The Xiaomi Redmi 4 is one of the most exciting handsets to have broken cover in recent memory. With an impressive design, a decently sized battery, and a snappy octa-core processor under the hood, one would imagine that the handset will rule the budget segment in the days to come. ASUS has other plans, though. The company has freshly announced the ZenFone Live in the country, which features a pretty similar hardware under the hood. Does the ZenFone Live stand a chance against the Redmi 4?
Display
Both handsets are packing a 5-inch HD (1280x720) display, which is seen on most budget handsets in the industry. Given that the size and the display resolution are the same, we expect no real difference in terms of picture quality. Both handsets are using an IPS LCD panel.
Camera
The two devices are almost on par here as they’re packing 13MP f/2.0 sensors on the back along with 5MP F/2.2 front facing cameras. The ZenFone Live is at an advantage here, though, as it comes with a front facing LED flash whereas the Redmi 4 lacks this feature.
Performance
The Redmi 4 makes up for the inadequacies in the camera department with its processor. Packing the octa-core Snapdragon 435 chipset under the hood, the Redmi 4 is a pretty powerful offering among budget offerings. The ZenFone Live, on the other hand, is using the slightly outdated Snapdragon 410 quad-core processor. It’s clear that the Redmi 4 has won this round.
Battery
The Redmi 4 is equipped with a 4,100mAh battery on board, whereas the ZenFone Live comes with a modest 2,650mAh unit under the hood. But this isn't to say that the ZenFone Live isn’t a good performer, as a 2,650mAh unit is still pretty decent for a budget offering such as this one.
Other features
The Redmi 4 is available in three storage and RAM variants - 16GB + 2GB, 32GB + 3GB, and 64GB + 4GB. The storage can be expanded with the help of a microSD card. There’s a fingerprint scanner on board here, accompanied by Xiaomi’s customized features to enhance user experience. Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow with MIUI 8 is running by default on the Redmi 4, with no word on future updates.
The ZenFone Live is sold in 16 or 32GB storage variants (expandable) with 2GB of RAM. The company is keeping it simple with just two storage variants. The phone lacks a fingerprint scanner, and is running Android 6.0 Marshmallow with Zen UI 3.5.
Pricing and availability
The 16, 32, and 64GB variants of the Redmi 4 can be snatched up from Amazon India for Rs 6,999, Rs 8,999, and Rs 10,999 respectively. You can only buy it during the company’s sale, with the next one scheduled for the 30th of May.
The ZenFone Live will be available in a solitary 16GB variant with a price tag of Rs 9,999. The handset can be purchased in Shimmer Gold, Rose Pink, and Navy Black from Amazon and Flipkart.
