The release of the ASUS ROG Phone 5 Ultimate shows that ASUS isn’t retrenching on its yearly act of breaking boundaries in the gaming smartphone industry. Onboard the ROG Phone 5 Ultimate is the most capable smartphone gaming offering yet. The smartphone is more or less like a more premium variant of the ASUS ROG Phone 5.
Where to Buy ASUS ROG Phone 5 Ultimate
Jumia Nigeria – See Offers | AliExpress – See Offers
Asus ROG Phone 5 Ultimate Key Specs & Features
- 6.78 inches AMOLED Display, 1080 x 2448 Pixels (395 PPI), 144Hz Refresh Rate
- Android 11, ROG UI
- Qualcomm SM8250 Snapdragon 888 (5nm)
- 18GB RAM
- 512GB Built-in Storage
- 64MP + 13MP + 5MP Triple Rear camera
- 24MP Front Camera
- 5G Support
- Fingerprint Scanner (Under Display)
- Fast Charge (65W Capacity)
- 6000mAh Non-Removable Li-Po Battery
Design and Display
In as much as there have been hints of Asus trying to modify the design of the Rog Phone to suit both the gamer and regular smartphone user, the gaming accents have so far being indelible. Having a look around its chassis makes this hinted move look futile.
As a matter of fact, the front panel is the only subtle part of this smartphone as far as design goes. starring hard at the display when turned off may not give out too many hints. However, perusing the sides and rear reveals a lot.
Before we discuss chassis placements, please note that the ASUS ROG 5 Ultimate’s build comprises Gorilla glass Victus upfront, which we also saw on the Samsung Galaxy S21 ultra 5G. The other build properties include gorilla glass 3 on the rear and aluminum on the frame.
On the rear, we find a design more sophisticated than what we saw on the Asus Rog Phone 3. Here you will find lines creating sections, a camera module bearing three cameras, an LED flash, the ROG logo which pretty much indicates it’s an Asus smartphone, some other informative texts.
The star of the rear panel design is a tiny monochromic OLED display, which can be customized to display any image of your choice, you could also display writeups.
Moving up front, we have a 6.78 inch AMOLED display guided by not very generous bezels on the top and bottom. The highlights of this display include a resolution of 1080 x 2488, a density of 395 PPI, and a 144Hz refresh rate.
Gaming Ergonomics
Aside from having top-shelf performance when playing games, having good ergonomics is another highly sought-after criterion in the industry, as it’s a feature that sets it apart from regular smartphones with insane specs.
You definitely do not want to deal with strains associated with different orientation games are set.
Asus has so far shown positive response to making provisions for ergonomics. To this end, the ROG 5 Ultimate bears USB ports on the bottom and on the side, which eliminates the interruption USB cables facilitate.
What’s more, you will also find ultrasonic triggers on both ends of the right side and also on the rear. These triggers can be customized to come in place of the game controls.
Being able to program the ultrasonic triggers to become game controls means smartphone gaming enthusiasts will have more screen real estate when gaming.
In addition to the ultrasonic triggers on the body of the ASUS ROG 5 Ultimate, enthusiasts will also get extra dual re-mappable trigger buttons with the snap-on fan cooler accessory installed.
The Cameras
Turns out the cameras were sort of the least attended feature of the ASUS ROG Phone 5 Ultimate. Asus didn’t really make any headlining changes, as far as on paper specs go, we pretty much have the same setup as seen on the ROG Phone 5.
The fact that the cameras do bear resemblance to its predecessor, isn’t really bad, as long we have good hardware, however, there is no denying the joy that comes with innovation.
On the rear, we have a triple camera setup comprising of 64MP primary camera with an aperture of f/1.8, a 13MP ultrawide camera with an aperture of f/2.5, and a 125˚field of view.
The last member of the rear camera setup is a 5MP macro camera with an aperture of f/2.0. The rear camera setup is capable of shooting videos up to 8k @ 30fps, like the likes of the Xiaomi Mi 10 ultra.
Moving upfront, we have a single 24MP camera, which has an aperture of f/2.5. This camera is capable of shooting videos up to 1080p @ 30fps.
Hardware
The design / ergonomics may have had you adjusting your seat belt, but they certainly aren’t the main banger on the ASUS ROG Phone 5 Ultimate, as Asus is once again pushing the threshold of smartphone performance, with insane specs.
Under the hood, we have an Octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 processor with a 5nm process, an Adreno 660 GPU, 512GB of UFS 3.1 storage, a whopping 18GB RAM and a non-removable 6000mAh battery, with the support fo 65W charging capacity.
In order to reduce the heat accrued to charging, the 6000mAh battery on the ROG Phone 5 ultimate was split into two 3000mAh cells, this move also helps the device hit its 65W charge capability.
Software
On the software side, the ASUS ROG Phone 5 Ultimate runs the ROG UI ontop of the Android 11 operating system.
Its ROG UI and Android operating system aren’t the only details here, as its software is part of also part of the gaming experience.
