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ASUS and Samsung make the fastest-charging smartphones
Your smartphone's battery life is no doubt very important to you, but its charging time matters, too -- just ask anyone who's had mere minutes to top up a phone before heading out. So who offers the best recharge rates, then? Tom's Guide might have an answer. It recently conducted a charging speed test to determine which phones will deliver the most energy when you're in a rush. In short, you'll probably want to make a beeline toward either ASUS' Zenfone 2 or Samsung's Galaxy S6. The Zenfone 2 is the fastest in short bursts, giving you 32 percent power in just 15 minutes. The Galaxy S6 is faster overall, however, hitting 100 percent after 1 hour and 22 minutes.
ASUS makes a ZenFone 2 with a whopping 256GB of storage
Smartphones with more than 128GB of storage are still extremely rare, but they just became a little more accessible... if you live in Brazil, at least. ASUS has unveiled a Deluxe Special Edition of the ZenFone 2 that includes a cavernous 256GB of storage. You won't be hunting for a microSD card any time soon if you pick this up, folks. You'll also have the choice of carbon fiber- or crystal-like backs instead of the more pedestrian shells of the usual ZenFone 2. This special run arrives in Brazil this September. There's no mention of it reaching other countries, but here's hoping that it does -- cloud storage and streaming media will only go so far when you want lots of apps and videos at your fingertips. Update: ASUS has clarified that this 256GB model actually uses a combination of 128GB onboard storage and 128GB microSD expansion. Still a pretty tempting package, though. [Image credit: ASUS Fanaticos]
ASUS' lovely, low-cost ZenFone 2 hits North America tomorrow
ASUS' ZenFone 2 isn't exactly an unknown quantity -- we first saw it at CES earlier this year, and since then, the thing's been trickling onto store shelves around the world. Still, after a surreal, slightly awkward/slightly cool dance number, Chairman Jonney Shih made an appearance in New York to talk about bringing the company's newest flagship(s) to the US. Long story short, we're getting two models around these parts, one that'll cost $199 off-contract and another that'll run you $299. Read on for a better sense of that your hard-earned scratch will get you.
ASUS' new LTE phablet gives plenty of bang for the buck
It's been exactly one year since ASUS launched its ZenFone line of relatively affordable Android phones, and having shipped 8 million units so far, the Taiwanese company is keen to keep the momentum going. The new ZenFone 2 announced today isn't just better-looking, but it's also packed with great specs: 64-bit quad-core Intel processor, 5.5-inch (1080p) IPS display, Gorilla Glass 3, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, fast-charge technology, up to 4GB of RAM, microSD slot, Android 5.0 (with ASUS' pretty ZenUI) and more. Better yet, this dual-SIM LTE phone starts from just $199 unsubsidized when it hits the US in Q2. This is surprisingly aggressive -- even more so than the flagship devices from Xiaomi and OnePlus.
