ROG Phone | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net KitGuru.net - Tech News | Hardware News | Hardware Reviews | IOS | Mobile | Gaming | Graphics Cards Thu, 30 Mar 2023 11:47:49 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.3 https://www.kitguru.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/cropped-KITGURU-Light-Background-SQUARE2-32x32.png ROG Phone | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net 32 32 ASUS ROG Phone II ramps up hardware specs and adds 120Hz OLED with HDR https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/matthew-wilson/asus-rog-phone-ii-ramps-up-hardware-specs-and-adds-120hz-oled-with-hdr/ https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/matthew-wilson/asus-rog-phone-ii-ramps-up-hardware-specs-and-adds-120hz-oled-with-hdr/#respond Tue, 23 Jul 2019 11:25:59 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=419193 It has been just over one year since ASUS first announced the ROG Phone and now, it looks like we are due a new model with a few significant upgrades. The original ROG Phone still has hardware to be reckoned with but the new and improved version will raise the bar further with a 120Hz …

The post ASUS ROG Phone II ramps up hardware specs and adds 120Hz OLED with HDR first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
It has been just over one year since ASUS first announced the ROG Phone and now, it looks like we are due a new model with a few significant upgrades. The original ROG Phone still has hardware to be reckoned with but the new and improved version will raise the bar further with a 120Hz OLED panel and 240Hz touch sampling, among a few other changes.

The ROG Phone II will sport a 6.59-inch 1080p OLED display with an integrated fingerprint sensor, 10-bit HDR visuals and a 120Hz native refresh rate. Beyond that, touch sampling will occur at 240Hz, so scrolling/swiping through apps will feel even smoother. This is similar to what Apple has implemented in the latest iPad Pro, with 120Hz touch sampling delivering smoother interactions with the display.

Image credit: ASUS

Another important thing to note about the display is that touch latency has been reduced to 49ms, this isn't something that is often talked about when it comes to smartphone touchscreens but Asus claims it is the lowest of any phone currently on the market.

Under the display, you will find a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 Plus processor running the show. This is a ‘gaming focused' SoC from Qualcomm that ramps up GPU and CPU speeds for improved performance in games. The cooling system inside of the ROG Phone II has had special attention paid to it too, with a vapour chamber and vents preventing the device from thermal throttling.

Other specs include 12GB of RAM, a 48-megapixel camera, a 6,000mAh battery and up to 512GB of storage. Users will also have the option of installing stock Android or using the Asus UI when first setting up the phone.

KitGuru Says: There is no price or specific release date for the ROG Phone II just yet but it will launch in China first and then there should be a global version some time in September. We'll be looking forward to seeing more of it ourselves. 

 

The post ASUS ROG Phone II ramps up hardware specs and adds 120Hz OLED with HDR first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/matthew-wilson/asus-rog-phone-ii-ramps-up-hardware-specs-and-adds-120hz-oled-with-hdr/feed/ 0
ASUS ROG Phone pre-orders go live in the UK https://www.kitguru.net/tech-news/featured-announcement/damien-cox/asus-rog-phone-pre-orders-go-live-in-the-uk/ https://www.kitguru.net/tech-news/featured-announcement/damien-cox/asus-rog-phone-pre-orders-go-live-in-the-uk/#respond Fri, 16 Nov 2018 18:44:54 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=395256 ASUS has finally revealed that the ROG Phone will be available in the UK as of December 14th, however early birds can shave £100 off the flagship handset simply by pre-ordering.

The post ASUS ROG Phone pre-orders go live in the UK first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
ASUS unveiled its ROG Phone back at Computex, showcasing a variety of features tailor-made for the mobile gamer. Just in time for the holidays, the firm has now revealed its UK launch date to be December 14th, however early birds might be able to snag a worthy deal by pre-ordering.

There’s no shortage of gaming smartphones on the market, with Razer releasing its sequel handset and Huawei recently throwing its hat in the ring with the Mate 20 X. ASUS has taken a slightly different approach thanks to its “pedigree” in the PC market, revealing its four cornerstones to the design of the ROG Phone.

First up is power. The ROG Phone boasts the world’s fastest Snapdragon 845 processor, thanks to ASUS’ vast PC knowledge enabling the firm to overclock as high as 2.96GHz. This has subsequently been coupled with 8GB RAM, 500GB of storage and a large 4,000mAh battery, supposedly helping the smartphone to top mobile gaming benchmarks. This did make for a flawless Fortnite: Battle Royale and PUBG experience, with no noticeable frame drops.

Of course, with greater power comes the need for better cooling in order to maintain performance. ASUS' solution to this is the same vapour chamber cooling often found in laptops, and heatsinks that are 16 times larger than many competitors. By contrast, the firm boasts that these methods help to keep the handset “60% cooler for longer, meaning users get 5 times the optimised gaming experience.”

