First Look
Zenfone Max Unboxing & Initial Impressions
38 days of standby time and the ability to power another smartphone — the monster battery of the Asus Zenfone Max hasn’t been a secret for a while now.
The Taiwanese company itself teased the phone several times last year, first at a press event in India in August, and then later at the IFA Consumer tech show in Berlin last September.
We saw it again at the Consumer Electronics Show in Vegas last January, shortly before it began rolling out around the globe, and finally, last week it arrived at the GadgetMatch lab.
Box
Like all the other Zenfones, the Zenfone Max ships in the familiar matte white rectangular pull-out box with the name and phone printed on the cover. Highlighted on the right side are the specs unique to the phone.
Removing the cover reveals the phone wrapped in a protective plastic seal. Underneath you pull up a door-like carton cover to see the User Guide and Warranty Card pamphlets.
Tucked in their mini compartments are a standard micro USB cable, a 5V 1A USB wall adapter, earphones and extra buds.
Unique to the Zenfone Max package is an OTG cable (micro USB to USB) that converts the phone into a powerbank when you connect it to another phone using any standard micro USB cable.
Look and Feel
Up front, the Zenfone Max is identical to every other Zenfone variant – the earpiece, ASUS logo, and front-facing 5MP camera up top, capacitive buttons and signature concentric circle design at the bottom.
Flip the phone over and you’ll notice subtle changes in its design language. The Zenfone Max has a less pronounced curved back, making the phone feel thinner than the Zenfone 2, Selfie, and Laser, albeit still considerably hefty.
When it was previewed, the phone had a removable back plate with a rubbery matte finish, but thankfully Asus opted for a textured leather-like back that not only makes the phone less slippery, but also improves its overall aesthetic. Completing the look is the light gold plastic band that frames the sides of the phone.
The micro SD card and dual micro SIM card slots are tucked underneath the rugged cover, as well as the non-removable 5,000 mAh battery.
Also on the back of the phone are the 13MP PixelMaster camera flanked by a dual tone LED flash, and sensor for the laser autofocus. Below the Zenfone branding are the speaker grilles.
The only physical buttons on the device are its volume rocker and the power button on the right hand side of the device. The headphone jack is located on top of the device, while the micro USB port and microphone are on its bottom.
Software
Out of the box, the Zenfone Max runs Android 5.0.2 skinned with Zen UI, ASUS’ implementation of Android. It’s not our favorite implementation of Android, but its not that bad either. We like all the customization options, but also think the phone could do away with the bloatware.
Overall the Zenfone Max feels more premium than the other Zenfones like the Selfie and Laser, and at P8,495 in the Philippines and Rs. 9699 in India (approx $185) not only do you get a good-looking phone but also a powerbank to charge your less powerful phone if need be, all for under $200.
[irp posts=”11934″ name=”ASUS ZenFone 3 Max’s new update boosts battery life”]
Accessories
Jackery Explorer 300D: Power and portability in one
Uninterrupted workflows for digital nomads, freelance creatives, more
For digital nomads, freelance creatives, and even work-from-home professionals, staying productive on the move means carrying around multiple gadgets, cords, adapters, and power banks to survive the day.
Having to carry such weight, quite literally, is vital for maintaining workflow continuity.
For a more seamless experience and to have just one extra portable device to power all working parts, there’s the Jackery Explorer 300D.
Launched just last month, this grab-and-go offering from Jackery is designed for the modern lifestyle.
It moves away from Jackery’s traditional aesthetic with a sleek, speaker-like form factor. It weighs just 2.5 kilograms and is 64% smaller than standard 300W units in the market.
This ultra-compact size was made possible by a smart engineering choice of swapping bulky traditional AC wall outlets for highly efficient DC-only and USB-C ports — which also helps eliminate idle power loss.
With a 288Wh capacity, the Jackery Explorer 300D holds enough juice for up to nine power banks.
It can keep a Type-C fast-charging laptop for up to three to four full cycles, a Wi-Fi router alive for hours, and recharge cameras or drone batteries up to five times for a lengthy production day.
For smaller gadgets like smartphones and portable fans, the power station can juice them up for up to 22 times.
It can even charge five devices simultaneously with a total of three USB-C ports, a USB-A port, and a DC 12V car charger port.
All these ensure users are never disconnected, wherever they may set up their mobile office.
