A little over two weeks ago ASUS rolled out a rather hefty update for its recently released ASUS ZenFone 6 smartphone. The majority of the changelog for this update included optimizations and improvements to the camera but it also included power consumption improvements, improved call quality, and more. Shockingly, the update seems to have also included a change that is causing some ZenFone 6 smartphones to malfunction. It's rare to see a software update trigger hardware defects of the device, but it has happened before.

After being away for so long, ASUS made a big splash with the release of the ZenFone 6. The company has been able to gain an enthusiastic fanbase with previous ZenFone smartphones and continue to be able to do so. The ASUS ZenFone 6 offers a unique smartphone experience with a minimal front bezel display, high-end hardware, and an affordable price point. The company has even gone out of its way to send some free units to various community developers in an attempt to kickstart the dev scene.

ASUS Zenfone 6 XDA Forums

Another way ASUS has been able to keep the ZenFone 6 on the radar (and keep its users in good spirits) is by pushing out a number of new software updates. The device hasn't been out that long and it has already received more software updates, feature improvements, and new features than many of its competitors. However, that software update late last month brought with it something that is causing devices to malfunction from a motherboard defect. Reports began rolling in over the weekend and an official ZenTalk forums moderator has filled users in on what is going on.

Firstly, all devices impacted by this issue from the update with build number 16.1220.1906.167 are required to be sent to an ASUS Service Center. We're told it is most likely related to the hardware even though issues only started to crop up with this recent update. Issues which include the phone glitching frozen, sudden reboots, and random apps/services simply crashing for seemingly no reason at all. Not all ZenFone 6 devices on the market have this motherboard malfunction issue. Our own review unit and the devices given to developers from ASUS have not been affected.

The moderator goes on to say that fixing this hardware defect with software is just a band-aid approach and that is why they are requesting people get their affected units to an ASUS Service Center. That way the root cause of the issue is fixed (the motherboard), and the customer won't have to worry about future updates triggering the same issue.

Via: PiunikaWeb