Gaming phones are a growing segment of Android hardware, with Razer, ZTE, and Xiaomi all introducing gaming-focused handsets recently. Now ASUS is jumping on the trend, too.
The ASUS ROG Phone includes gaming features like a 6-inch 2160x1080 AMOLED display with a 90Hz refresh rate and AirTriggers, which are three ultrasonic buttons — two on the left edge for landscape, one on the right for portrait — that can be customized to perform certain actions.
ASUS has also included an X Mode to raise the minimum clock speed on the ROG Phone's Snapdragon 845 processor and keeps tasks on its four fastest cores to ensure speedy performance. And to help keep the phone cool, ASUS has used a copper heat spreader and 3D vapor chamber to transfer heat away from the SoC. The company even plans to sell an AeroActive Cooler accessory that'll blow air over the back of the phone to help dissipate heat further.
Speaking of accessories, ASUS will offer a Mobile Desktop Dock for the ROG Phone that'll let you hook the device up to a monitor, Ethernet, 5.1 speakers, and USB add-ons, while a WiGig Dock wil let you use wirelessly send your display to a TV. When you're on the go, the TwinView Dock will give the ROG Phone physical trigger buttons, enhanced cooling, a secondary display, and a 6000mAh battery.
Getting back to the ROG Phone itself, the device is packing 8GB of RAM and up to a whopping 512GB of built-in storage. There's a dual rear camera setup with a main 12MP camera and 8MP wide angle camera, and around front there's an 8MP camera. A 4000mAh battery powers the ROG Phone, and there are USB-C and 3.5mm headphone jacks included.
Rounding out the ROG Phone's feature set is a fingerprint reader, dual front-facing speakers, DTS Headphone:X 7.1 virtual surround sound, and Qualcomm apX high-def Bluetooth audio.
The ASUS ROG Phone will go on sale in Q3 2018. There's no word yet on where the ROG Phone will be available or how much it'll cost.
There's no question that the ROG Phone is a well-equipped device, boasting specs like 8GB of RAM and 512GB of storage that we haven't seen on many other Android phones to date. The aggressive styling might turn off some folks who aren't big gamers, but if you're into angled lines and top-end specs, stay tuned for more on the ROG Phone as we get it.