ASUS Zenfone AR: Case Review

The ASUS Zenfone AR is one of the most technologically advanced cell phones on the market today. The phone was announced by ASUS at CES 2017 and early on it was recognized for its innovative breakthroughs. The phone is currently the only one on the market that is both Daydream and Tango capable. Tango capability is achieved though ASUS’s TriCam System where an array of sensors is coupled together to enable the phone to know its position in space relative its surroundings. Daydream capability is achieved by the Qualcomm® 821 Snapdragon processor which was optimized for this device. That is pretty much all I will say of the phone in technical space. There are many other reviews and ASUS’s own website you can read to see what else is packed in this beast. We are here today to look at a few cases for the phone.
I’ve owned this phone since late June when it became available in Taiwan. I purchased it on eBay from an exporter and was one of the first people in America to own the device along with a few others that were daring enough to take a chance and have one imported. Naturally, my first concern with this investment was protecting it. Below are the cases I’ve tried out and my review of each.
ASUS Clear Polycarbonate Case

The first case up in the review is the one which comes packaged with the phone. The fact that ASUS provided a case with the phone shows the care for the product considering its cost. While this case does an acceptable job of protecting the edges of the phone from casual bumps, it did not leave me with confidence the phone would survive a drop from waist height.

I felt the phone was a little too slick with this case. I used it for 1 week before purchasing the second case you will see in this review and on a few occasions dropped it picking it up from the table due to its slickness.

With the case on the phone you will notice it does not add much to its size which is something many people will be interested in. While the phone is not the largest one out there it is significantly larger than a SG8 and approximately the same size as a SG8+.

The case does not cover the volume rocker or power button. This is nice if you prefer the natural feel of the buttons as provided by ASUS.

The case does an ok job of protecting the TriCam System by recessing the camera in the case. With out a case, the camera array protrudes up and when the phone is laying on its back it’s supported by the array.

The speaker, USB Type-C port, and headphone jack are all open and accessible.
The case provided by ASUS gets the job done if you are looking for just a simple case that provides minimal protection while ensuring access to all ports and buttons as provided by ASUS. This may be more a trust thing with me trusting myself not to drop the phone, but as mentioned earlier, this case did not give me much confidence the phone would survive a drop from non-negligible height. This prompted me to purchase a case manufactured by Tudia.
Tudia Merge Case

The next case I purchased for my Zenfone AR was a Tudia Merge. The case is available for sale on Amazon. This case is much more rugged than the one provided by ASUS and provides a greater sense of security when the phone is in it. The case is a combination of a polycarbonate outer layer with Thermoplastic Polyurethane (TPU) rubberized gel skin. While I did not conduct a drop test with the phone I feel this case would provide acceptable shock absorbance if the phone were dropped on one if its corners.

With the added security does come a little more size. The Tudia Merge is a little on the bigger side, but not too big. The phone still fit comfortably in my hands with the case on.

The TPU gel skin adds nice friction when holding the phone. I was not as worried about the phone slipping from my fingers with this case as I was with the case provided by ASUS.

The Tudia Merge surrounds the volume rocker and power button. As expected, the tactile feel was more numb than with out the case. This wasn’t a show stopper by any means. I did not find that I had any any times where a button click was not registered.

This case provides even more protection of the camera array by recessing it in the case more. Naturally this comes from the extra girth the case provides.


The case surrounds the headphone jack, USB Type-C port, and speaker but there are more than adequate cutouts provided to ensure no interference when something is inserted or music is playing from the integrated speaker.
All in all, I feel this case was an upgrade to the polycarbonate case provided by ASUS. I did end up opting for a more versatile case that provided secure protection. This case is the LK Wallet Flip Case which is the last case in this review.
LK Leather Wallet Flip Case

With my previous phone (HTC M9) I rocked a wallet case that allowed me to eliminate carrying a separate wallet with my phone. It took me some time but I finally found LK’s PU leather wallet case on Amazon. I was hesitant buying it at first due to the increased volume of phone I would have to carry around but when I received it I fell in love with it. The protective shell that surrounds the phone is made of soft TPU. The shell looks nice and is easy to get the phone in and out of while also providing shock absorbance.



The case is roughly the same length and height dimensions of the Tudia but the LK adds some thickness, especially when you have a few cards inserted. This may throw some people off but I did not find the added thickness to be a problem. This phone still fit well in my front and back pocket.

The case surrounds the volume rocker and power button. Due to the TPU being soft I feel the button tactility was somewhat maintained with this case. It is not as tactile as not having a case installed but more tactile than the Tudia.

As with the other two cases, the camera array is recessed in LK’s design. This one provides the most coverage of the TriCam System. The case does interfere with some Tango apps due to how close the edge is to the sensors. I normally take the phone out of the case if I’m using a Tango app so this did not bother me much.


Similar to the Tudia, LK’s case surrounds the headphone, USB Type-C port, and speaker but provides ample cutouts for your auxiliary devices to be installed and allows sound to exit the speaker unhindered.
Wrap Up
All these cases server their intended purpose well. If you purchased this amazing, technologically advanced piece of hardware you would do well to protect your investment. At a minimal use the case provided by ASUS. If you want a little more protection or versatility the other two case reviewed in this article will serve you well. If you are a case manufacturer and would like you case added to this list, please reach out to me. I’m happy to expand this review. Now, It is time to go back to enjoying this phone. -LG
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