ASUS today introduced the ROG Phone II, the company’s second-generation gaming smartphone. We got to check out the phone, here is our hands-on impressions.
The main highlight of the phone is its 6.59-inch (2340×1080 pixels) Full HD+ AMOLED display with 120Hz/1ms refresh rate, 240Hz touch sampling rate, 108% DCI-P3 and 10000:1 contrast ratio. The phone is protected by Gorilla Glass 6.
Powered by the latest Snapdragon 855 Plus Mobile Platform with up to 12GB of RAM, 512GB (UFS 3.0) storage, it runs Android 9.0 (Pie) with ROG UI, but you can switch to Android-like UI. It has 3D vapor chamber that efficiently transfer heat away from the SoC and into the body while gaming.
On the top there is a large speaker grill that also houses the earpiece. It has a 24-megapixel camera on the front. On the bottom there is a small bezel and the secondary speaker.
It has dedicated ultrasonic AirTriggers, similar to the predecessor, but this has faster haptic response rate with vibration latency of just 20ms compared to 63ms. You no longer have to raise your fingers before tapping. There is a customized connector on the side with USB 3.1 Gen 2/DP 1.4 and fast charging. It has the 3.5mm audio jack as well and features four noise-cancelling microphones.
On the back there is a 48-megapixel camera with 1/2″ Sony IMX586 sensor, 0.8μm pixel size, f/1.79 aperture, up to 4K 60fps video recording and 13-megapixel 125° ultra-wide secondary camera. There is dual-tone LED flash next to it.
It retains the customizable Aura RGB lighting on the back on the logo. There are also real vents on the back for better heat dissipation. The phone packs a huge 6,000mAh battery, so it is a big heavy at 240 grams, but the weight distribution is good. The 30W HyperCharge fast charging can charge up to 4,000mAh in just 58 minutes and two hours to fully charge the phone.
There are a lot of accessories, including the AeroActive Cooler II that is four times quieter, and it can reduce the surface temperature by up to 5° Celsius.
The Aero Case is a skeletal case that protects the phone, yet the RGB logo is visible, and it also lets you mount the clip-on fan over it.
The new ROG Kunai Gamepad, is similar to the Nintendo Switch.
As seen in the image, you can attach the two halves to the sides of the phone when gaming or attach them together and use them as a wireless gamepad to use it with WiGig wireless display dock, Pro Dock or the Mobile Desktop Dock when you are casting to a TV. TheGamepad is also used in conjunction with the TwinView Dock II.
The TwinView Dock II has the same 120Hz AMOLED panel as the phone, but it packs slightly smaller 5,000mAh batter. It also has a cooling fan, RGB lights, volume keys, USB-C port and a headphone jack, however it lacks an SD card slot, extra speakers, trigger buttons and haptic vibrators. It weighs 639 grams.
There is the same Mobile Desktop Dock with a lot of ports to connect a monitor, keyboard, mouse and LAN connection for an immersive gaming experience on a larger screen. There is also the Pro Dock and WiGig Display Dock Plus to cast your mobile screen to a TV.
The ASUS ROG Phone II is priced at 5,999 yuan (US$ 872 / Rs. 60,145 approx.) for the 12GB RAM + 512GB storage Classic version in China. Global roll out is expected sometime in September, so we can expect the India launch around the same time.
Photography by Siraj