Asus ROG Telephone 9 Professional Assessment: Snapdragon 8 Elite Cellular Gaming Unleashed

	Asus ROG Telephone 9 Professional – Accessible for $1,199 (Professional) and $1,499.99 (Professional Version) The most recent Asus ROG Telephone affords severe gaming efficiency with the Snapdragon 8 Elite and even longer battery life.
	Wonderful OLED display Lengthy battery life and quick charging (with included plug) Shoulder buttons are helpful for gaming Big storage and RAM Implausible efficiency in X-mode Sharp, vibrant show with 120Hz refresh ×Quick 80W charging and included plug ×Wonderful efficiency with Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 ×Alert slider is again	Extraordinarily excessive worth Digital camera cannot sustain with equally priced telephones Solely two OS updates

Most trendy telephones can run hottest video games pretty effectively, however in case you’re choosy, flagship telephones can usually ship superior visible constancy. If, nevertheless, you demand the very best cell gaming expertise attainable, you want one thing purpose-built for gaming on the go. The most recent Asus ROG Telephone 9 Professional comes with the brand-new Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite processor, extra RAM than a number of computer systems, and configurable triggers buttons. There’s even an non-obligatory cooling fan.

The ROG Telephone 9 Professional is the quickest Android smartphone by any measure, but it surely additionally instructions a premium. The bottom mannequin ROG Telephone 9 begins at $1,000, and the Professional begins at $1,199.99. Essentially the most succesful model is a staggering $1,500 (the Professional Version), but it surely comes with the cooling fan accent. Is blazing efficiency price such a considerable premium? Let’s discover out.

Asus ROG Telephone 9 and 9 Professional Options and Specs

Asus has been making Android telephones beneath its ROG model for years, however final yr marked a giant change for the product line. Asus left behind the aggressive gamer aesthetic for a barely extra refined design. There are nonetheless gaming options galore, however just like the ROG Telephone 8, the ROG Telephone 9 would not scream “gaming telephone.”

The ROG Telephone 9 Professional cuts an imposing silhouette with its IP68 matte black physique. It is also fairly heavy at 227g, which is simply about 10g lighter than Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 6 foldable telephone. The ability and quantity buttons are straightforward to search out by really feel, and so they’re very clicky. Nevertheless, they’re additionally wobbly sufficient that you may hear the aluminum rattle whenever you press them. This is not a dealbreaker, however a $1,500 telephone shouldn’t have unfastened buttons.

The ROG 9 Professional sports activities a giant 6.78-inch OLED display. It is solely 1080p, however the density nonetheless seems to be ok at that dimension. The panel is totally flat, however the glass cowl curved only a bit on the edge to clean the transition to the aluminum body. Most telephones have a single port and a few buttons, however the ROG Telephone 9 Professional has much more occurring.

There’s an optical fingerprint scanner beneath the show, and it would not appear to have modified from final yr. It really works effectively sufficient, although it is slower than the sensors on equally priced telephones. It unlocks the telephone on the primary attempt more often than not, but it surely’s noticeably slower than the ultrasonic sensors utilized in Samsung and Google telephones now.

On the underside edge, this telephone has a USB-C port and a 3.5mm jack—a real rarity in 2024. That is additionally the place you may discover the SIM tray, and there isn’t any eSIM help on this telephone stateside. On the fitting edge, you’ve got obtained the facility and quantity buttons. That is additionally the place Asus has added the Air Triggers, that are each simply mappable to in-game controls. On the left facet is a second USB-C port that may cost the telephone whereas gaming and in addition hook up with the AeroActive Cooler X Professional, which is included with the Professional Version we have been testing.

The again of the telephone is nearly similar to final yr’s gadget, a clean expanse of evenly textured glass with a couple of model marks and a racing stripe. The glass is not very grippy, however we do just like the fascinating texture. The cameras once more reside in a big squircle-shaped module. It stands out starkly from the again of the telephone, making certain this gadget won’t ever lay flat on a desk.

The AniMe Imaginative and prescient LEDs are again, too. Final yr’s telephone dropped the LCD of older ROG Telephones in favor of the illuminated dot matrix, and the ROG Telephone 9 improves on it. The ROG 9’s AniMe Imaginative and prescient has 648 LEDs beneath the again glass, twice as many as final yr’s telephone. Most of them are white, however there is a financial institution of purple LEDs beneath that. Asus has included quite a few animations and standing shows that you may toggle on and off within the settings, and you may add your individual pictures too. In order for you this a part of the telephone flashing continuous, that is an possibility. Alternatively, you’ll be able to solely use it for choose functions like previewing calls and checking charging standing.

The utility of AniMe Imaginative and prescient is questionable, however Asus is doing all the things in its energy to make the function enjoyable. It is form of working, too. The ROG Telephone 9 Professional features a suite of easy retro-inspired video games for AniMe Imaginative and prescient managed with the shoulder buttons. There’s an infinite runner, an Asteroids knock-off, a Breakout clone, and snake. The video games, which have on-line leaderboards, are surprisingly enjoyable and work effectively. We would wish to see extra video games added sooner or later, although.

