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There is no doubt that the Asus ROG Phone 5 is a beast – as a gaming phone it packs everything of the latest and best material, and that makes him a really fat boy. Asus focuses on gaming-centric features that will delight its core demographic, but the ROG 5 isn’t a complete nightmare to use outside of gaming, either. The ROG Phone 5 delivers stable everyday use with the added benefit of killer specs that can be tweaked and tweaked like a gaming PC. It is indeed a phone for gamers, but that means it lacks some popular features and the software has rough edges. It might be the right phone for the right person, but it will be a tough sell for most with an asking price over $ 1,000.
Design, material, what’s in the box
Asus will offer a whole family of ROG phones this year: Standard, Pro, and Ultimate. The Pro probably won’t be coming to the US, and the Ultimate is a limited edition around the world, so I don’t have hopes of catching one. That leaves us with the Standard, which comes in two variants, one with 12GB of RAM and the other with 16GB, both of which contain 256GB of storage. We have the 16 GB version for review.
ROG 5 offers a fairly clean look with a slight gaming aesthetic thanks to its optional RGB logo lighting. The power button and SIM card slot offer a crisp blue tone that contrasts with the white back and black front for a pop of color. The design is much less aggressive than previous ROG phones – it’s just interesting something to stand out without being too flashy.
The ROG 5 is a big phone with a 6.78 inch screen. This 1080p OLED display looks pretty crisp and colors are consistent across all brightness levels. It’s an improvement over last year’s model, which had a low-light grain issue. This screen offers a refresh rate of up to 144Hz and you can lock the device at that rate for smoother animations. This means that fast-paced games can be easier to play – your opponents may only see 60 frames per second, but you get more than double that in some games. High refresh also makes the phone UI much more responsive.
Much like last year’s ROG 3 (yes, Asus skipped a number), the ROG 5 offers two USB C ports, two touch triggers, a clear screen (no built-in cameras here, but there are plenty of frame), double-sided – speakers, notification light and in-display fingerprint reader. You also get a 6000mAh battery, which is actually two 3000mAh packs on each end of the phone. They charge to 65W with included charger, plus you can use the relay to power the device when playing to reduce heat.
Sound is a big plus of the ROG Phone 5. Not only do we have two front speakers, but the device includes a DAC that supports high resolution audio, and there is sophisticated software built in that can adjust the sound. its from the front. – Facing the speakers to ensure they provide the best possible output. The ROG 5 sounds great no matter how you listen.
Asus is still pushing peripherals with the ROG 5, like the Kunai 3 gamepad case (see below). There’s also the AeroActive Cooler 5 fan, a controller clip that supports Xbox and PS controllers, a Lightning Armor box that offers its own rear lighting, a few different models of Cetra headphones, and a docking station.
The Kunai 3 gamepad stands out here. This is a split pad that works the same as the stock controllers for the Nintendo Switch, and they connect via USB C or Bluetooth. This means that you can slide the separate controllers into the provided phone case for a Switch-type portable experience, or you can attach them to a separate controller frame that works via bluetooth. Both methods worked well with native Android games as well as with Stadia. Latency has never been an issue either.
It should also be noted that the AeroActive Cooler 5 can be connected when the Kunai 3 gamepad is in use, which is why the phone offers two USB-C ports. The resulting contraption is bulky in your hand, but it allows for a bit of extra cooling while sitting still for an extended gaming session. The weight is similar to that of the Switch Lite.
If you choose to do without the extra peripherals, you can expect to receive the phone, 65W charger, a clear case, a few stickers, and an assortment of instruction booklets in the ROG Phone 5 box.
Software, performance and battery
Once again, Asus offers two UI choices when setting up your device. There’s a classic theme that’s akin to standard Android, then there’s the default theme, which has a gaming aesthetic. I chose Classic, and it works just like Android, Google Discover, and all. I wish more manufacturers would offer a similar choice.
Classic left, default right
The phone software is full of many gaming-oriented options. The majority of these settings can be changed in the Armory Crate app, which you can easily access from a Game Genie menu anytime you are in a game. The options inside are plentiful. You can adjust temperature control, CPU / GPU performance, RAM performance, fan speed, and best of all, combine your networks for dual mode which should improve network stability and speed. Asus has clearly spent a lot of resources on the the game features, but the feature set is pretty straightforward apart from that.
