Published , by Donovan Erskine
Published , by Donovan Erskine
Tech company ASUS may be better known for its high-end laptops and PC accessories, but the company also manufactures a line of smartphones called the Zenfone. The upcoming Zenfone 10 will be the latest iteration of the product, and it might also be the last. According to new reports, ASUS may be shuttering its Zenfone division completely.
The rumors of ASUS shutting down its Zenfone division come from a Technews Taiwan report. The outlet, which is located in the same country as ASUS’ headquarters, alleges that the tech company informed employees about some internal reshuffling earlier this summer. After assigning workers to the Zenfone division, most of them were either laid off or reassigned to work in other departments at the company. Several of them will work on the ROG Phone, ASUS’ other smartphone line.
Android Authority provided some additional evidence to support the claims that ASUS has closed its Zenfone division. This includes ASUS recently removing older Zenfone firmware from its website, and no longer allowing bootloader unlocks for Zenfone devices.
The first Zenfone was released back in 2014, and ASUS has continued to iterate on its design in the years since. The Zenfone has often been on the forefront in the emergence of new smartphone software and hardware. Back in 2018, the ROG Phone joined ASUS’ mobile product line-up.
The Zenfone 10 is set to launch later this year, and will likely be the final phone in its line. As for what ASUS does with the ROG Phone and the other major products in its line-up, stay with us here on Shacknews as we continue to follow the latest developments.