One of many major complaints with Asus’ 2023 ROG redesign was the lack of front-facing audio system. The ROG Telephone 9 would not change that—you continue to have one speaker within the earpiece and one bottom-firing—however the official circumstances now embody a “cone” that redirects sound towards you from the underside speaker. It is a considerate change, however we’re happier to see the underside speaker positioned in such a approach that it is unlikely to be blocked by your hand in panorama orientation. The audio is mostly tremendous for a telephone however should not it’s greater than that for such a premium gadget?

Asus ROG Telephone 9 Professional: Software program, AI Expertise And Replace Assist

The ROG Telephone 9 Professional runs Android with  Asus optimized options and a ROG theme. The default ROG theme has a distinctively “gamer” aesthetic with angular app icons and fonts. The inventory Android theme is an possibility although, in case you desire a extra typical look. We recognize that Asus has separated its system optimizations from the theme, and you may toggle on particular person UX enhancements. For instance, you should use one in all Asus’ fast settings layouts, that are denser than inventory Android, or you’ll be able to revert to Google’s model. It is the identical for the facility menu, quantity panel, and so forth.

The ROG Telephone 9 Professional runs Android 15 out of the field, which is an effective factor as a result of having the newest software program is preferable. It is good to see the newest model of Android as a result of Asus solely guarantees two main OS updates for this telephone. That is not ideally suited when a telephone prices this a lot, however not less than you do not have to burn one of many scant updates simply getting up-to-date.

Naturally, AI is a serious focus of the ROG Telephone 9. Qualcomm says its newest cell chip reaches new heights in NPU throughput, which is able to theoretically make AI options extra highly effective. The telephone has numerous AI instruments we have seen on different gadgets, like telephone name translation, and AI transcripts within the recorder app. You can even seek for pictures within the gallery app with key phrases.

A lot of Asus’ AI options are particular to gaming. For instance, X Sense integrates with choose video games like Genshin Affect to automate selecting up objects, operating lengthy distances, and different tedious issues. You can even report gameplay with the ROG Telephone’s pop-up in-game menu, and AI may be employed to routinely report and save necessary moments. Once more, this requires a supported recreation. 

Briefly, this telephone is overflowing with options—even Samsung cannot contact the sheer variety of toggles, buttons, and menus on the ROG Telephone 9 Professional. It may be a little bit overwhelming, however this gadget is geared toward avid gamers. When you’re deep right into a cell recreation to the purpose you’d contemplate shopping for an ultra-premium gaming telephone, you in all probability need all these options so you’ll be able to tune the telephone’s conduct to your preferences. The ROG Telephone 9 undoubtedly delivers for choosy avid gamers.

Asus ROG Telephone 9 Professional: Cameras, Pattern Pictures And Efficiency

The Asus ROG Telephone 9 Professional has a triple digital camera array similar to final yr’s telephone. There is a 13MP ultrawide digital camera, a 32MP 3x telephoto, and a 50MP main. Whereas the primary shooter’s decision stays at 50MP, the sensor has been upgraded to a Sony Lytia 700 from the IMX890 of final yr’s mannequin.

With the fitting lighting, the ROG Telephone 9 Professional can take some good images. The colours are good, and publicity instances are manageable even for motion photographs. Nevertheless, the colours aren’t constant throughout the three shooters. The principle and ultrawide cameras are roughly true-to-life, however the telephoto seems to be a bit muted. The ultrawide additionally retains edge distortion to a minimal.

When lighting is poor, publicity instances improve markedly in comparison with different telephones on this worth vary. That makes it troublesome to reliably seize motion. Evening mode images will not assist with that, however you may get some good photographs with boosted element in case your topic is stationary. The telephone additionally has pretty good stabilization—you’ll be able to shoot longer Evening Mode images with out worrying about minor jostling. Asus says it could actually get rid of 5 levels of motion compensation, 2 levels larger than final yr’s telephone.

Low gentle, no night time mode

There’s a normal softness to the ROG Telephone 9’s images that you do not see with Google or Samsung cameras. Nevertheless, we’re noticing some enhancements versus final yr’s ROG Telephone. The 9 Professional retains a bit extra element, and the low-light efficiency is okay as an alternative of poor. We would chalk that as much as the brand new Sony sensor, which guarantees improved pictures in darkish settings.

Evening Mode

The bottom mannequin ROG Telephone 9 drops the telephoto and has a macro shooter as an alternative. Some telephones use ultrawide sensors with autofocus to take macro pictures and not using a devoted lens, however the ROG Telephone 9 Professional would not try this, which looks as if a missed alternative contemplating the bottom mannequin has that performance.

High to backside: Ultrawide, Major, 3x Telephoto

To offer you a way of how the totally different focal lengths of the three rear shooters have an effect on composition, we have supplied the pattern photographs above. As you’ll be able to see, there is a stark distinction in attain from the ultrawide to the telephoto digital camera.