Latest news
June 17, 2019: Android 9 Pie update is now available for the ZenFone 4 model ZE554KL.
May 25, 2019: As of today, Asus has rolled out Android Pie updates to the ZenFone 5, ZenFone 5Z, Max Pro M1, Max Pro M2, and Max M2 in its stable form. As for the ZenFone 4 Max and ZenFone 4 Selfie, the update is still in beta.
Original article below:
Asus isn’t the most common of names in the Android fraternity, but when it comes to software updates, the Taiwanese company doesn’t disappoint, to say the least.
We saw it happening with Android Oreo updates, where the ZenFone 4 series started getting the OS at the end of 2017 and others from the ZenFone 3 series joined the party later in Q1 and Q2 2018. We expect more of the same with Asus Android 9 Pie update, where devices such as the ZenFone 5 and 5Z are expected to lead the way ahead of the ZenFone Max M1 family, but then again, Asus hasn’t made its plans official, so anything could change somewhere along the way.
Related:
- Android 9 Pie release roadmap
- Android 9 Pie Gapps
- Android Pie features: Feature flags | Digital Wellbeing | App actions
Device list
| Device | Android Pie eligibility | Expected release date |
| Asus ZenFone 5 | Available | Download here | Released on December 20, 2018 |
| Asus ZenFone 5Z | Available | Released on December 27, 2018 |
| Asus ZenFone 5 Lite (5Q) | Eligible | Q1 2019 |
| Asus ZenFone Max M2 | Available | Released on April 10, 2019 |
| Asus ZenFone Max Pro M2 | Available | Released on April 10, 2019 |
| Asus ZenFone Max (M1) | Eligible | Q2 2019 |
| Asus ZenFone Max Pro (M1) | Available | Released on April 10, 2019 |
| Asus ROG Phone | Eligible | Q2 2019 |
| Asus Zenfone 4 Pro | Eligible | Q2 2019 |
| Asus ZenFone 4 ZE554KL | Available | Released on June 17, 2019 |
| Asus Zenfone AR ZS571KL | Unknown | — |
| Asus ZenFone Live (Go edition) | Unknown | — |
| Asus ZenFone Max Plus (M1) | Not eligible | — |
| Asus Zenfone 4 Max ZC554KL | Eligible | Q2 2019 (Beta available) |
| Asus Zenfone 4 Max ZC520KL | Not eligible | — |
| Asus Zenfone 4 Selfie Pro ZD552KL | Not eligible | — |
| Asus ZenFone 5 Selfie ZB553KL | Eligible | Q2 2019 (Beta available) |
| Asus Zenfone 4 Selfie ZD553KL | Eligible | Q2 2019 (Beta available) |
| The entire Asus Zenfone 3 series, including ZenFone 3 Deluxe |
Not Eligible | — |
Related: Will Android Pie updates roll out as easy as pie?
What to expect
Apart from Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1, all other Asus phones have the company’s custom ZenUI skin running on top of Android. This is what you’ll get when Asus Android 9 Pie update starts rolling out later in the year. It’s not the heaviest skins around, but you’ll still notice the changes in the UI compared to what stock Android offers – or even what is on the ZenFone Max Pro M1.
On the brighter side, you won’t miss out on the core features of Android Pie, among them app actions, app slices, gestures for navigation, smart replies, better notification management, and so on. You can check out all the new Android Pie features here. You can also take a quick peek at what the future holds in Android Q.
Unofficial Android Pie update
As of this writing, it’s already possible to install Android 9 Pie update on Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1. That’s exactly what a popular device gets you – an active developer community.
Android 9 based AOSP – Pixel Experience ROM is already available for downloading and flashing on the device, but we don’t expect this to stop there. More developers will definitely come in with more Android Pie ports not just for the ZenFone Max Pro M1, but also for several other Asus phones, although we don’t know which ones at the moment.
We’ll update this section with more details about the unofficial Asus Android 9 Pie update if and when they show up.
Related: LineageOS 16: Expected release date and device list
Do you own an Asus smartphone? Does it appear on this list? Let us know in your comments below.
