iPhone SE 3 vs Asus 8z: After FULL review comparison, who wins?

iPhone SE 3 vs Asus 8z: We compared the smartphones from Apple as well as Android based Asus 8z after full review, and here is who wins.

iPhone SE 3 vs Asus 8z: Which one should you buy? (HT Tech)

iPhone SE 3 vs Asus 8z: It's like the iPhone compact vs Android compact! I remember, when the Asus 8z was about to launch in India, with its much-hyped compact-form factor, it was named the ‘iPhone 13 mini of Androids'! But everyone knew that the iPhone SE 3 will soon take the place of the iPhone 13 mini as the latest most compact (4.7-inch) iPhone packing Apple's latest flagship Bionic A15 chipset. And this is what hooked everyone to it- an iPhone with a compact body at a relatively affordable price and high-end performance.

On the other hand, Asus 8z emerged as a great hope for Android fans who want performance but not in those ‘big display smartphones'. Plus, it provides a premium feel, good camera output and a high refresh rate display. So, does the traditional design of the iPhone SE 3 fades out in front of the whole new compact Android smartphone? While both 5G smartphones fall under the category of Rs. 50,000, which one makes a better deal for compact smartphone seekers? To find out, we have pitted them against each other and here is what we have found..

iPhone SE 3 vs Asus 8Z

iPhone SE 3 vs Asus 8z (HT Tech)

iPhone SE 3 vs Asus 8z (HT Tech)

Design

It's not a secret that Apple launched the same 5-year old iPhone 8 body in 2022 with better specs and performance. The large bezels and classic touch-ID, that's what makes the iPhone SE 3rd Gen look outdated in front of the upgraded smartphone with an almost no-bezel design. However, the Asus 8z continues the trend of all the latest smartphones. Honestly, from a first look, the Asus 8z looked like the iPhone 12 mini! Well, both give a high-end feel with their metal body and strong build quality. Plus, the new iPhone SE is certified with IP67 water resistance whereas 8z has IP68 certification, but it misses out on wireless charging.

Display

Asus 8z may not be as compact as iPhone 13 mini or iPhone SE 3, but still, it is way much more compact with its 5.92-inch display when compared to the rest of the Android family which features displays even up to 6.9 inches! Without a doubt, the Asus 8z display shines over iPhone SE 3. Reasons? Its 120Hz refresh rate on a full HD+ AMOLED display against the iPhone SE's IPS LCD Screen with just a 60Hz refresh rate makes the overall difference. Plus, iPhone SE 3 decided to keep conventional Touch-ID whereas the Asus 8z features an in-display fingerprint sensor.

Performance

Asus 8z is powered by Snapdragon 888 processor, while iPhone SE 3 comes with Apple's A15 Bionic chipset. (Divya / HT Tech )

Asus 8z is powered by Snapdragon 888 processor, while iPhone SE 3 comes with Apple's A15 Bionic chipset. (Divya / HT Tech )

The iPhone SE 3rd Gen got all the attention because of Apple's A15 Bionic chipset, the same which we have seen in the flagship iPhone 13 series last year. The compact body is all here to deliver fast performance for daily activities as well as to play high-end games such as Call of Duty: Mobile and BGMI without the presence of any lags or stutters. On the contrary, Asus 8z comes to us with last year's flagship Snapdragon 888 chip. Though in performance for daily usage or even heavy gaming, it won't throw any hiccups or lags. But heating issues and unexpected shutdowns (during my review testing) -- make the experience a bit disappointing in front of the iPhone SE 3.

Software experience

Amm.. don't want to bring the Android vs iOS debate on! But it's a personal choice. On one side, iPhone SE 3rd Gen runs on iOS 15.4, on the other Asus 8z has been upgraded to the latest Android 12 soon after its launch. Both have their own kind of clea and bloatware-free experience. But Asus 8z promises to get only 2 major Android OS updates against the iPhone SE 3 which is expected to get at least 6 years of OS updates.

Audio

Asus 8z and the new iPhone SE, both bring a stereo speaker setup with good audio quality but you get a 3.5mm audio jack with 8z! And as always, the iPhone SE 3 misses out on this!

Cameras performance

The iPhone SE 3 features a single 12MP Rear Camera. (Amritanshu / HT Tech)

The iPhone SE 3 features a single 12MP Rear Camera. (Amritanshu / HT Tech)

The iPhone SE 3 still features a single 12MP Rear Camera that we have seen in iPhone 8, but with little improvement, all credit goes to A15 Bionic Chipset. Whereas, Asus 8z features a dual-camera setup at the back with a 64MP primary camera with OIS and a 12MP ultra wide camera. In real performance, both the smartphones give close competition in terms of detailing, colour-saturation, and exposure in a day as well as night photography. Though, surprisingly, the 7MP selfie camera of the iPhone SE 3 is what delivers better output than the 12MP front camera of the Asus 8z, which makes the skin tone look dusty.

Battery

Here too, both the smartphones go parallel in terms of battery performance. With normal daily usage of calls, checking messaging, listening to music and moderate use of social media, both the phone can easily make it to the end of the day. But with heavy usage, while adding gaming or movies to the list, they will ask you to charge them in the middle of the day. Even both take up to 1 hour and 30 minutes to get fully charged. Note here, that the Asus 8z comes with a 30W wired charger while iPhone SE 3 doesn't carry a charger inside the box.

Price

The iPhone SE 3 price, for the base model of 64GB storage, is Rs. 43,900, while the other two variants of 128GB and 256GB of storage are priced at ₹48,900 and ₹58,900. On the other hand, Asus comes in a single variant of 8GB RAM and 128GB memory priced at Rs. 42,999.

So, who is the winner? iPhone SE 3 or Asus 8z?

iPhone SE 3 or Asus 8z? (HT Tech)

iPhone SE 3 or Asus 8z? (HT Tech)

After the full review of iPhone SE 3rd Gen and Asus 8z, we can undoubtedly say that Asus 8z wins over iPhone SE 3 with its latest smartphone-like design, strong built quality, clean and user-friendly software experience, smooth display, almost equal camera performance and yes, audio jack too! Having said that, if you are interested in the more powerful performance of Apple's A15 Bionic chipset, a better selfie camera, and of course an iPhone experience at the cost of a dated design and a higher price, then iPhone SE 3 won't disappoint you either.