When the Razer Phone created the “gaming phone” market in 2017, it rolled out with distinctive options hardly ever—if ever—seen in smartphones: a excessive refresh fee display screen, binned processors, copper vapor chambers, and in-your-face “gamer” aesthetics. But within the years since, a lot of these “gaming” options have trickled right down to mainstream telephones from firms like Samsung, OnePlus, and plenty of extra. Don’t be fooled: Despite the mainstream adoption of a few of their options, fire-breathing fanatic units like the brand new Asus ROG Phone 7 Ultimate proceed to innovate and supply distinctive experiences.
Here are three key options that helps the Asus ROG Phone 7 Ultimate stand out from the mainstream lots, and one function that falls far behind.
I really feel like I’m dishonest at COD: Mobile utilizing the Asus ROG Phone 7 Ultimate
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Adam Patrick Murray/Foundry
The Asus ROG Phone 7 Ultimate’s audio rocks
As an audio engineer by commerce, I’ve at all times put nice sound on the forefront of my buying selections. Unfortunately, most main smartphones sacrifice on audio. Phones hardly ever have nice audio system, digital to analog converters, or perhaps a headphone jack. On high of that, many individuals have moved to Bluetooth headphones and like slim bezels to large, booming built-in audio system anyway.
Videos on PCWorld’s YouTube channel by no means sounded higher
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Adam Patrick Murray/Foundry
Then there’s the Asus ROG Phone 7 Ultimate. It sacrifices the thinnest bezels for front-facing stereo audio system that may make your ears quiver. The sound that comes out of this cellphone blows my thoughts in comparison with regular smartphone audio system. And despite the fact that I’ve loads of headphones, generally I don’t at all times wish to put one thing in or on my ears.
The rich-sounding audio system and genius tuning of the ROG Phone is ideal for us audio nerds irrespective of whether or not you’re gaming or watching movies. Even higher, the ROG Phone stubbornly clings to the timeless 3.5mm headphone jack, and with the connected AeroActive Cooler 7 you get one other headphone jack obtainable to be used in panorama mode.
Control it your approach
For severe gaming classes I don’t at all times wish to use the contact display screen, pair a Bluetooth controller, or strap on a tool just like the Razer Kishi. Good information! The Asus ROG Phone 7 Ultimate affords so many additional management choices that it makes my head spin.
The cellphone options 14 particular management inputs by way of touch-sensitive buttons in addition to 10 completely different movement management choices. Strap on the AeroActive Cooler 7 and also you truly get 4 bodily buttons alongside the again aspect.
So many management choices at your disposal.
Adam Patrick Murray/Foundry
Having these additional inputs could make all of the distinction if you’re enjoying video games like Call of Duty: Mobile or Fortnite. Some video games don’t help controllers in any respect, or restrict them to particular makes use of, so gaming telephones present a particular benefit versus counting on touchscreen-only strategies.
For instance, in a typical recreation of COD: Mobile I map reloading, crouching, aiming down the sights, and firing to 4 completely different button presses. This frees up my thumbs to give attention to transferring my character and aiming on the display screen. Without these additional inputs I must pause motion with both thumb to press a button to do one thing like hearth, making me a a lot simpler goal. So whereas I don’t truly use the entire choices obtainable to me it’s superior to have them within the first place and may enable for tremendous personalized setups.
The Asus ROG Phone 7 Ultimate is cool as a polar bear’s toenails
Most flagship telephones are greater than able to enjoying the newest video games, in fact, however they only aren’t optimized for it from a cooling standpoint. Keeping that beastly Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip operating cool is crucial to get most efficiency throughout gaming.
You can tailor the ability and cooling efficiency to your liking within the included Armoury Crate
Adam Patrick Murray/Foundry
Asus prioritizes efficiency by persevering with to innovate its cooling system within the ROG Phone 7 Ultimate and doing issues like inserting the most well liked elements within the heart of the gadget. This spreads warmth throughout the entire cellphone for extra even cooling, whereas additionally maximizing the cooling potential (and thus efficiency) when attaching the AeroActive Cooler 7 to the again of the gadget.
That upgraded cooler now includes a Peltier cooler in addition to an AeroActive Portal that additional helps the warmth dissipation. The improve to a Peltier cooler truly makes the AeroActive Cooler 7 a viable accent in comparison with previous iterations, and makes use of lively cooling to wick away warmth from the again of the cellphone. The AeroActive Portal (solely obtainable on the Ultimate model) opens up when the Cooler is connected and permits for extra direct airflow to the most well liked elements. (It’s additionally tremendous enjoyable to look at open.)
The AeroActive Cooler 7 lastly makes a severe affect to cooling.
Adam Patrick Murray/Foundry
The cooling options within the ROG Phone 7 Ultimate itself have additionally been upgraded, particularly with new designs round its vapor chamber and graphite sheets. Improvements with snazzy names like Liquid Return channels and Wick Column Structures truthfully transcend my degree of comprehension, however on the finish of the day I do discover that this cellphone stays cool even after lengthy gaming classes. I do know I can push this cellphone arduous and have it not lose any efficiency regardless of how lengthy I play. I additionally know that I don’t have to fret about my palms getting sizzling and sweaty from holding a sizzling slab for an hour. The similar definitely can’t be stated for each flagship smartphone available on the market.
The digital camera isn’t nice although
With a lot to like concerning the beastly Asus ROG Phone 7 Ultimate, might it actually have an Achilles’ heel? Unfortunately, it does possess one main draw back that might preserve me from utilizing this cellphone each day: the digital camera.
As knowledgeable photographer and video producer I simply can’t depend on this digital camera system to take photographs and video the best way I would really like. While the digital camera {hardware} is greater than succesful, it’s the processing that lags behind and simply can’t sustain with my wants. The photographs popping out of the ROG Phone 7 simply don’t really feel pure to life, affected by issues like poor white stability readings, over processed HDR, and liberal quantities of sharpening.
The digital camera system simply can’t sustain with the perfect of them.
Adam Patrick Murray/Foundry
To be honest, the photograph high quality of the ROG Phone line has improved through the years. It’s not a horrible digital camera—it simply doesn’t come shut sufficient to the opposite flagship smartphones in its value vary and stands out as a obvious weak point amidst a complete heap of awesomeness. And in fact, it actually is dependent upon how a lot you personally care about digital camera efficiency in your cellphone, however it bums me out and I actually hope Asus can proceed to enhance on it.
Regardless of the weak digital camera efficiency, the remainder of this cellphone is a beast. The Asus ROG Phone 7 Ultimate stands out from the group with leading edge options. That’s the important thing, actually. Fully loaded, enthusiast-class gaming telephones like this assist push your complete cellular ecosystem ahead, and I’m thrilled that producers like Asus proceed to innovate within the house. Mainstream telephones may not have adopted options like vapor chambers and excessive refresh fee screens as shortly if gaming telephones didn’t blaze the path first.
Now if solely we might get at the very least one headphone jack again on different telephones…