Jan 21, 2017 05:00 AM EST By Tyrone Smith, UniversityHerald Reporter

Asus certainly made the most of the Zenfone 3 smartphone series in 2016, as well as in early 2017. Now, tech critics are speculating the arrival of the Zenfone 4, the replacement of Asus to the Zenfone 3 smartphones.

The next-Gen Asus Zenfone 4 series is said to be announced sometime in the second quarter of 2017. The Taiwanese tech giant is expected to launch the first new Zenfone 4 handset in May 2017, citing sources from the handset supply chain in Taiwan, according to DigiTimes.

Asus CEO John Chen stated that the tech company plans to increase its sales by twice as much in 2017. In spite of that, reports are suggesting that the Taiwanese tech company plans to ship as many as 20 million handsets in 2017 in order to make up for the losses the company suffered in the first three-quarters in 2016. It can be recalled that Asus shipped 17.5 million smartphones in 2016, much less than the 20.5 million smartphones shipped in 2015.

Nonetheless, not much is yet known about the forthcoming Asus Zenfone 4 series, barring the fact that the smartphones will get upgraded with better specs than the Zenfone 3 range. Also, the new Asus Zenfone 4 smartphones are expected to cost higher compared to the Zenfone 3 smartphones. The newly unveiled Asus Zenfone AR Android smartphone does give tech fans an idea of the tech company's roadmap for 2017.

Although a few has been rumored about any future Zenfone 4 devices, one leak suggested a 5.2-inch device along with 4850 mAh. The device seems better suited to a Max long-battery device rather than a new flagship, Android Authority reported.

That being the case, if Asus follows the Zenfone 3 range, tech fans should see a standard Zenfone 4, a Zenfone 4 Max, as well as a Zenfone 4 Deluxe. Although the moniker Zenfone 4 is being used at the moment, Asus has used it back in 2014 when the number four denoted the screen size of the smartphone.

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