The Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 and the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 both belong in the budget phones category. The ZenFone Max Pro M1 launched here in the Philippines on June 7, 2018, whereas the Redmi Note 5 arrived in the country on May 11, 2018.
The ZenFone Max Pro M1 is regarded as a “Battery King” while the Redmi Note 5 was deemed as a “Camera Beast”. With a price difference around PHP 2,000, which of the two smartphones should you purchase? Let’s find out here.
| SPECS | Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 | Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 |
| Display | 5.99″ IPS LCD display, 1080 x 2160, 18:9 ratio, 402 ppi | 5.99″ Fullscreen 18:9 (2160 x 1080) FHD+ w/ 2.5D curved glass at 403 ppi, on-screen buttons |
| Dimensions | 159 x 76 x 8.5 mm, 180g | 158.6 x 75.4 x 8.05 mm, 181g |
| Chipset | Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 |
| CPU/OS | Octa-core 1.8 GHz Kryo 260, Android 8.1 (Oreo) | Octa-core 1.8 GHz Kryo 260, Android 8.1 (Oreo) |
| GPU | Adreno 509 | Adreno 509 |
| Memory | 3GB RAM + 32GB storage (expandable via microSD card) | 4GB RAM/ 64GB ROM (expandable via microSD card) |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, WiFi Direct, hotspot, B.T. 4.2, A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, microUSB 2.0, USB On-The-Go | WiFi, 3G, LTE w/ VoLTE, Bluetooth 4.2, OTG, GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, dual SIM (hybrid), microUSB 2.0 |
| Battery | Non-removable Li-Po 5000 mAh battery, Fast battery charging 5V/2A 10W | Non-removable Li-Po 4000 mAh battery, Fast battery charging 5V/2A |
| Official Price (Philippines) | Php 9,995 | PHP 11,990 |
The Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 is built with an aluminum mid-frame and a metal alloy back. The ZenFone Max Pro M1 which measures 159 x 76 x 8.5 mm and weighs 180g is slightly larger than the Redmi Note 5 which measures 158.6 x 75.4 x 8.05 mm and weighs 181g. Both smartphones lack the infamous notch and have thick bezels on top and bottom as well. In addition, the two devices don’t have any physical or capacitive buttons since they sport on-screen buttons.
Moving on to the rear part of the devices, both of their vertically aligned dual rear cameras are located at the back at the top-left corner. The fingerprint scanners on both smartphones are circle shaped and at the middle as well. Their rear parts seem to have a really similar design. The only differences were that the LED flash of the Asus device is underneath the dual cameras whereas the LED flash of the Redmi Note 5 is in-between its dual main cameras. Another difference would be their placement of brand logos. The logo of Asus can be seen underneath the fingerprint scanner while the logo of Xiaomi is found on the bottom part.
The usual power button and volume rockers can be found on the right side of the smartphones. Both of their SIM trays can also be seen on the top left side of the phone.
At the bottom of the smartphones, you’ll find speaker grilles, USB 2.0 port, a microphone, and a 3.5mm audio jack. What’s different between the two are the shapes of their speaker grilles. The Xiaomi smartphone’s speaker is shaped in little circles whereas the Asus device has one that is shaped as two horizontal narrow oblongs.
The design of the two smartphones is simple and modern. It was hard choosing which of the two has a better design since both share a lot of similarities. If I were to pick, it would be the Redmi Note 5 for the sole reason that it isn’t as easily smudged as the Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1. Additionally, the two devices came with their own respective cases for extra protection.
The ZenFone Max Pro M1 features a 5.99″ IPS LCD display with a resolution of 1080 x 2160 pixels and an aspect ratio of 18:9. On the other hand, the Redmi Note 5 sports a 5.99″ Fullscreen FHD+ IPS display with an aspect ratio of 18:9 and a resolution of 2160 x 1080. As you can see, the two share the same screen size and resolution.
Watching movies on these devices were enjoyable since both of their displays produce vibrant images. Furthermore, the color and details don’t change even if you view the phones from different angles.
| Phone | Rear Camera | Front Camera |
| Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 | Dual: 13 MP (f/2.2, 1.12µm) + 5 MP (f/2.4, 1.12µm), phase detection autofocus, LED flash | 8 MP (f/2.2, 1.0µm), LED flash |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 | Dual: 12MP (f/1.9) + 5MP (f/2.0) w/ Dual Pixel PDAF and dual tone LED flash | 13MP w/ LED Selfie-light, Beautify 4.0 |
Both smartphones feature dual rear cameras. In terms of specs, the Asus device has a better camera since it has 13MP + 5MP dual main cameras whereas the Redmi Note 5 only has 12MP + 5MP dual rear cameras. On the other hand, the Redmi Note 5 has a higher front camera than the Max Pro M1.