Asus has also dumped the Armoury crate app, which is a software provision that lets you choose preferred settings that will automatically kick off with games at launch. It more off setting unique customized profiles for different games.
You probably would want to set the refresh rate that a games runs, include CPU boost, graphics speed, switch off network, etc. The crate app lets you set these preferred setting son gaming and have the phone switch to these setting (Profiles) once the game is launched, which is pretty sweet in my opinion.
Compare Prices
Connectivity
The ASUS Rog Phone 5 Ultimate features two USB Type-C ports, one on the side and one on the bottom. We also have a 3.5mm headphone jack, NFC support and Bluetooth 5.1.
Internet connectivity is capped at 5G at the sub-6 category. This goes to say enthusiasts in areas with 5G reception can utilise 5G connectivity for downloads, streaming and uploading.
ASUS ROG Phone 5 Ultimate Price and Availability
ASUS ROG Phone 5 Ultimate price starts at around $999, which translates to about 420,332 Naira in Nigeria, 173,893 KSH in Kenya and 9,095 GHS in Ghana.
The ASUS ROG Phone 5 Ultimate was announced on March 10 2021 and is expected to go sale in May 2021.
ASUS ROG Phone 5 Ultimate Specs
Here are a few specs of the ASUS ROG Phone 5 Ultimate:
General Features
- Platform: Android 11, ROG UI
- Processor: Qualcomm SM8350 Snapdragon 888 (5 nm) (Octa-core 2.84 GHz Kryo 680 & 2.42 GHz tri-core Kryo 680 & 1.80 GHz quad-core Kryo 680)
- GPU: Adreno 660
- Memory: 18GB RAM
- Colours: Matte White
- Dimension: 172.8 x 77.3 x 10.3 mm
- Weight: 238 g
- SIM Type: Nano-SIM
- SIM Count: Dual-SIM
Display
- Display: 6.78 inches AMOLED, 1080 x 2448 Pixels, ~395 PPI,
- Screen Protection: Corning Gorilla Glass Victus
- Foldable Display: No
Camera
- Rear Camera: 64 MP (Primary) f/1.8 + 13MP (Ultrawide) f/2.4, 125˚ FOV + 5MP (Macro) f/2.0
- Rear Camera Features: LED flash, HDR, Panorama, PDAF, 8K@30fps, 4K@30/60/120fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240fps, 720p@480fps; gyro-EIS
- Front Camera: 24MP Camera, f/2.5, Panorama, HDR, 1080p@30fps
Storage
- Built-in Storage: 512GB
- Memory Card Support: No
- Bundled Cloud Storage: –
Network Support
- 2G GSM: 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
- 2G CDMA 1X: –
- 3G WCDMA: 800 / 850 / 900 / 1700(AWS) / 1800 / 1900 / 2100
- 3G CDMA EVDO: –
- 4G LTE: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 32, 34, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 48, 66, 71
- 5G: 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 12, 20, 25, 28, 38, 40, 41, 66, 71, 77, 78, 79 SA/NSA
Internet & Connectivity
- GPRS: Yes
- EDGE: Yes
- 3G/WCDMA/HSPA: Yes
- HSPA+: Yes
- CDMA EVDO: Yes
- 4G LTE: Yes
- 5G: Yes
- WLAN: A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO, QZSS, GNSS
- Wi-Fi Hotspot: Yes
- Bluetooth: Bluetooth 5.2, A2DP, LE, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive
- NFC: Yes
- Infrared Blaster: –
- USB Port: USB Type-C 3.1 (side), USB Type-C 2.0 (bottom), accessory connector, USB On-The-Go
Messaging
- SMS/MMS: Yes
- Instant Messaging: –
- Push Emails: –
- Email Protocol: Yes
Entertainment
- Music Player: Yes
- Video Player: Yes
- FM Radio: No
- Loudspeaker: Yes
- 3.5mm Jack: Yes
Navigation
- Navigation: A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO, QZSS, GNSS
- Maps: Yes
Sensors & Control
- Digital Compass: Yes
- Accelerometer: Yes
- Proximity Sensor: Yes
- Light Sensor: Yes
- Barometer: –
- SpO2: –
- Pedometer: –
- Heart Rate Monitor: No
- Gyroscope: Yes
- Fingerprint Scanner: Yes (under display, optical)
- Iris Scanner: –
- Face Unlock: –
- Stylus Pen: No
- Intelligent Digital Assistant: Yes
- Motion Sensing / Gesture Control: –
- Voice Control: Yes
Other Features
- Video Streaming: Yes
- Active Noise Cancellation: Yes
- Wireless Charging: –
- Built-in Mobile Payment: –
- Water Resistant: No
- Dust Resistant: No
- Image Editor: –
- Video Editor: –
- Document Viewer: –
- Document Editor: –
Battery
- Battery: Non-Removable 6000mAh Li-Po Battery
- Talktime: –
- Standby Time: –
- Fast Charging: 65W Fast Charging Capacity