Armory Crate app on the left, Armory Crate in-game on the right
Of course, what good are all of these options unless you can actually see the results of your changes? This is why I love that Asus has included a real-time information widget that can be viewed anytime in the game. This way you can adjust the settings in the Game Genie slider while monitoring your frequency. of images, your heat and the CPU / GPU percentages. This extreme customization will make gamers happy, but it’s not useful for the average smartphone user.
Real-time information widget at the top of the screen
The ROG 5 will ship with Android 11. Asus has confirmed that the ROG Phone 5 line will get at least two years of software support, although previous devices have missed quite a few updates so I wouldn’t have much. hope for Android 12 or fast security updates.
When it comes to overall performance, the ROG 5 flies, especially if you lock the screen refresh rate at 144Hz. Smooth as butter is an often-rumored phrase, but the display is exactly that. The apps loaded quickly and all the games I tested exceeded my expectations.
Nothing slowed this phone down, not even Genshin Impact, which kept a reasonably solid 60fps at its highest graphics setting (although there was some stuttering when loading assets). While testing Dead Cells, I was able to play at maximum graphics at 144Hz all the time. Sure, many games cap your frames at 60 or 30, so you can’t always enjoy a high refresh rate, but the performance is quite surprising when you can.
Playing mobile games at the highest possible settings comes at a cost for the battery, which is why you get 6000mAh. Pushing 144 fps for a few hours in any demanding game is going to reduce your battery life, but maybe not as much as you think. Can’t say I’ve ever been worried about running out of juice, and while that does end up being a problem, the device’s fast charge will work quickly on low battery. Using the device like a regular phone gave me over two days at no cost, and even with intensive gaming testing, going all day wasn’t a problem either.
Left: normal use battery level (slider), right: high gaming battery level (slider)
Cameras
During the reveal of the ROG Phone 5, Asus admitted that the cameras in the ROG Phone line were not a priority. Apparently, the company is only aiming to deliver the best camera available in a gaming phone, which is a low bar. While I can say that both the front and rear cameras are usable, I would expect better performance for the price of the device. But then again, gaming phones often compromise on the cameras.
The main sensor is 16 MP with an aperture of f / 1.8 and pixels of 1.6 um, which allows for good images in outdoor lighting, although low light is a weakness, just like on the ROG 3. The second rear sensor is ultra-wide at 16MP with an f2.4 aperture, and the third sensor is a 5MP macro with an aperture of f2.0. The front camera packs 24 MP with an f / 2.45 aperture, allowing for pretty detailed selfies as long as the lighting is good.
Should you buy it?
The ROG Phone 5 is hands down the best gaming phone I’ve used to date, but it comes at a cost, and I’m not just talking about the hefty price tag. The Asus ROG brand is aimed almost exclusively at gamers, which is why cameras aren’t the focus and why we’ll likely never see wireless charging or waterproofing. So whether or not you are willing to live with these compromises, it’s on a case-by-case basis.
If your goal is to have the best mobile gaming experience possible, this phone is for you. Whether you’re a mobile streamer, a mobile eSports gamer, or just a die-hard mobile gamer, the ROG Phone 5 offers a plethora of options and peripherals to ensure you see the best possible performance in all of your favorite mobile games.
But here’s the thing; this phone is going to be expensive. Perhaps too much expensive, even. Asus says pricing in the US is still being decided, but the price in Euros equates to $ 1,069 for the 12GB model and $ 1,188 for the 16GB version I received. Asus has confirmed two years of software support, but this support is often slow or absent altogether, which is why the phone is a bit more difficult to recommend.
As a gamer, I still think the ROG Phone 5 is a high brand in the nascent gaming phone market. Personally, I’m happy to see Asus release such a fantastic gaming phone, and the tradeoffs don’t bother me too much.
Buy it if:
- You want the best possible Android gaming experience.
- You like to tinker with the settings to get the best possible gaming performance.
- You are a mobile game streamer or heavy in the esports scene.
Don’t buy it if:
- You need fast and reliable operating system updates.
- You prefer small devices that don’t weigh a lot.
- You take a lot of pictures.
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