The ASUS ZenFone 6 and OnePlus 7 Pro are the very best phones these two companies have to offer at the moment, so it makes all the sense in the world to compare the two. It is worth noting, though, that the ZenFone 6 is considerably more affordable than the OnePlus 7 Pro.
These two phones do have some similarities, as they do share some of their specifications, and both have an almost bezel-less design, but that’s more or less it as far as similarities are concerned, as the two companies utilized considerably different approaches here.
Both of these phones are essentially brand new, as both were announced last month, in May 2019. So there’s a chance that many of you are considering getting one of these two devices, and in case both are in consideration, we’ll do our best to help you decide.
Specifications
Design
Both of these devices look really nice, they’re made out of metal and glass, and neither of them includes a display notch nor a display camera hole. Both phones do come close to being completely bezel-less, though the ZenFone 6’s bezels are a bit thicker than ones on the OnePlus 7 Pro.
Both phones include rounded display corners, while the OnePlus 7 Pro is equipped with a curved display, unlike the ZenFone 6 which includes a flat panel. Back sides on both devices are curved, and both phones are quite slippery thanks to the build materials.
ASUS opted to include a flip-up camera setup on the ZenFone 6, which allows the phone to use its two cameras as both its rear-facing and front-facing ones. OnePlus went a different route with the OnePlus 7 Pro, as the device sports a pop-up selfie camera, while it includes three vertically-aligned cameras on its back.
The ZenFone 6 sports a rear-facing fingerprint scanner, this is your regular capacitive unit. The OnePlus 7 Pro, on the other hand, sports an optical in-display fingerprint scanner, thus offering a cleaner-looking back side. The OnePlus 7 Pro is a bit taller, and wider than the ZenFone 6, but that’s not surprising considering it has a larger display.
Both of these devices do look quite nice, but the OnePlus 7 Pro gets to take this category. Both its front and back sides look cleaner due to a curved display, thinner bezels, and the camera setups. The OnePlus 7 Pro is actually considered to be one of the best-looking phones in the market, at the moment.
Winner: OnePlus 7 Pro
Display
Both of these phones have fairly large displays, but the OnePlus 7 Pro’s panel is bigger. The ASUS ZenFone 6 comes with a 6.4-inch panel, while the OnePlus 7 Pro includes a 6.67-inch panel.
They are not different only in size, far from it, the ZenFone 6 sports a fullHD+ (2340 x 1080) IPS LCD display, while the OnePlus 7 Pro comes with a QHD+ (3120 x 1440) Fluid AMOLED display.
The ZenFone 6’s display does support HDR10 content, while the OnePlus 7 Pro’s is HDR10+ certified, while it also comes with a 90Hz refresh rate, for those extra smooth animations and generally more fluid performance.
Both of these displays are fairly good, but the ZenFone 6’s panel cannot compare to the OnePlus 7 Pro’s. Not only is the OnePlus 7 Pro’s display a lot sharper, but we’re also looking at one of the best OLED panels here with a really high refresh rate, so an IPS LCD display simply cannot compare, even though it is one of the best fullHD+ IPS LCD displays we’ve seen.
Winner: OnePlus 7 Pro
Performance
Both of these phones are extremely powerful, they’re both fueled by the same processor, the Snapdragon 855, which is amongst the most powerful mobile chips these days, if not the most powerful one.
Both devices are also equipped with plenty of RAM, the ZenFone 6 comes in 6GB and 8GB RAM variants, while the OnePlus 7 Pro is available in 6GB, 8GB, and 12GB RAM options. Both phones also come with fairly optimized software, which helps performance quite a bit.
Android 9 Pie comes pre-installed on both devices, the ZenFone 6 ships with ZenUI 6 on top of Google’s OS, while the OnePlus 7 Pro comes with OxygenOS 9.5. Both of those options are close to stock Android, though both bring some quality features on top of stock Android. As a result, we get Android skins that are not heavy at all, and they focus on performance above anything else.
