The ASUS ROG Phone II Review: Mobile Gaming First, Phone Second
by Dr. Ian Cutress on September 30, 2019 11:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Mobile
- Asus
- Qualcomm
- Smartphones
- ROG
- RGB
- Snapdragon 855 Plus
- ROG Phone II
Battery Life
With a 6000 mAh battery, the ROG Phone II already promised out of the gate to have some substantial staying power. The big battery is meant to compensate for having additional features like the 120 Hz display and X Mode which might consume more battery during gaming. Nonetheless, in our standard Wi-Fi battery test, it smashes new records.
Setting the display to 200 nits, our web battery test simulates accessing webpages with a variety of features with scrolling – standard operation for any smartphone.
In the default 60Hz mode that the phone ships in, it results in over 16 hours of runtime, that caters for any ‘all-day’ battery claim, and is certainly above any other smartphone on the market. Moving to a perminent 120 Hz mode loses about 20% of the battery life.
Similarly, the PCMark battery test also dropped 20%, however the average score in the PCMark battery test on 120 Hz mode did increase by 17% (10746 vs 9152) , indicating the tradeoff that a higher refresh screen might bring.
Not being the standard smartphone reviewer, unfortunately I do not have access to all the tools that Andrei does for his testing. As a result, our display testing is fairly basic. At 100% APL, the peak brightness was measured at ~450 nits, which is below ASUS’ claim of 600 nits. It is likely that ASUS’ number is peak brightness (1% APL), not full screen. We also measured the white point at ~8450K.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
75 Comments
View All Comments
PeachNCream - Tuesday, October 1, 2019 - link
Ian doesn't mention a weakness to kryptonite and I didn't see it wearing a cape so at this point the answer is unclear.Notmyusualid - Sunday, October 6, 2019 - link
Ha!Chad - Tuesday, October 1, 2019 - link
Pretty amazing device. Glad to see someone pushing boundaries in some ways.sonicmerlin - Tuesday, October 1, 2019 - link
If they want to make a "gaming phone" why not add some physical controls like the Nintendo Switch?hemedans - Thursday, October 3, 2019 - link
This Asus phone has physical control like switch, but you have to buy them separate.sonicmerlin - Tuesday, October 1, 2019 - link
I just realized I can't edit my comment so... at least include a controller accessory that attaches to it directly and acts as a cover as wellDianaDSmith - Wednesday, October 2, 2019 - link
sherazNotmyusualid - Wednesday, October 2, 2019 - link
As a ROG2 owner, happy to see you reviewed this 'phone'.I didn't buy this for gaming.
For me, the purchasing decision lay with the battery size, the front facing speakers (great for GPS in the rental car to be heard), the dual sim & dual 4G (it was 4G+3G on S8+), headphone jack, and finally, lack-of curved screen - which I shall never part money for again.
Mine is the 128GB/8G version, it was too cheap to ignore.
Oddly, my Slingshot Extreme Physics score is 4,837 vs your 4,541 (ran Sep 27, 2019 22:08, check it online), which would easily top your chart. Glitch in the matrix? Dunno.
I have a Chinese ROM, (and it was updated this morning). Whilst its rare to see the fact that it is a Chinese ROM, you do see it from time to time, in some screens, despite being set to English.
I had it on launch-day. There was no 'sim card manager' in the s/w!?! I was unable to change data sim, choose a sim with which to respond with sms etc without popping a sim out to force a pop-up. This has now been corrected.
Additionally, I initally never saw my dual sims report 4G & 4G. This has also been somewhat corrected, but as I sit in the UAE now, I am 3G & 4G. There is no way to force 4G & 4G from the menus. It will either do it (not often) or not, you have no choice. You can however set 3G & 3G, or 2G & 3G etc (but why). On the plus side, whichever sim is chosen for data, with take over the 4G role. So something here still very much requires attention.
I miss the wireless charging, but the battery-size somewhat negates that. It was nice with the Samsung to drop it on the pad, everytime I sat down at the desk, and know it would be further topped-up when I picked it up to walk away again. And it was nice having the water protection as well, (considering we have a pool), as I have drowned a new handset before...Hmm, maybe I should back this thing up.
s.yu - Wednesday, October 2, 2019 - link
What did you get to cover the back?Notmyusualid - Wednesday, October 2, 2019 - link
It shipped with a clear plastic hard case. But I changed it for a clear rubberised one.