With the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, the newest gaming phone from Asus, the ROG Phone 8 Pro Edition, boasts a higher performance ceiling.
Yet, in comparison to earlier versions, the design is the most noticeable change in the most recent ROG Phone. Asus has decided to tone down the nerdy design so that it will appeal to people who aren’t huge gamers.
Furthermore, Asus has added a 32MP telephoto sensor to the camera, which allows for a 3x optical zoom, to compete with flagships that aren’t made for gaming.
Instead of fervently sticking to a niche, it makes sense for Asus to go after a bigger market. But is the Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro Edition likely to turn off its die-hard fans? Before its release, I got my hands on the phone to see it in more detail.
Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro review
Pricing
The Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro Edition costs £1299/$1499 and can only be bought from the ASUS Official Online Store. For the price, you get the Pro Edition with 24 GB of RAM, 1 TB of storage, and an AeroActive Cooler X included.
If that’s out of your price range, the regular ROG Phone 8 with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage is worth considering at £949/$999. At the same time, the ROG Phone Pro, which comes with 512 GB of storage and 16 GB of RAM, costs £1099 or $1299.
You can start pre-ordering the Asus ROG Phone 8 family right away. If you order the ROG Phone 8 Pro before February 4, 2024, you’ll get a free AeroActive Cooler X.
Design
- A more grown-up design aimed at a larger group of people
- Skinnier, with a bezel that isn’t as thick
- The AniMe Matrix lights give it style and personality.
So many changes have been made to the Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro Edition’s design that it’s hard to tell it apart from phones like the flashy ROG Phone 7 Ultimate. For a more understated style, the sci-fi emblems have been removed. This might let down gamers who want flashy, in-your-face style, but it makes it more appealing to a wider range of people.
Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro Edition does have some gaming-specific design quirks, though. In particular, I enjoy the anime Matrix feature, which uses 341 programmable LED lights on the back to show things like the time, battery life, and notifications.
You can even adjust the lights’ colors and patterns, or disable them entirely to save power, according to Asus. While the ROG Phone 8 Pro Edition and ROG Phone 8 Pro are the only ROG Phones that come with this AniMe Matrix feature, the regular ROG Phone 8 can only have the ROG logo lit up in RGB.
Once you turn the phone upside down, you’ll notice that the Asus ROG Phone 8 series features a noticeably thinner screen bezel. Asus was able to keep the 6.78-inch screen size and shrink the phone thanks to this. The Asus ROG Phone 8 is much thinner than its predecessor, which makes it much easier to hold, even for someone like me with small hands.
By putting the selfie camera under the screen and giving it a small hole to poke through, Asus was able to get rid of the bezel. This design choice, which is used by most Android phones, helps to update the ROG Phone 8 series to modern standards. The fingerprint sensor that is built into the screen is also being maintained by Asus.
One of my favorite things about the ROG Phone 7 Ultimate was the AirTriggers, so I’m glad they’re back. Games like Call of Duty and Genshin Impact both make use of virtual triggers on the edge of the phone for actions like shooting and activating abilities. You can make it exactly how you want it, right down to choosing the level of vibration that you ll enjoy.
Concerning ports, the Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro Edition has two USB-C ports: one at the bottom, where it should be, and the other on the left side, so you can keep gaming while plugging in the included AeroActive Cooler X. Another unusual feature for smartphones in the year 2024 is the presence of a headphone jack.
With support for Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.3, the Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro is incredibly modern when it comes to wireless technology. Asus has upgraded the phone’s durability by giving it an IP68 rating, making it waterproof to the same level as Google’s and Samsung’s flagship phones.
Screen
- The screen is still 6.78 inches.
- The AMOLED screen is now even brighter.
- Still has a refresh rate of up to 165Hz
When compared to its older siblings, the screen of the Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro Edition has not undergone significant changes. Nothing has changed with the 6.78-inch AMOLED display, Full HD+ resolution, or 165 Hz refresh rate.
But Asus has managed to make the peak brightness much brighter, going from 1600 nits to a huge 2500 nits. Even with my limited time with it, the screen is noticeably better than the one on my Google Pixel 6, which appeared lifeless in comparison.
AMOLED technology also makes sure that the screen can show deep blacks instead of muted grays, which makes the contrast stunning.
While increasing the resolution might shorten the battery life, it’s hard to imagine how Asus could make this already great smartphone screen even better. To ensure that the screen lives up to the promising first impressions, however, I will have to wait until I can test it in its entirety.
Cameras
- A new telephoto camera lets you zoom in three times.
- Picture and video are more stable with a gimbal.
- More people can now be in the frame of a selfie camera.
Asus’s ROG Phone series hasn’t been able to compete with more traditional phones from Apple, Google, and Samsung because of its camera. Luckily, Asus plans to fix that by making big changes to the sensors.
This time around, the main 50-megapixel sensor found in the Asus ROG Phone 8 family is aided by a new gimbal that can help to ensure that photos and videos are captured stably.
However, the 5MP macro sensor has been swapped out for a brand-new 32MP telephoto sensor, and the wide 13MP sensor is also back. As far as Asus is concerned, it has a 3x optical zoom, so you can get close-up shots of faraway objects.
With the new Asus ROG Phone 8 series, you still get a 32MP front-facing camera, but Asus says the field of view has grown from 73° to 90°. For a group selfie, this should make it easier to get more than one person in the picture.
Before our full review comes out, I’ll let you know what I think of the camera. In the meantime, it’s great to see that Asus is improving the ROG Phone’s weakest point.
Spanning of Battery and Performance
- One of the speediest chips you can buy
- The Pro Edition has 24GB of RAM.
- The battery is smaller now.
Equipped with the brand-new Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, which can reach speeds of up to 3.3GHz, the Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro Edition seems to be one of the most powerful phones in the world. We think that more phones will have this chip in 2024, but for now, only a few have it.
It also has 24GB of RAM, which is impressive. I think this is too much RAM for a gaming phone. The ROG Phone 8 comes with 12GB of RAM, which is plenty, and the ROG Phone 8 Pro has 16GB, which is a good balance.
When I think about the Pro Edition, the huge 1TB storage makes me more interested. If you want to buy one of the less expensive models, the ROG Phone 8 comes with 256GB of storage space, while the ROG Phone 8 Pro comes with 512 GB.
Asus boasts about its extensive silent efforts to enhance thermal efficiency through the implementation of a new rapid-cooling conductor design. It’s possible to get the AeroActive Cooler X that comes with the Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro Edition and lower the temperature on the back of the phone by up to 26°C.
As of now, I haven’t been able to test the phone’s performance or play any games on it, so it’s hard to say how it stacks up against older phones. I’m sure this phone will be one of the most powerful ones on the market, though, based on its specs.
When comparing this phone to the one that came before it, the battery life is what worries me the most. As part of its efforts to reduce the thickness of the Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro Edition, the company had to cut the battery capacity from 6000mAh to 5500mAh.
However, the Snapdragon chip’s better efficiency may make up for the shortfall in battery life, and the ROG Phone 7 Series could already last more than a day with normal use. So, I’m not that concerned, but I will wait to make a final decision until I can test the battery in my comprehensive review.
Bottom Line
With the Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro, the company is trying to tone down the series’ geeky design elements so that it’s more appealing to people who aren’t gamers.
Although the smaller battery may mean that people now care more about how things look than how well they work, the cutting-edge Snapdragon chip, AniMe Matrix back, and a huge number of gaming features still make this phone a great choice for gamers.
When I had the chance to play with the Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro Edition, I was impressed. However, I won’t be able to make a final decision until I can fully test the performance, battery, and cameras.
Also Read