Asus unveiled its ZenFone 5 line, hailed by the company as bringing AI technology and advanced camera features to the mid-tier.

The three handsets –ZenFone 5, ZenFone 5 Lite and ZenFone 5Z – include a number of features comparable to those seen on high-end flagship handsets, including AI photo capabilities, which change the properties of an image based on software identification of the subject.

At its Mobile World Congress launch event, Asus head of global marketing operation Marcel Campos said the handset would be sold on its camera functionality, power and the AI platforms developed for the handsets.

He added many of its features were platform built with “AI in mind.” “There are big things AI, there are small things in AI, but all are important if they help the user.”

The flagship ZenFone 5Z and standard ZenFone 5 are 6.2-inch, dual camera handsets with a wide-angle image support and facial recognition security technology. The higher end version contains more RAM and storage and runs on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chip, whereas the standard version uses a lower-spec Snapdragon 636 processor.

The Lite version is slightly smaller – at-6-inches – and uses a Qualcomm Snapdragon 630 platform.

Asus CEO Jerry Shen said: “We embarked on the ZenFone project four years ago with the idea to create empowering luxury for everyone to enjoy. Today, the ZenFone 5 Series is the most intelligent ZenFone series ever, utilising advanced AI algorithms and big-data analytics to provide users with a unique slate of intelligent camera, communication and convenience features.”

ZenFone 5Z will be priced from €479 Euros and available from June. Prices for the other two handsets were not revealed. The ZenFone 5 will be available in April, with the Lite set for a March launch.