Introduction
In fact, we can even say that ROG has surpassed the distinction of being a sub-brand, as, at this point in time, it is far more likely for consumers to desire and demand the unique aesthetics and functionalities of the ROG lineup, over the cheaper, more reliable options from ASUS’s very own consumer and professional series of products. This is why ROG products easily dominate the gaming industry these days, with professional e-sports players and enthusiast gamers alike choosing to use ROG-approved hardware for their own personal use.
In an attempt to replicate this success in the smartphone segment as well, ASUS has taken upon itself to create a special series of gaming smartphones as well, called the 'ASUS ROG Phone. Even since the launch of the first model in the series, the ROG sub-brand once again became synonymous with extreme performance and a no-compromise gaming and media consumption experience.
Since a smartphone is already a self-enclosed computing and entertainment system, the company made it their mission to pick the latest and best components available on the market and fuse them together into this monster of a handheld gaming device, which just happens to be a phone as well. They have consistently tweaked and improved upon this formula with each generation, and have done the same with the launch of the much-awaited latest iteration of this experiment.
ROG Phone 6 Pro
This new model carries forward a lot of the design cues from the previous generation, as the platform is already pretty refined by now, in terms of the gaming phone aesthetic and overall build quality. The company still has made some changes to the back, including but not limited to upgrading the finish of the rear panel, changing the size and placement of the camera array, as well as adding a bigger rear mini display that was featured in last year’s premium model. The mini-display now sits sideways in the center of the back panel. You can customize the 2” OLED panel to showcase all sorts of notifications and logos, which is separate from the glowing ‘Dare to Play’ RGB logo that is also a new addition to the aesthetic.
On the front, the design remains exactly the same, although you get an upgraded 6.78-inch AMOLED display with a blistering fast 165Hz refresh rate. The front display now features Gorilla Glass Victus protection, with thick plastic bezels on the top and bottom, which house an upgraded set of dual symmetrical front-facing speakers. The speakers feature a 5-magnet stereo setup, with an in-built Cirrus Logic amplifier for louder, deeper, and less distorted sound.
The camera array features Sony’s IMX766 50 MP image sensor as the main shooter, which is supported by a 13MP wide-angle lens and a 5MP macro lens. The main lens features Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) support for more stability, while the front selfie duties are handled by a regular 12MP sensor.
Performance Upgrades
While these were mostly cosmetic changes and small improvements to media consumption and capture technologies, the real treat is in store for the true gaming enthusiasts. Who can now play even the most challenging games, at the highest possible graphical settings, with no perceivable lag, thanks to the inclusion of the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 SoC and up to 18GB of LPDDR5 RAM. While you can certainly go for the cheaper model which features less RAM and storage, we are only mentioning the upper limit, which for storage is set to 512GB for now.
To ensure you get the best of these components, the company has worked hard to overhaul the entire cooling system, which now features an 85% increase in graphite sheet size and a 30% increase in vapor chamber size. There is even a special Boron Nitride thermal compound that is pumped between the SOC and the frame below, to encourage up to 10 degrees of passive cooling gains, as compared to previous-generation models.
To get the most out of the device, you can further enhance the setup using the new AeroActive Cooler 6, which incorporates an AI-powered active cooling system that uses a Peltier cooling element to provide additional surface cooling with a fan positioned exactly over the location of the SoC. This will let you push the processor and memory to the max, for a longer period of time, without inflicting any permanent damage to your system.
The cooler also features 4 programmable buttons for gaming applications, which work in sync with the latest generation air triggers to provide you with a versatile gaming experience. You can set individual profiles for different games, and program all the buttons to follow different functions that suit the particular game. This way, you can enjoy gaming in a more comfortable ergonomic manner, while also getting extra usability out of the system. To sustain these longer gaming sessions, the phone has a split 6,000mAh battery cell, which also supports 65W wired fast charging for instant recharging at crunch time. This power can be delivered straight to the SOC using bypass charging, which helps increase the longevity of the batteries.
While this would be enough of a kit for most manufacturers to give in a single device, ASUS is planning to go above and beyond, by once again giving you lots of options for compatible gaming accessories that you can get with the system. You can get the Kunai gaming controller and a compatible phone case. Or the specialized deck that lets you turn your smartphone into a wireless console. In fact, with the initial purchase, you can even get an AeroActive Cooler 6 or a Devilcase Guardian Lite Plus, for free. As long as you are willing to pay up to 1000 pounds for the base model device alone.
