The new Asus ROG Phone 3 comes with some significant improvements over the ROG Phone 2. Of course, Asus has always been known for quality tech products and has continuously pushed forward in the realm of gaming tech, with some of the best gaming laptops and phones in the business.
Dedicated gaming phones are a newer addition to the smartphone market although they are starting to seriously gain in momentum. Just like in the laptop world, a gaming phone doesn't just mean it comes with a number of tweaks specifically designed with gamers in mind, but it also tends to mean a premium product in general. Furthermore, considering the price of non-gaming premium smartphones has continually climbed in recent years, the cost of picking up a gaming smartphone might not be that unreasonable, especially considering what the buyer is getting in return.
Now that the ROG Phone 3 has been unveiled, it is pretty clear that Asus is aiming to be the name brand that consumers look to for mobile gaming. This is a premium product built specifically with gaming in mind and it can handle some impressive feats for a mobile device. However, the question that remains is not whether it's a good gaming phone, but what exactly makes the ROG Phone 3 so much better than the previous ROG Phone 2?
The first thing that noticeably stands out about the ROG Phone 3 is the lack of internal storage with only 512 GB, compared to the ROG Phone 2's 1TB. This is not a huge detraction, however, because a lot of mobile gaming, whether it be on Google Stadia or Microsoft xCloud, is done through streaming. Speaking of which, streaming should be a breeze on the ROG Phone 3 with dual-band Wi-Fi, 16 GB RAM, and 2 SIM card slots that support 5G. The ROG Phone 2 feels outdated in comparison, with only single-band Wi-Fi, 12GB RAM, and SIM card slots that only support up to 4G LTE.
The CPU and GPU have also received a nice upgrade with the 3.1 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 Plus 5G and the Qualcomm Adreno 650. Which should net some high frame-rates and smooth performance while playing any game that you throw at it. Still, the ROG Phone 2 is nothing to scoff at with a 2.96 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 Plus CPU and a Qualcomm Adreno 640 GPU. It's safe to say that both phones are very powerful for mobile gaming, but you should notice a nice boost in performance on the new ROG Phone 3.
Those interested in recording media or taking pictures with the ROG Phone 3 should notice an upgrade in quality as well. For starters, the new phone features three rear cameras instead of two, as well as the updated ability to record video in 8K UHD at 30 fps. The front-facing speakers have also been upgraded with DIRAC HD sound. It is also important to note that the ROG Phone 3 only features a USB-C output for audio, compared to the ROG Phone 2's headphone jack.
Some features have remained similar across the two phones such as the 6.59-inch display and a weight of 8.47 ounces. Both devices still feature the ten point multi-touch with Air Triggers. Though the new ROG Phone 3 does feature the new Air Triggers 3 which can be programmed to the user's comfort. There are also some minor features missing from the ROG Phone 3 that were on the ROG Phone 2. For example, there is no FM radio on the ROG Phone 3 and a lack of color options for the device, when compared to the ROG Phone 2. Overall the Asus ROG Phone 3 may be missing some small features from the ROG Phone 2, but the boost in power is definitely worth the trade-off.
Source: ASUS
