ASUS Launches Flagship ROG Phone II Ultimate Gaming Beast With 1TB Storage
ASUS is rolling out an upgraded version of its newly minted ROG Phone II gaming handset. Announced at IFA, the new ROG Phone II Ultimate Edition maintains many of the core hardware specs of the regular version, but upgrades the storage to a capacious 1TB of UFS 3.0 ROM (twice as much as the top storage option on the standard model). It also boasts faster Cat 20 4G LTE download speeds, enabling downloads of up to 2Gbps (versus 1.2Gbps on the standard model).
Beyond the core hardware upgrades, the ROG Phone II Ultimate Edition offers a distinctive look with an exclusive new color theme, consisting of a matte black. ASUS also mentions "distinctive patterning emblazoned on the back cover," though the same is true for the standard variant of the ROG Phone II.
The rest of the phone is the same, and that is not a bad thing. One of the main selling points is the 6.59-inch AMOLED display with a blazing fast 120Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time. It is a 10-bit pane. with HDR support. According to ASUS, brightness can crank up to 600 nits. It also boasts a 500,000:1 contrast ratio, and is reinforced with Corning Gorilla 6 Glass.
At the heart of the ROG Phone II (standard and Ultimate Edition) is a speedy Qualcomm Snapdragon 855+ processor. This is an octa-core part that is built on a 7-nanometer manufacturing process, with a 2.96GHz clockspeed. It is mated with up to 12GB of RAM.
For snapping photos, there is a 24MP camera on the front of the handset, and both 48MP and 13MP (125-degree ultrawide angle) cameras on the rear.
This has the potential to be the ultimate gaming phone. We were impressed with the first generation ROG Phone, which excelled both as a gaming handset and as a high-end Android phone in general. The new ROG Phone II line looks to improve upon the original with faster specs and more feature.
The ROG Phone II will start at 899 Euros and will be available on September 20, followed by the ROG Phone II Ultimate Edition releasing sometime in the fourth quarter, priced at 1,199 Euros. US pricing has not been announced, but if going by a straight currency conversion (unlikely to be the case), those amounts equate to around $990 and $1,320, respectively.