OxygenOS does seem to be a step ahead of ZenUI 6 in terms of optimizations, which is not surprising as ZenUI 6 is a huge change compared to ZenUI 5, which was packed with bloat. ASUS will probably bring ZenUI 6 a step up with updates over the next couple of months, but OxygenOS 9.5 is still a step above.
The OnePlus 7 Pro’s powerful hardware, combined with its software and that high refresh rate display provide you with a phone that is a true joy to use. It is buttery smooth, and perhaps even the best-performing Android smartphone in the market. The ZenFone 6 is not far behind, at all, but the OnePlus 7 Pro wins this category.
Winner: OnePlus 7 Pro
Battery Life
These two devices pack in fairly large batteries, the ZenFone 6 comes with a 5,000mAh unit, while the OnePlus 7 Pro includes a 4,000mAh battery. Both devices are capable of providing you with plenty of juice during the day, though the ZenFone 6 has a considerable advantage if you’re using the OnePlus 7 Pro’s 90Hz refresh rate.
If you opt for a 60Hz display refresh rate, on the OnePlus 7 Pro, to bring it down to the ZenFone 6’s level, battery life performance will be considerably more comparable. Still, though, the ZenFone 6 has an edge in terms of battery life, even in such conditions, as ASUS really did do its work with software this time around, and that huge battery surely helps.
Both devices offer fast wired charging, the ZenFone 6 comes with 18W Quick Charge 4.0 fast charging, while the OnePlus 7 Pro includes OnePlus’ proprietary 30W Warp Charge fast charging. OnePlus’ solution is faster, but Quick Charge 4.0 is fast enough for most people.
The ZenFone 6 also offers reverse wired charging, so you can use that phone as a power bank, if you want. Neither of the two devices offer wireless charging, nor reverse wireless charging. All in all, the ZenFone 6 is the winner of this category, it offers more in the battery life department.
Winner: ASUS ZenFone 6
Cameras
Neither of these two phones have the best camera setups in the market, but they’re both quite good in this regard. The ASUS ZenFone 6 has “only” two cameras, and those two cameras act as both its rear-facing and front-facing units. The OnePlus 7 Pro, on the other hand, comes with three rear-facing, and one front-facing pop-up camera.
Now, the ZenFone 6 and OnePlus 7 Pro use the same primary camera lens, Sony’s IMX586 sensor, but OnePlus’ unit comes with a different aperture (f/1.6 compared to f/1.8). On top of that, the ZenFone 6’s does not offer OIS, unlike the OnePlus 7 Pro. The ZenFone 6 does come with an ultrawide camera, but does not include a telephoto one, like the OnePlus 7 Pro.
What about the results? Well, the OnePlus 7 Pro is a better choice in pretty much every way, except if you need stellar selfie camera experience. During daylight, both are fairly good, but the OnePlus 7 Pro’s colors are more natural and the dynamic range is better. When it comes to low light shots, the ZenFone 6 does an okay job, but the lack of OIS and a different lens are a problem here, as the OnePlus 7 Pro is able to provide considerably better results.
The OnePlus 7 Pro does have issues focusing on the edges in the closeup shots though, unlike the ZenFone 6, though that can hopefully be resolved via a software update. The OnePlus 7 Pro also provides a better video recording experience overall. All in all, the OnePlus 7 Pro is a better choice in this regard.
Winner: OnePlus 7 Pro
Conclusion
If audio is of importance to you, the ZenFone 6 may be a better option, at least if you use wired earphones / headphones. Both devices offer really solid stereo speakers, no doubt about that, but the ZenFone 6 includes a 3.5mm headphone jack, unlike the OnePlus 7 Pro. The ZenFone 6 also comes with DTS Headphone X audio, while the OnePlus 7 Pro ships with Dolby Atmos Sound support.
All things considered, the OnePlus 7 Pro comes out on top in this comparison, though the ZenFone 6 is definitely a good choice if you’re looking to save up some cash. It all depends on what you’re aiming for, as the ZenFone 6 is able to provide better battery life, but in most other categories (except maybe audio) it lags behind the OnePlus 7 Pro.
Winner: OnePlus 7 Pro