Japanese Electronics giant, Sharp, recently announced its first OLED display flagship at IFA 2018 labelled as Aquos Zero. The company known for its quality LCD panels showcased the handset that not only has an OLED panel but also has a curved display design and high-end specifications. Now, the brand has held a product launch conference in Taiwan announcing the Aquos Zero there. The company has not yet declared prices as an official release will be in January. However, the handset is believed to cost around NT$20,000 (about RMB 4,500).

The big highlight of the Aquos Zero is, obviously the curved 2k OLED panel. Sharp boasts that this is the lightest OLED flagship around tipping the scales at just 146g. That is achieved by the carbon fiber back in conjunction with the magnesium alloy frames that also make it a sturdy device. The display is 6.2-inches and has a pixel density of 538ppi and a resolution of 2992×1440p owing to the notch. The curved display has support for HDR as well as 100 percent DCI-P3 wide colour gamut.

Under the hood, the Aquos Zero rocks a Snapdragon 845 SoC paired with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage. There’a single 22.6MP rear sensor beneath which lies a fingerprint reader while the front has an 8MP shooter. It runs Android 9.0 Pie which is always good to hear on the back of a 3130mAh battery. It also comes with IP68 water resistance and Dolby Atmos stereo sound.

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When an advanced user needs top-end performance but he does not want to spend a lot of money on the most powerful flagships, he can opt for an affordable flagship without any loss of performance. Affordable flagships slowly became even more popular than the most expensive ones as they are able to offer even higher speeds and smoothness for a much lower price. If we exclude affordable flagships with low-end or mid-end aesthetics such as Xiaomi Pocophone F1 and Honor Play, Xiaomi Mi 8 and Asus Zenfone 5z are the cheapest flagships out there. A few days ago, another potentially affordable flagship was made official: Sharp Aquos Zero. Despite there is still no price tag, judging from the company, we believe that even this handset will carry an affordable price tag compared with the most famous flagships. So, let’s compare the two most affordable flagships with it in order to see which is the most impressive.

Sharp Aquos Zero vs Xiaomi Mi 8 vs Asus Zenfone 5z

Design

Sharp opted for a very singular choice in regards to the Aquos Zero’s design. The company realized it with a body made of aramidic fiber (also known as Kevlar). You may like this design or not, but it is very original and attractive. Even the rounded shape and the display curved at the side is able to make this device very impressive. That is why I personally prefer its design instead of Xiaomi Mi 8 and Asus Zenfone 5z. But even these two handsets have stunning aesthetics with their glass backs, one with a reflective light waves effect and another with a brushed metal effect. So, whatever you choose, you will make a very good choice.

Display

Sharp Aquos Zero has the most incredible panel of the trio. It is the first OLED display made by Sharp for a smartphone and it features a high Quad HD+ resolution, so a higher level of detail. This display also has 100 percent DCI-P3 wide color gamut, as well as the HDR technology. So besides having a huge level of detail, it has brilliant and realistic colors. Xiaomi Mi 8 takes the second place with its Super AMOLED Samsung panel which is HDR10-compliant as well, but it features just a Full HD+ resolution.

Specs & Software

With exactly the same hardware side, each of these devices achieves flagship-level performance. All of them boast the most powerful SoC in the Android market: the Snapdragon 845 by Qualcomm running at a max frequency of 2.8 GHz. But there are two things to note: Xiaomi Mi 8 does not have a micro SD slot, while Sharp Aquos Zero has no variants with 8 GB of RAM. So, at least in the most expensive variant. Asus Zenfone 5z wins the comparison on the paper with up to 8 GB RAM, up to 256 GB of internal storage and micro SD slot.

Camera

Xiaomi Mi 8 has the best camera department, there is definitely no doubt. The rear dual camera is composed of two 12 MP sensor: the main sensor with f/1.8 aperture and OIS and a secondary telephoto lens with 2x optical zoom supported. The detail it can capture is stunning, as well as photos in every light condition. Even the rear camera is very cool with a 20 MP resolution and f/2.0 aperture.

Battery

Xiaomi Mi 8 is the affordable flagship with the biggest battery among these ones, and it is also the one with the longest battery life. It can always reach the end of the day with a moderate/intensive use, but this is not a battery phone so do not expect anything surprising.

Price

While we still do not know the listing price of the Sharp Aquos Zero, we can tell you that currently, you can get both Xiaomi Mi 8 and Asus Zenfone 5z for less than €400/$460. While is easy to find the base version of the Mi 8 for about €350-380/$400-430, you need a bit of luck to find the Zenfone 5z for €390 thanks to online street prices. With the actual situation, I would pick Xiaomi Mi 8 due to its impressive camera.

• Read More: Sharp Aquos Zero launched as Sharp’s first OLED display flagship

Sharp Aquos Zero vs Xiaomi Mi 8 vs Asus Zenfone 5z: PROs and CONS

Sharp Aquos Zero

PROs

• Best display
• Great hardware
• Original aesthetics
• Android Pie

CONS

• Limited availability

Xiaomi Mi 8

PROs

• Flagship hardware
• Good display
• Affordable price
• Nice cameras

CONS

• No micro SD

Asus Zenfone 5z

PROs

• Great hardware
• Affordable price
• Stereo speakers
• Wide-angle camera and OIS

CONS

• Average display

The post Sharp Aquos Zero vs Xiaomi Mi 8 vs Asus Zenfone 5z: Specs Comparison appeared first on Gizmochina.

Sharp has finally joined the bandwagon. The Japanese company has just announced its first smartphone with an OLED display and is called Sharp Aquos Zero. Sharp has all along been known for its attractive LCD panels but during IFA 2018, a device with the model name Sharp 801SH was showcased by the company with an OLED display. That model has now come out as the Aquos Zero and it retains the curved edge display design in addition to the OLED panel. 

The Aquos Zero comes with a flagship outlook both in its design and specifications. Being the company’s first OLED phone, it comes out in style as it is touted to be the world’s lightest OLED flagship, weighing just 146g.  That is because it utilises a frame made from magnesium alloy while the rear panel is made of carbon fibre. The display design also includes a notch at the top while the selfie camera is at the middle of the wide notch while the earpiece is nested at the crest. The display also curves at the two side edges to add to the beauty of the device. The design also sees the SIM card slot moving to the top edge inside of the sides. That is because the device is thinner at the edges than at the middle because of the curved edge display.

The Aquos Zero is equipped with a massive 6.2-inch notch display with a resolution of 2992 x 1080pixels. The screen utilises the 18.7:9 aspect ratio and is equipped with a 100% DCI-P3 wide color gamut and HDR support. The device has at its heart a Snapdragon 845 chipset paired with 6GB of RAM while there is 128GB of internal storage. 

On the camera end, the Sharp Aquos Zero packs a single camera sensor at the rear. The rear shooter is a humongous 22.6MP sensor while at the front is an 8MP camera for selfies. The rear panel also houses a fingerprint sensor for unlocking the phone. The device runs Android 9.0 Pie OS out of the box while a 3130mAh battery will keep the lights on.   

Furthermore, the Aquos Zero comes with an IP68 level water and dust resistance and is equally equipped with support for Dolby Vision image display and Dolby Atmos stereo technology.

Sharp Aquos Zero Price and Availability

Sharp is yet to disclose the retail price of the model. However, the model will be available for sale in Japan in the winter of this year 2018.

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