For good measure, the company has also included its Air Active Cooling Fan that attaches via its side-mounted USB-C, reducing temperatures by up to 4.7 degrees °C. All showcased ROG Phones had this attached to their back. Although the fan was a little audible, the smartphone itself was almost untouched by heat despite running games the entire time.

None of this would particularly shine if the screen wasn’t cutting-edge. The 1080 x 2160 Super AMOLED panel sports a 90Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time, ensuring a smooth as butter frame rate. ASUS admits that “there are faster refresh rates out there, but that impedes your gaming experience. You don't get the same colour vibrancy or the same brightness.”

Lastly, the ROG Phone has to be ergonomically suited to the player’s hands. Not only is the device a good weight to hold, ASUS has attempted to re-create a controller-like experience by introducing its own take on shoulder buttons. Dubbed “Air Triggers,” players simply need to tap on the shoulders to activate the built-in mappable functions. The side-mounted USB-C port comes in handy once again, giving players the ability to charge their handset or plug headphones in without the wire becoming a hindrance.

The side-mounted USB-C connector supports a variety of peripherals, including the TwinView Dock, keyboard and mice, all of which debuted at Computex. Unfortunately, ASUS has revealed that only two first-party add-ons will be available in the UK, meaning those interested in the seemingly extensive library might have to rely on third-party or imports.

The ROG Phone is set to hit shelves at a retail price of £799 on December 14th. Pre-orders are now live in the UK from the ASUS store, and those that chip in early can get a cool £100 discount while stocks last, setting early birds back £699 in total.

KitGuru Says: Overall, the ROG Phone certainly does the gaming market justice with its premium build and stand-out performance. The one thing the ROG Phone has over its competitors is the modular ability to attach extra devices, which was sadly lacking at the London event aside from the Air Active Cooling Fan.  

The post ASUS ROG Phone pre-orders go live in the UK first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/tech-news/featured-announcement/damien-cox/asus-rog-phone-pre-orders-go-live-in-the-uk/feed/ 0
Republic Of Gamers Gaming Smartphone Preview https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/briony-hannam/asus-rog-smartphone-preview-with-harry-fu/ https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/briony-hannam/asus-rog-smartphone-preview-with-harry-fu/#respond Fri, 31 Aug 2018 07:41:09 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=384747 We first saw the ROG Phone when it officially launched back in June this year. It's no surprise that ASUS was showing off its new flagship mobile device at Gamescom as the design and features are specifically aimed at gamers. 

The post Republic Of Gamers Gaming Smartphone Preview first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
We first saw the ROG Phone when it officially launched back in June this year. It's no surprise that ASUS was showing off its new flagship mobile device at Gamescom as the design and features are specifically aimed at gamers. 

We already know ASUS has created the ROG Phone using speed-binned Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chips at 2.96ghz, promising very fast performance. You also get 8GB of RAM and a beastly 500GB of storage. But what makes this phone specifically aimed at the gaming market rather than just being another smartphone with high-end specs? Dominic finds out by interviewing Harry at the ROG booth during KitGuru's visit to Gamescom.

What we know so far:

Display:

  • 6-inch 18:9 (2160 by 1080) 90Hz, 1ms response time AMOLED display
  • 550nits brightness
  • Gaming HDR and Mobile HDR supported by dedicate hardware display chip
  • 108.6% DCIP3 and 10,000:1 contrast ratio AMOLED display with Corning Gorilla Glass
  • Capacitive touch panel with 10 points multi-touch (supports glove touch)

Specification:

  • CPU: 2.96GHz specially-binned Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 845 Mobile Platform with 10nm, 64-bit Octa-core Processor
  • GPU: Qualcomm® Adreno™ 630
  • Memory: Up to LPDDR4X 8GB RAM

Cameras:

Rear camera:

  • Sony flagship IMX363 12MP dual pixel image sensor – 1/2.55″ large sensor size, 1.4µm large pixel size
  • F1.8 aperture
  • 6p lens
  • 83° field of view
  • 0.03 seconds phase-detection autofocus
  • 4-axis, 4 stops optical image stabilization
  • LED flash

Rear camera 2:

  • 120° wide-angle camera

Front camera:

  • 8MP
  • F2.0 aperture
  • 24mm equivalent focal length in 35mm film camera
  • 84° field of view

Wireless technology:

  • WLAN 802.11a/b/g/n/ac 2.4 & 5GHz
  • WLAN 802.11ad 60GHz
  • Bluetooth 5.0
  • Wi-Fi direct
  • NFC

Sensors:

  • Rear fingerprint sensor (0.3 seconds unlock, supports 5 fingerprints), Face recognition, Accelerator, E-Compass, Gyroscope.
  • Proximity sensor, Ambient light sensor, Ultrasonic sensor for AirTriggers and grip press.

Battery:

  • 4000mAh
  • AI & scheduled charging for battery protection

Operating system:

  • Android™ Oreo 8.1 and ROG Gaming X mode UI

KitGuru says: We don't yet know the price of the ROG phone but expect it to be pretty expensive! It should be available around October/November time this year. 

