Asus Zenfone 8 vs Samsung Galaxy S21 FE
A spec-by-spec comparison of the Asus Zenfone 8 and the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE, taken from their full specification sheets. Green marks the better value in each measured row.
Head to head
| Asus Zenfone 8 | Samsung Galaxy S21 FE |
| Price | $399 | $167 |
| Our rating | 8/10 | 7/10 |
| Battery | 4,000 mAh | 4,500 mAh |
| Wired charging | 30W | 25W |
| Storage (max) | 256 GB | 256 GB |
| Screen size | 5.9 in | 6.4 in |
| Refresh rate | 120 Hz | 120 Hz |
| Main camera | 64 MP | 12 MP |
| Weight (lower is lighter) | 169 g | 177 g |
| Released | May 2021 | Jan 2022 |
Summary: Asus Zenfone 8 is ahead on our rating, wired charging, main camera, weight (lower is lighter). Samsung Galaxy S21 FE is ahead on battery, screen size.
★ Which should you buy? Asus Zenfone 8 is the stronger overall pick on the measured specs. If budget matters more than the extra capability, Samsung Galaxy S21 FE is the cheaper option.
Reviewed by the infozme.com Editorial Team — see how we research & rate phones.
Display
| Asus Zenfone 8 | Samsung Galaxy S21 FE |
| Type | Super AMOLED, 120Hz, HDR10+, 1100 nits (peak) | Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 120Hz, HDR10+ |
| Size | 5.9 inches, 84.6 cm2 (~82.9% screen-to-body ratio) | 6.4 inches |
| Resolution | 1080 x 2400 pixels, 20:9 ratio (~446 ppi density) | 1080 x 2400 pixels, 20:9 ratio (~401 ppi density) |
| Protection | Corning Gorilla Glass Victus | Corning Gorilla Glass Victus |
| Features | 1ms response time, 240Hz touch sampling rate | — |
Platform
| Asus Zenfone 8 | Samsung Galaxy S21 FE |
| Chipset | Qualcomm SM8350 Snapdragon 888 5G (5 nm) | Qualcomm SM8350 Snapdragon 888 5G (5 nm) - Version 1 or Exynos 2100 (5 nm) - Version 2 |
| CPU | Octa-core (1x2.84 GHz Cortex-X1 & 3x2.42 GHz Cortex-A78 & 4x1.80 GHz Cortex-A55) | Octa-core (1x2.84 GHz Cortex-X1 & 3x2.42 GHz Cortex-A78 & 4x1.80 GHz Cortex-A55) - Version 1 or Octa-core (1x2.9 GHz Cortex-X1 & 3x2.80 GHz Cortex-A78 & 4x2.2 GHz Cortex-A55) - Version 2 |
| GPU | Adreno 660 | Adreno 660 - Version 1 or Mali-G78 MP14 - Version 2 |
| OS | — | Android 12, upgradable to Android 16 (One UI 8) |
Memory
| Asus Zenfone 8 | Samsung Galaxy S21 FE |
| RAM Options | 6GB, 8GB, 16GB LPDDR5 | — |
| Storage Options | 128GB, 256GB UFS 3.1 | — |
| Card Slot | No | — |
| RAM | — | 6GB, 8GB |
| Storage | — | 128GB, 256GB |
| Card slot | — | No |
Main Camera
| Asus Zenfone 8 | Samsung Galaxy S21 FE |
| Dual | 64 MP, f/1.8, 26mm (wide), 1/1.73", 0.8µm, PDAF, OIS (Sony IMX686); 12 MP, f/2.2, 14mm, 112˚ (ultrawide), 1/2.55", 1.4µm, dual pixel PDAF (Sony IMX363) | — |
| Features | LED flash, HDR, panorama | LED flash, auto-HDR, panorama |
| Video | 8K@24fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/240fps, EIS | 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60fps, gyro-EIS |
| Triple | — | 12 MP, f/1.8, 26mm (wide), Dual Pixel PDAF, OIS; 8 MP, f/2.4, 76mm (telephoto), PDAF, OIS, 3x optical zoom; 12 MP, f/2.2, 13mm, 123˚ (ultrawide) |
Selfie Camera
| Asus Zenfone 8 | Samsung Galaxy S21 FE |
| Single | 12 MP, f/2.5, 28mm (standard), 1/2.93", 1.22µm, dual pixel PDAF (Sony IMX663) | 32 MP, f/2.2, 26mm (wide) |
| Features | HDR | HDR |
| Video | 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/60fps, EIS | 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60fps |
Battery
| Asus Zenfone 8 | Samsung Galaxy S21 FE |
| Type | Li-Po 4000 mAh, non-removable | Li-Ion 4500 mAh, non-removable |
| Charging | 30W wired, PD3.0, QC4 (60% in 25 min, 100% in 80 min advertised), 10W reverse wired | 25W wired, 15W wireless, 4.5W reverse wireless |
Body
| Asus Zenfone 8 | Samsung Galaxy S21 FE |
| Dimensions | 148 x 68.5 x 8.9 mm (5.83 x 2.70 x 0.35 in) | 155.7 x 74.5 x 7.9 mm |
| Weight | 169 g (5.96 oz) | 177 g |
| Build | Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus), glass back (Gorilla Glass 3), aluminum frame | Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus), plastic back, aluminum frame |
| SIM | Dual SIM (Nano-SIM, dual stand-by) | Single SIM (Nano-SIM) or Dual SIM (Nano-SIM, dual stand-by) |
| Water & Dust Resistance | IP68 dust/water resistant | — |
| Colors | — | White, Graphite, Lavender, Olive |
| Durability | — | IP68 dust/water resistant (up to 1.5m for 30 min) |
Comms
| Asus Zenfone 8 | Samsung Galaxy S21 FE |
| WLAN | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6/6e, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct |
| Bluetooth | 5.2, A2DP, LE, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive | 5.0, A2DP, LE |
| Positioning | GPS (L1+L5), GLONASS (L1), BDS (B1/B1c/B2a), GALILEO (E1+E5a), QZSS (L1+L5), NavIC (L5) | GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO |
| NFC | Yes | Yes |
| Radio | No | No |
| USB | USB Type-C 2.0, OTG | USB Type-C 3.2, OTG |
Launch
| Asus Zenfone 8 | Samsung Galaxy S21 FE |
| Announced | May 12, 2021 | 2022, January 04 |
| Status | Released May 13, 2021 | Available. Released 2022, January 07 |
| OS | Android 11, upgradable to Android 13, ZenUI 8 | — |
Frequently asked questions
Which has the better battery, Asus Zenfone 8 or Samsung Galaxy S21 FE?
Samsung Galaxy S21 FE — 4,000 mAh for the Asus Zenfone 8 versus 4,500 mAh for the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE.
Which is lighter, Asus Zenfone 8 or Samsung Galaxy S21 FE?
Asus Zenfone 8 — 169 g for the Asus Zenfone 8 versus 177 g for the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE.
Which is newer, Asus Zenfone 8 or Samsung Galaxy S21 FE?
Samsung Galaxy S21 FE — May 2021 for the Asus Zenfone 8 versus Jan 2022 for the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE.
Is the Asus Zenfone 8 or the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE rated higher?
We rate the Asus Zenfone 8 8/10 and the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 7/10.
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