So earlier today, the ASUS Zenfone 2, which got a positive review from us, became official for the Southeast Asian market following a media event here in Jakarta, Indonesia.
And because we already got our hands on a unit prior to its unveiling, we spent most of the afternoon striking up conversations with company executives and Philippine-based retailers rather than taking photos and videos on the show floor. We’re glad we did, because we were able to dig up a few juicy tidbits about the Zenfone 2’s local pricing and release date after our little chat with ASUS Philippines country manager George Su.
For starters, the ASUS bigwig confirmed to us that the Zenfone 2 will have its own coming-out party in the Philippines on the week of May 15, where the price of the Android Lollipop smartphone will be revealed, as with last year’s Zenfones.
Also, four models have been confirmed for the Philippine market, which includes the top-shelf ZE551ML variant with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of expandable storage. And if you’re hoping to score a unit from official sources before the second week of May, don’t get your hopes up too high; ASUS Philippines wants the release of the Zenfone 2 to coincide with its launch event.
Oh, and the Zenfone 2 will definitely cost less in our country than in Indonesia (IDR 2,999,000 or roughly P10,250 for the ZE551ML with 2GB RAM and 16GB storage and IDR 3,999,000 or about P13,700 for the ZE551ML with 4GB RAM and 32GB storage), according to George Su.
RAMON LOPEZ’S TAKE: Here’s the TL;DR version for those of you who find the (very) short article a chore to read: The local release of the Zenfone 2 is imminent, contrary to rumors that have been circulating lately. Otherwise, why would ASUS Philippines set a tentative date for revealing everything there is to know about the highly anticipated phone? And when it finally arrives on our shores, expect the Zenfone 2 to be cheaper locally than in other regions.
ALORA UY GUERRERO’S TAKE: …so wait for it.