The post Republic Of Gamers Gaming Smartphone Preview first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/briony-hannam/asus-rog-smartphone-preview-with-harry-fu/feed/ 0
Computex 2018: ASUS launches the ROG Phone https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/briony-hannam/computex-2018-asus-launches-the-rog-phone/ https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/briony-hannam/computex-2018-asus-launches-the-rog-phone/#respond Mon, 04 Jun 2018 12:42:34 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=375281 Today, ASUS is launching its first ROG Gaming Phone, featuring a very slim design, metal construction, a 90Hz AMOLED HDR screen, the world's fastest Snapdragon 845 chips and 500GB of storage. It also packs in some very innovative features for desktop connectivity and dual-screen usage!

The post Computex 2018: ASUS launches the ROG Phone first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
We've already had a good number of announcements from ASUS so far today, but this one might be the biggest yet. Today, ASUS is launching its first ROG Gaming Phone, featuring a very slim design, metal construction, a 90Hz screen, the world's fastest Snapdragon 845 chips and 500GB of storage. 

The ROG Phone was quite the surprise for us at Computex this year. From what we're told, ASUS has created the ROG Phone using speed-binned Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chips, promising the faster speeds than the competition by hitting a minimum of 2.96GHz. You also get 8GB of RAM and a beastly 500GB of storage. In order to properly tame all of the hardware under the hood, ASUS has kitted out this phone with a 3D vapor chamber cooling system. You also get an attachable fan in the box known as the ‘aero active cooler', which clips on to the back of the phone to provide additional cooling and offers USB-C and 3.5mm passthroughs so you can keep the phone extra cool while charging and using headphones.

The display is 1080p, AMOLED and supports HDR content along with a 90Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time. With all of that combined, you should be in for quite the experience, whether you are playing games or just viewing media. Speaking of the display, there is no notch, but ASUS has worked on slimming down the bezels.

The corners of the phone have something called ‘air triggers'. These are small areas that you can tap and they essentially act like shoulder buttons on a traditional controller. This gives serious gamers a way to control the action without having to tap away on the touch screen and blocking the image. ASUS has also focussed quite a bit on providing haptic feedback, so in all, gaming on this phone should feel a bit closer to gaming with a traditional controller, but with a big screen in the middle. The ROG Phone will also support third-party mobile gamepads, such as those from Game Vice.

In order to keep things powered, the ROG Phone comes with a 4000mAH battery, which claims to offer up to 7 hours of gaming, 40 hours of music streaming or 11.5 hours of video playback over WiFi on a single charge. The USB Type-C port supports Quick Charge 4.0, so you can juice the ROG Phone back up to 60 percent battery in just over 30 minutes. Another interesting fact about the battery is that the charging IC has been moved outside of the phone, this allows the internal components to remain cool while charging, ensuring that you'll continue getting peak performance for longer.

Benchmarks results touted at the Computex briefing showed us that the ROG Phone is capable of outscoring the competition in PCMark, GFXBench and AnTuTu.

Other interesting features of the ROG Phone include the TwinView Dock, which provides users with an optional second screen, which will be particularly useful for live streaming, allowing the chat to be seen on one screen and the game on the other. Alternatively, if you are a serious power user, it could also be good for multitasking, or viewing media while also chatting with friends. Similarly to the Samsung DeX, there is also a desktop dock, allowing you to plug in the ROG Phone, hook it up to a monitor and use a keyboard/mouse for the desktop experience.

The ASUS Game Center software on the phone will give you options to adjust the RGB lighting on the back of the phone. It will also show you stats  like CPU temperature, storage used and RAM currently being used. The software also gives you the option to adjust fan speed, so you can balance things between noise and cooling performance.

We don't have the final specs for the ROG Phone's cameras, but Briony took some comparison shots that you can see below:

 

So why is ASUS getting into the ‘gaming phone' business? Well according to the company's research, mobile is currently the largest gaming segment in the world. The market generates $46.1 billion each year, while PC gaming generates closer to $29.4 billion and consoles generate $33.5 billion. Beyond that, esports viewership continues to grow year on year, which is driving more interest in MOBAs, and Battle Royale titles like Fortnite and PUBG.

We don't have an exact price or release date for the ROG Phone just yet, but we are told that there will likely be several bundles on offer. This way, buyers can choose between just picking up the phone, or buying it with the Twin View dock and desktop docks included. Considering all of the engineering that went into creating this, and the performance it offers, we are expecting it to be quite expensive- this is unlikely to be a mass market product. However, it is a great ‘enthusiast' grade device.

KitGuru Says: ASUS has come out swinging with the ROG Phone, which seems to be a spec monster with plenty of enthusiast-friendly features. We'll be looking forward to getting one in for testing in the future! What do you guys think of the ROG Phone? 

 

The post Computex 2018: ASUS launches the ROG Phone first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/briony-hannam/computex-2018-asus-launches-the-rog-phone/feed/ 0