Another brilliant touch is the two-in-one shoulder strap that easily unclips to double as a heavy-duty 140W USB-C charging cable.
The everyday carry is available via Lazada and Shopee, and at the official Jackery kiosk in SM Fairview, as well as other partner stores.
There’s a passport-sized revolution upon us, and we’re here for it.
After the HUAWEI Pura X Max and Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8, September 2026 showed us two more joining the fray: the Xiaomi 18 Fold and the much-awaited and plenty-rumored iPhone Duo.
While all four share a similar form factor, they don’t exactly all share the same approach to it. And while we’ve yet to spend significant time with most of them, we’re gonna go ahead and jump the gun and list what we think each one did right.
Think of this as more of a collective first impression or Match Pulse.
Samsung gets the weight right
Samsung being a foldie veteran shows up here.
When I first held the Galaxy Z Fold8, I was pleasantly surprised by how light it was. At 201g, it’s the lightest of these four by a pretty significant margin. The Xiaomi 18 Fold comes in at 219g, the HUAWEI Pura X Max at 229g, and the iPhone Duo at 254g.
That’s thoughtful design, and definitely a result of Samsung having at it for years.
This is one of those things that doesn’t necessarily jump out on a spec sheet. But it matters when you actually have the phone in your hand. A passport-sized foldable is supposed to give you more screen without feeling like you’re carrying around a tiny tablet.
Samsung seems to understand that balance particularly well.
Xiaomi gets the cameras right
We’re not gonna talk about camera performance here. Just the cameras present and how they’re laid out.
In that regard, the Xiaomi 18 Fold is a runaway winner for me.
It has a 200-megapixel main camera, a 50-megapixel ultrawide, and a 50-megapixel 3.5x periscope telephoto. All three are part of Xiaomi’s Leica camera system.
That telephoto alone makes the setup feel much more complete than what some of the other passport-sized foldables are offering.
Then there’s the physical layout. Xiaomi puts the three cameras in a horizontal arrangement across the upper portion of the rear panel. It looks clean, but more importantly, it should help keep the phone from rocking around as much when you put it down on a flat surface.
That’s the kind of small design decision I appreciate.
You’re not just getting a foldable with cameras slapped onto the back. You’re getting a flagship-style camera system that also happens to fold.
Android gets the big screen right
This is where Android still has Apple beat.
The whole point of opening a passport-sized foldable is getting more screen. Android has spent years figuring out what to actually do with all that extra real estate.
On Samsung, you can run apps side by side, resize windows, use pop-up windows, save app pairs, and take advantage of Samsung’s broader Multi Window and DeX features. Huawei has also built out its own split-screen and floating-window tools.
Apple is finally entering that conversation with the iPhone Duo. Its iOS 27 implementation allows two apps to run side by side (you just can’t resize them like you can on Android), two windows of the same app, quick app swapping, and saved app pairs.
That’s actually a pretty big deal. But Android has been doing this for years.
The passport-sized foldable isn’t just a bigger screen. It should let you do more things at once. Android understands that part of the assignment.
Apple gets the transition right
@gadgetmatchiPhone Duo maxxing 😮💨♬ original sound – GadgetMatch
This might be Apple’s biggest contribution to the passport-sized foldable.
The iPhone Duo doesn’t simply take iOS and stretch it across a bigger display. Apple has reworked the experience around the fact that the phone can physically change shape.
Both displays share the same aspect ratio, which means content can move between the outer and inner screens without feeling like you’re jumping between two completely different phones. iOS 27 also moves controls to the side when the Duo is open, adjusts app layouts for the wider canvas, and introduces Split View for the first time on iPhone.
There’s also the rather clever StandBy implementation. Put the Duo down in a tent orientation and it can turn into a little smart display, even without being plugged in.
Apple Pencil support is coming later this year, too, and it works on both displays.
This is very Apple.
The hardware is new, but the software is doing a lot of the work to make the new thing feel familiar.
Samsung gets the overall shape right
This one is completely subjective.
Personally, I prefer the square-ish, sharp-edge look of the Galaxy Z Fold8. I’ve seen plenty of people praising the D-like shape of the Duo — was that deliberate or just a happy coincidence? — and the more rounded look of the Pura X Max and Xiaomi 18 Fold.
But looks-wise, the Galaxy Z Fold8 just stands out to me.
