Asus Zenfone 6 has finally gone official with a design approach certainly different from what others are bringing. It has a motorized flippable camera that does double duty, which means it can not only take shots from the rear but also from the front when you flip it in front of your face. Keeping the decent and high-end specifications aside, the design does turn some heads because it stands out from the rest. On the front, the device has some bezels around and a little chin as well, but overall, it does offer you more screen to play around.

While the design of the Zenfone 6 does look innovative, it's the choice of display that disappoints. The Zenfone 6 uses an LCD display rather than an AMOLED display. But those who have their first encounter with it tell that the display is still very good and it supports HDR10 as well so, definitely a good thing.

The motorized flip-up main camera module which rotates to the front includes a 48-megapixel f/1.79 main camera (with laser focus), a 13-megapixel 125-degree ultra-wide camera plus a dual-LED flash. The cameras include no OIS but both cameras support 4K recording, and the main one also handles up to 720p 480fps slow-motion capture. The movement of this camera module gets activated by a stepper motor which smoothly rotates by two degrees per step. According to Asus, the mechanism has been tested to last for over 100,000 continuous flips.

Apart from its flippable camera, the giant battery is another highlight that catches attention. It includes 5,000mAH mammoth battery capacity with Quick Charge 4.0. It also has a reverse charging option which means you can charge other phones as well, considering the right type of USB-C cable is available.

Asus Zenfone 6 makes its space among some top Snapdragon 855-powered smartphones. The chipset is accompanied by either 6GB or 8GB RAM and coupled with 64GB or 256GB storage. It has dedicated slots for both Nano SIMs and microSD card. It does have a headphone jack, pair of speakers, and NFC are other interesting additions.

The Asus ZenFone 6 ships with stock Android 9 Pie straight out of the box. It is, however, compatible with the Android Q Beta program. It also includes a Smart Key physical button (provided on the ride side of the phone) to invoke the Google Assistant. In fact, this key is multifunctional which can do many things based on the presses. If you press once, Google Assistant will get triggered, pressing it twice would call Google Assistant and your personal updates will get displayed on Google Assistant page. Also, pressing and holding would let you keep talking to Google Assistant. It will respond immediately as soon as you release it. Above all, this Smart Key can be customized according to your personal need.

• 6.4-inch FHD+ IPS LCD display covered with Gorilla Glass 6
• Snapdragon 855 processor
• 6GB/8GB RAM
• 64GB/256GB storage, expandable up to 2TB via microSD card
• 48MP f/1.79 main camera (with laser focus), a 13MP 125-degree ultra-wide camera, both rear and front
• Android 9.0 Pie
• 5,000mAH battery

The Asus Zenfone 6 will launch in the EU first at a starting price of €500. It comes in either Midnight Black or Twilight Silver color options. It will be available from Asus.com and retail partners from May 23.