Gamers probably know everything so well that they won’t get the best hardware for more than a few months. Now, say “hello” to the new S-series of Asus ROG Phone 5, the successor to the original line released in April of this year.
Asus ROG Phone 5s Pro
The new series upgrades from the original chip 2.84GHz to the Snapdragon 888 + chipset with a 3.0GHz prime core (Cortex-X1). The AI engine has been boosted by 20% and currently offers 32 TOPS (up from 26 TOPS). Chipsets aren’t the only upgrade for new models, but we’ll talk about that. First, let’s meet two newcomers.
Yes, there are two. Asus ROG Phone 5s and ROG Phone 5s Pro. There is no Ultimate version this time, but Pro has been upgraded to 18 GB of RAM (LPDDR5) and 512 GB of storage (UFS 3.1). These were the main attractions of the Ultimate model in the first place. The new Pro model will also have a color PMOLED display on the back (Ultimate had a monochrome display).
Asus ROG Phone 5s (Storm White) and ROG Phone 5s Pro (Phantom Black)
If 18/512 GB sounds like overkill, there are multiple Asus ROG Phone 5s configurations. They start at 8 / 128GB, move to 12/256 GB, and end in a 16 / 256GB configuration. Neither model has a microSD slot, but it does support NTFS-formatted external USB drives.
As before, there is no display on the back of the vanilla model, only the Republic of Gamers logo with RGB backlight. There are also two touch sensors on the back of the Pro model (which can be used as a game control). However, the vanilla phone has an ultrasonic AirTrigger 5 shoulder button.
When I checked the ROG Phone 5, the touch screen latency was the lowest in the world among smartphones, with a touch latency of only 24.3 milliseconds. That’s no longer true as the 5s duo reduced that number to 24.0 ms, thanks to the faster touch sampling rate of 360Hz (from 300Hz).
Asus ROG Phone 5s (Storm White and Phantom Black)
The display remains a 6.78-inch Super AMOLED panel with 1080p + resolution and a 144Hz refresh rate (1ms response time). The panel is HDR10 + certified and covers approximately 151% of sRGB and 111% of DCI-P3. The standard brightness on the APL100 is 800 nits, which is also bright (that is, the entire display appears white).
The display hasn’t changed since the original ROG Phone 5 series, and the physical design hasn’t changed either. Highlights also include a 6,000 mAh battery with 65W wired fast charging, a side connector with USB 3.1 Gen2 speed, DisplayPort 1.4, and fast charging support. There’s also a 3.5mm headphone jack at the bottom, but you can use the AeroActive Cooler 5’s headphone jack because it blocks when you hold the phone horizontally (two buttons added in addition to the cooling fan).
Please note that the cooler is bundled with Asus ROG Phone 5s Pro only, and the Vanilla 5s only comes with a 65W charger and Aero case. Coolers usually sell for $ 70.
The Pro comes with a 65W charger, case and cooling fan • Optional Kunai 3 gamepad
Speaking of accessories, the 5s model is compatible with all 5 Series extras and supports some of the older ROG Phone 3 accessories. This includes the Kunai3 gamepad, but not the TwinView Dock 3.