There’s something about the balance and more symmetrical look of the Fold8 that seems more user-friendly compared to the no-love-for-lefties approach of the Duo, especially software-wise.
That’s obviously a personal preference. But that’s kind of the point.
We’re now at a stage where these devices aren’t all trying to look like the same thing.
The passport-sized foldable is becoming a design language of its own.
Android gets customization right
@rodneil Galaxy Z Fold8 – 3 different wallpapers: Folded, Landscape unfolded, Portrait unfolded #GalaxyZFold8 ♬ Kitty (MOMO) – MISAMO
Much has been said about the unfolding animation of the iPhone Duo. That’s cool for sure.
But if you’re after making a passport foldie truly feel like yours, Android is still the playground.
With Samsung specifically, Good Lock is your customization best friend.
You can tweak the interface, the lock screen, gestures, multitasking behavior, and plenty of little things that make a Galaxy feel less like the phone Samsung shipped and more like the phone you set up.
It’s not necessarily the sexiest feature to put on a spec sheet.
But after you’ve lived with a foldable for a while, those little things add up.
Samsung dropped the ball on the stylus
This is a weird one.
Samsung had S Pen support on the Galaxy Z Fold3, Fold4, Fold5, and Fold6. Then it dropped support with the Fold7. The Galaxy Z Fold8 and Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra doesn’t support the S Pen either.
That’s a pretty significant omission for a device that unfolds into something approaching tablet territory.
The S Pen had plenty of fans. And you can absolutely argue that a stylus makes even more sense on a foldable because you suddenly have a much larger canvas for writing, drawing, editing, and annotating.
Apple, meanwhile, has promised Apple Pencil support for the iPhone Duo later this year.
Now, they’ve broken (or at least delayed) some promises before, so this is still a wait and see.
But it’s funny seeing Apple move toward a feature Samsung had already established on its Fold line.
The battery race is getting interesting
We still can’t fully compare this usage-wise. We haven’t spent enough time with all four devices to make any meaningful real-world battery call.
So we’re just gonna give you the numbers on paper.
The Xiaomi 18 Fold is the battery monster here with a 6,000mAh cell, alongside 67W wired and 50W wireless charging. Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold8 has a 4,800mAh battery with 45W wired charging.
Apple doesn’t publish the iPhone Duo’s battery capacity in the same way, so we’ll leave the mAh comparison there rather than pretending the numbers are directly comparable.
This is one area where Xiaomi’s approach is particularly interesting.It has managed to put a 6,000mAh battery into a device that weighs 219g. That’s a pretty compelling combination on paper.
And then there’s performance
Same refrain as the battery here.
We’re not going to pretend that chipset names alone tell us which phone is going to be faster in actual use. Especially with four different platforms, operating systems, thermal designs, and software stacks involved.
But the hardware underneath is certainly no joke.
The Galaxy Z Fold8 runs on Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy. The Xiaomi 18 Fold introduces Xiaomi’s own XRING O3 processor. And the iPhone Duo gets Apple’s A20 Pro, the same chip family used in the iPhone 18 Pro models.
The interesting part isn’t really which one wins the benchmark race. It’s that none of these companies seem to be treating the passport-sized foldable as a compromise device.
They’re putting flagship-class silicon, serious cameras, big batteries, and increasingly sophisticated software into this format.
And that’s probably the biggest thing to get right.
The passport foldable is becoming a thing
Exciting times are unfolding for the passport-sized foldable.
What’s interesting isn’t that these four phones are similar. It’s that they’re different.
Samsung has spent years figuring out how to make a big foldable thinner and lighter. Xiaomi is going all-in on cameras and battery. Huawei has its own interpretation of the compact, wide form factor. And Apple has arrived with a completely new take on how iOS should behave when the screen itself changes shape.
Between the Galaxy Z Fold8 being a big hit and the buzz generated by the iPhone Duo, it’s not far-fetched to think other brands will throw their own take at the form factor pretty soon.
And we’re totally here for it.
Apple’s first ever foldable is finally here! Say hello to the iPhone Duo.
In this video, THE Michael Josh shares his first impressions.
Those include the design, display, cameras, performance, and what it’s actually like to use Apple’s latest iPhone.
Is the iPhone Duo the future of the iPhone or just an interesting experiment?
We take a closer look and share everything that stood out during our hands-on experience.
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