipset (Snapdragon 865 versus Snapdragon 865 Plus) and no optical image stabilization in the camera. Meanwhile, the Zenfone 6's launch price was $499. If an IP rating is important to you, the OnePlus 8 Pro is a good Android alternative within a similar price bracket.
Unfortunately, Asus doesn't currently have plans to officially rollout the phone in the US. But the Zenfone 7 and Zenfone 7 Pro are expected to be released in parts of Europe in late September for 699 euros and 799 euros respectively, so they'll be reasonably easy to import.
Asus added a third telephoto lens to the Zenfone 7 and 7 Pro (pictured here).
Sareena Dayaram/CNET
Asus doubles down on that flip camera
Since the flip camera influences many parts of the Zenfone 7 Pro's aesthetic, it's difficult to talk about design without first addressing its most distinctive physical feature. The camera unit is composed of three lenses that flip from back to front over the top of the phone (and vice versa) with a click of a button. This allows you to use its higher resolution cameras, which are normally reserved for the back of the phone, as front-facing shooters. Because of this, Asus eliminated the front camera altogether and as a result delivered a completely uninterrupted display, free of any notches or cut-outs that would typically house a lens.
Like its predecessor, the Zenfone 7 Pro has a notch-less display.
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For the Zenfone 7 phones, Asus upgraded the flip-cameras's motor from the Zenfone 6, to one that it says is smoother, more durable and more versatile due to the addition of a new angle sensor. The company says the flip-cam can endure 200,000 flips, lasting you about five years or twice as long as the Zenfone 6. In the week or so that I've spent with this phone, I've had fun using the flip camera. I think it's a creative, clever and well-thought out solution that actually integrates with useful features. But, despite Asus' claims, I worry the constant emerging and re-emerging of the camera unit may make it prone to more wear and tear. For its part, Asus has added an auto-retract protection feature to its flip camera, which can sense when the handset is in a freefall. I tested this by dropping it on to a bed from a height of approximately four feet and can confirm it works.
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The Zenfone 7 Pro is bulky, but has a great screen
Apart from the avant-garde flip camera setup, the sheer size and weight of the Zenfone 7 Pro was the next thing I noticed about it. It's one of the heaviest phones I've used and I often found myself navigating it with two hands. The phone I was given for review was entirely black except for the back which featured a dark green sheen. Overall, the color scheme was a bit too dark for my taste, but I can see why people would appreciate this finish. (The bundled charger and cable are black too.) On the right side of the handset, there are two buttons, namely, a volume control fingerprint reader that doubles up as a power button, which can be customised. The side fingerprint worked seamlessly and was easy to get accustomed to, but I do prefer an in-display reader.
The Zenfone 7 Pro features a 6.67-inch AMOLED display with speedy 90Hz refresh rates. Most phones have a 60Hz display, which means the screen refreshes 60 times a second. But it's not as high as the 120Hz screens on the OnePlus 8 Pro and Galaxy S20. With the faster screen, the animations look smoother, while text and images are crisper. The phone runs on Android 10 out of the box and has a customized skin known as Zen UI. It reminds me of stock Android, but overall I found it clean, simple and easy to navigate.
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The Zenfone 7 Pro's three cameras
This camera took sharp and vibrant pictures in the sunlight and even in overcast weather conditions. Low light imaging was mostly good too and it did well brightening up some environments, especially when I used Night Mode. At times, however, pictures looked slightly artificially sharpened.
Out of the Zenfone 7 Pro's tri-camera module, it's the telephoto lens that is a new addition. It allows for 3x optical zoom and up to 12x digital zoom. At this level, pictures were blurry and grainy. If you intend on using zoom to capture details of faraway subjects, you won't achieve that with this phone, unfortunately. At 3x optical zoom, photos look crisp in sunny conditions, but tended to look grainy in trickier lighting environments. Overall, this camera definitely wasn't best-in-class, but then again this phone appeals to people who want a flipping camera and not necessarily the best camera.
As for video, there was support for up to 8K video at 30 frames per second with EIS. It makes for massive file sizes and isn't a video feature I expect to use much. But thanks to the flip cam, you have the option of making use of this high-tech feature from the phone's front.
Example of ultra-wide shot taken in daylight.
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Taken on default settings.
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Example of 3x optical zoom. The photo turned out crisp, vibrant, and true-to-life.
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This photograph was captured using the Zenfone 7 Pro's dedicated night mode setting. You can see that it's been brightened compared to the photo below that was taken without night mode.
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Taken indoors with natural light pouring through the window. The camera did a good job of taking a detailed and color-accurate photo.
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The Zenfone 7 Pro's 5,000-mah battery lasts well
Asus prides itself on the "unbeatable endurance" of its Zenfone batteries, so I was looking forward to experiencing its seemingly endless battery life and it didn't disappoint. It lasted me nearly 23 hours with what I would describe as moderate usage. Meaning I used my phone for about an hour of Zoom video calls, WhatsApp messaging, reading news on various social media apps and taking some photos. When I went to bed, I muted the phone and didn't switch on airplane mode, which would have preserved battery life even more. Also, when I continuously played an HD video on Airplane mode for battery tests, the phone lasted for more than 15 hours at 50% brightness.
When the battery did finally run out, it managed to hit a 50 percent charge in 30 minutes and get fully revitalized in 100 minutes or so, which is slightly longer than the quoted 93 minutes. Like the Zenfone 6, Asus decided to stick with a massive 5,000-mAh battery for the Zenfone 7 series. Though the capacity didn't increase with the new iteration, it added more battery-care features and a faster 30-watt charger. What really stood out was the degree of customization Asus provided in terms of battery-care features and charging. One new feature is the option to enable always slow charging, which the company says helps preserve battery capacity in the long run. Another example was the upper limit charging feature, which allows you to limit how much you charge your battery, say to 90% instead of the full hundred. Again, Asus says that's because regularly hitting a 100% charge degrades battery capacity over time.
At the heart of the Zenfone 7 Pro is the new Snapdragon 865 Plus processor, which is supposed to be 10% faster than the 865 processor found on most premium Android phones. In my experience, it was extremely snappy and totally capable. Nothing got in its way. Other fancy phones that use this processor include Samsung's pricier Galaxy Note 20, Note 20 Ultra and Oppo's Find X2 and Find X2 Pro. The Zenfone 7 Pro is backed up by 8GB RAM and 256GB of internal storage, and held up extremely well in benchmark tests.
Zenfone 7 vs. Zenfone 7 Pro
Asus Zenfone 7
Asus Zenfone 7 Pro
Display size, resolution
6.67-inch AMOLED; FHD
6.67-inch AMOLED; FHD
Dimensions (Inches)
6.49 x 3.04 x 0.37 inches
6.49 x 3.04 x 0.37 inches
Dimensions (Millimeters)
165.08 x 77.28 x 9.6 mm
165.08 x 77.28 x 9.6 mm
Weight (Ounces, Grams)
8.11 oz; 230g
8.11 oz; 230g
Mobile software
Android 10
Android 10
Camera
64-megapixel (main camera), 12-megapixel (ultra-wide), and (telephoto)
64-megapixel (main camera), 12-megapixel (ultra-wide), and (telephoto)
