Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro review

introduction

It’s that time of year again and ASUS has released a shiny new ROG Phone on the market: the ROG Phone 8 series, including some models. First up, there’s the vanilla ROG Phone with the familiar RGB Aura logo on the back and a choice between Rebel Gray and Phantom Black colors. Then there’s the ROG Phone 8 Pro. It’s only available in Phantom Black color with a different finish than the regular model and has a micro LED dot matrix display on the back. There’s also a special “edition” of the Pro version that comes with more storage and RAM and a ROG AeroActive cooler bundled in the box.

While we’re technically focusing on the final 24GB RAM and 1TB Pro Editon version in this review, we also have a vanilla ROG Phone 8 in the office. We’ll also sprinkle references to it throughout the review since the two phones are slightly different.

Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro specs at a glance:

• Body: 163.8×76.8×8.9mm, 225g; Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus 2), glass back (Gorilla Glass), aluminum frame; IP68 dust/water resistant (up to 1.5m for 30 minutes), AniMe VISION: Mini-LED 341 programmable matrix on the back, pressure sensitive zones (game trigger).
• Screen: 6.78″ LTPO AMOLED, 1B colors, 165 Hz, HDR10+, 2500 nits (peak), 1080×2448 px resolution, 20.4:9 aspect ratio, 395ppi.
• Chipsets: Qualcomm SM8650-AB Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (4 nm): Octa-core (1×3.3 GHz Cortex-X4 and 5×3.2 GHz Cortex-A720 and 2×2.3 GHz Cortex-A520); Adreno750.
• Memory: 256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 16GB RAM, 1TB 24GB RAM; UFS 4.0, NTFS support for external storage.
• Operating system/software: Android 14.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 50 MP, f/1.9, 24mm, 1/1.56″, 1.0μm, PDAF; Telephoto: 32 MP, PDAF, 3x optical zoom; Ultra wide angle: 13 MP, f/2.2, 13 mm, 120 degrees.
• Front camera: 32 MP, f/2.5, 29 mm (wide), 1/3.2″, 0.7 µm.
• Video Capture: Rear camera: 8K@24fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240fps, 720p@480fps; gyro-EIS, HDR10+; Front camera: 1080p@30fps.
• Drums: 5500mAh; Wired, PD3.0, QC5, 10W reverse wiring, 15W Qi wireless charging.
• Connectivity: 5G; Dual SIM; Wi-Fi 7; BT 5.3, aptX adaptive; NFC; 3.5mm socket.
• Various: Fingerprint reader (under display, optical); stereo speakers.

Right off the bat, it’s easy to see that the ROG Phone 8 has a new look this year. In fact, Asus says the ROG Phone 8 represents the kickoff to a brand new generation of ROG Phone products. The first three ROG Phone models (ROG Phone, ROG Phone 2, ROG Phone 3) are the first generation of more exploratory and experimental products as Asus was trying to figure out what a gaming phone should be. They were followed by the second generation (ROG Phone 5, ROG Phone 6, ROG Phone 7), characterized mainly by refinement and additional features.

Today we witness the third generation introduced by the ROG Phone 8. Asus outlines some priorities or key points for this third generation of ROG Phone. The main priority was to address ROG Phone users’ top complaints or wishes regarding the product. Therefore, it’s no surprise that the camera department has been the center of attention this year, with some notable upgrades taking place.

There’s also the addition of Qi wireless charging in the ROG Phone 8. The phone is also certified for IP68 ingress protection, making it the first “gaming” phone with it.

Of course, there are many other aspects of the Asus AeroActive Cooler phone and accessory to cover.

Unpacking

First, however, let’s admire the sumptuous retail packaging of the latest ROG Phone 8 Pro Edition, which comes with the bundled AeroActive Cooler X and one of Asus’ signature over-the-top boxes. The box is very large and has a hexagonal shape. It opens laterally with a closure held by a powerful magnet. There’s a lot of wasted space inside, even if some areas are used in this generation’s out-of-the-box setup experience, which, as usual, is a short game that Asus created to show off some of the phone’s features.

In terms of accessories, if you purchase the Pro Edition package, you’ll get the AeroActive Cooler X in the box, along with a carrying case. The rest of the accessories include a black plastic hard case or rather a protective snap frame, a nice braided USB Type-C to Type-C cable, and an ROG-branded 65W PPS PD charger.

You get a much simpler two-piece cardboard box if you don’t commit to the top-tier edition and get a regular ROG Phone 8 or a ROG Phone 8 Pro without the cooler. It is still very thick and sturdy and protects the phone perfectly. Plus, it’s not as wasteful as the large hexagonal box.

In a much-appreciated move, the base ROG Phone 8 also gets a pretty rich accessory package this year, including a plastic case that matches the color of the phone, a USB Type-C to Type-C cable, and the same 65-pin charger. W which we have already talked about. So, you don’t have to hunt for accessories and can immediately start using your shiny new device.