Recognition: Ryan-Thomas Shaw / Android Authority
- The Asus code pointed to a Zenfone 8 “Mini” that would likely challenge the iPhone 12 Mini.
- It would contain a 5.9-inch 120 Hz OLED screen and a Snapdragon 888 chip.
- You can also expect at least two new cameras.
Have you seen the iPhone 12 Mini and wish there were Android peers offering its small but powerful formula? You could get your wish – so to speak. XDA and developer Freak07 have discovered kernel code indicating a Zenfone 8 “Mini” that offers full performance in a more compact format.
The device, codenamed “Sake”, would focus on a 5.9-inch 120 Hz OLED screen with a resolution of 2,400 x 1,080. That’s still considerably larger than the 5.4-inch display on the iPhone 12 Mini, but it would make this Zenfone 8 variant compared to the 6.67-inch models in the Zenfone 7, 7 Pro, and larger 8-series make tiny.
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You wouldn’t have to make a lot of compromises elsewhere. This Zenfone 8 Mini would run on a Snapdragon 888 chip and contain two camera sensors, a 64MP Sony IMX686 (also used in the Zenfone 7) and an unknown IMX663. There’s no mention of a front-facing camera, though we wouldn’t expect a flip-up array like we did on previous Zenfones.
The “mini” leak also mentions two other Zenfone 8 models. One, “Picasso,” seems to be a more familiar design with the aforementioned 6.67-inch OLED screen, a Snapdragon 888, and an extended array of cameras that includes the 64-megapixel sensor as well as a 12.2-megapixel -Camera from Sony IMX363 and Omnivision includes a 24MP unit as well as an 8MP telephoto shooter. There is also a “vodka” device, but little is known about the Snapdragon 888 inside.
Asus introduced the Zenfone 7 line in August 2020. So you could wait a while for a Zenfone 8 Mini, provided it ships. Even so, it gives hope to Android fans who are missing out on the days when you can easily buy a powerful phone that is small enough to be operated with one hand.