To fully determine the quality of the two smartphone’s camera, we took some shots in various scenarios.
These images were taken inside a bright-lit room. In this case, the Xiaomi shot once again produced a sharper image. Unfortunately, some parts of the images have parts that looked overexposed.
This is the same painting that was taken in a dim-lit room. Surprisingly, the Asus shot had the yellowish tint here. Detail-wise, the Redmi Note 5 was sharper which is noticeable on the details of the tower behind the bridge in the painting.
We tested the devices’ portrait mode once more but this time with a human model. The Asus shot produced a brighter and more vibrant image which can be seen on the subject’s clothes and hair color. Meanwhile, the Redmi Note 5 shot still had a yellowish tone based on the subject’s skin color. In terms of the bokeh effect, the Xiaomi image looked more natural than the Asus shot.
Let’s move on to selfie shots, the images produced by the Asus device looked a bit dull as compared to the Redmi phone which produced a really bright shot. The Asus photos had a vintage look to it and the colors were far from real life. As for the Redmi Note 5 shot, the colors were a lot more vibrant. Detail-wise, the Xiaomi looked sharper. For some reason, most of the selfies taken by the Asus device ended up looking blurry which again might be due to its shutter speed.
On the other hand, in terms of the beauty mode, the ZenFone device looked more natural than Xiaomi’s shots in which the subject’s beauty marks disappeared.
In addition, the portrait mode can be used in the front cameras of the two devices.
For midrange phones, both smartphones had decent audio. However, the two tend to produce a scratchy sound when on maximum volume. In addition, although the Asus device produced the louder sound, the Xiaomi smartphone produced the more solid one.
As for the battery juice of the two smartphones, both can last you through a day with more than enough to spare for the next day. The Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 is packed with a bigger battery capacity having 5000mAh compared to the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 with 4000mAh.
Both devices seem to pack large batteries which is an advantage for them. The Redmi Note 5 lasted a day of usage and it took 2 hours to fully charge it from 20%. On the other hand, the Asus smartphone can last up to 2 days of usage but it takes around 3 hours to charge.
Let’s talk about the smartphones’ security feature first. Both of them sport a fingerprint scanner which was expected. In terms of the fingerprint scanner, the Redmi Note 5 was slightly faster than the ZenFone Max Pro M1. Out of the two, the Asus device is the only one that sports a face unlock feature. It works fast and it’s a good thing to note that it won’t unlock when the owner is asleep as its face unlock doesn’t work when the user’s eyes are closed. For users who were glasses, don’t worry, you’ll still be able to unlock your phone even if you have glasses or not.
The ZenFone Max Pro M1 is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 processor coupled with Adreno 509 GPU and a storage variant of 3GB RAM + 32GB storage. Similar to this, the Redmi Note 5 is powered by the same chipset and GPU as well although it has storage variants of – 3GB of RAM with 32GB storage and 4GB of RAM with 64GB.
We tested some benchmark tools and these are the results:
| Device | AnTuTu | Geekbench(single core; multi-core) | PC Mark |
| Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 | 113135 | 1331; 4853 | 5821 |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 | 114638 | 1343; 4895 | 5723 |
Even though these are mid-range phones, we didn’t have much of a problem playing mobile games with it. The games we played were Asphalt 8 and Mortal Kombat X. Not much lags occurred and the graphics were really clear.
As for additional features, both phones feature their own version of Gestures. The Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 contains gestures that let you launch applications while the device is inactive whereas the Xiaomi smartphone has gestures that serve as shortcuts.
The two smartphones offer a good quality phone packed with powerful batteries. They are already available here in the Philippines. The Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 is priced at Php 9,995. As for the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5, it is priced at Php 11,990.
In terms of camera capabilities, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 produced sharper images with more vibrancy. As for the Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1, it did great on the battery category. The two smartphones were able to live up to their titles.
Which of the two do you prefer? Comment your thoughts down below!
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