Asus unveiled the new ROG Phone 8 and ROG Phone 8 Pro at CES 2024. As the names suggest, the two are part of the company’s gamer-centric ROG Phone lineup. But interestingly, the company is hoping to entice more than just the gamers with the new phones. The Phone 8 and 8 Pro have top-end specifications, like their predecessor, but in a slimmer, smaller, and lighter chassis, giving non-gamers a reason to consider them. Plus, the phones support 15W wireless charging and have IP68 dust and water resistance.
But as gamers are still the primary target market, the Phone 8 and 8 Pro have improved thermals to deliver better gaming performance and a new AeroActive Cooler accessory to cool the phones further.
Asus ROG Phone 8 price, availability
Being flagship-grade smartphones, the ROG Phone 8 and Phone 8 Pro cost a pretty penny. The Phone 8 starts at $1,099 for the base 12GB RAM + 256GB storage model, whereas the Phone 8 Pro will set you back by $1,199 for the base 16GB RAM and 512GB storage model.
The two phones go on sale in the UK and Europe in February, with US availability to be announced later. Exact India launch details are also a mystery at this point.
Asus ROG Phone 8 specifications
The Asus ROG Phone 8 and the Phone 8 Pro are pretty much the same phone. International models of the two phones only differ in the amount of RAM and storage. The ROG Phone 8 comes in two variants with 12GB RAM and 16GB RAM, each with 256GB of storage, whereas the Phone 8 Pro comes in 16GB RAM + 512GB storage and 24GB RAM + 1TGB storage variants. However, the Indian and SEA models of the two phones have two other differences. The ROG Phone 8 sold in India and SEA will have a 5MP macro camera instead of a 13MP ultra-wide shooter and only 30W fast wired charging support instead of 65W fast charging in the international model. Rest everything is identical.
The two phones are powered by Qualcomm’s newest Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip and have 6.78-inch AMOLED display panels with a 165Hz refresh rate. There is also Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 protection, and the displays offer more than complete coverage of the DCI-P3 color space. Plus, a 5,500mAh battery is used to power the phones.
In other features, you get 5G, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.3, and NFC connectivity options. Lastly, Android 14 handles the software duties.
