Asus ROG Phone II in for review, unboxing and key features

Asus has always had a rather particular PC-like approach to its smartphone business. While the effect from this have been far from universally positive throughout the years, there is simply no denying that the Republic of Gamers crossover in to the Android realm has been nothing short of spectacular. Benchmark and envelope-pushing are just some of the words that instantly spring to mind when talking about the ROG Phone II. A juggernaut of a device which just recently arrived at our office.

With no shortage of fanfare, we might add, since like its predecessor, it shipped in a sizeable briefcase, along with its impressive accessory ecosystem. Still absolutely unmatched or even closely rivaled by anybody in the smartphone niche. This year Asus has a pair of new controller accessories and a slew of refinements to its docks, cases and fans. An even more compelling, versatile and impressive offer than last year's and somehow more exuberant still. We'll definitely review each and every bit of the ROG II accessory ecosystem in depth in the full review.

As for the ROG Phone II itself, we're honestly struggling to find the right place to start. Plus, we have the highest-tier Ultimate Edition variant in Matte Black. It takes every last impressive and intriguing bit from its predecessor and improves it in some manner. Yet calling it an incremental update doesn't begin to do it justice. With a whopping 120Hz, 6.59" AMOLED panel front and centre, the ROG Phone is truly pushing new limits in the high-refresh rate consumer OLED market. And while that might sound unimpressively specific and niche on the surface, it actually offers a glimpse into the future of mobile gaming and smartphone tech in general.

Perfect blacks, amazing contrast, punchy colors and fast pixel response times - all traditional OLED traits finally catching up with LCDs in fast refresh rates. It's a sight to behold. And that's just the cherry on top of the perfect gaming and android powerhouse sundae that is the ROG Phone II. Its no-compromise specs sheet includes a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855+ chipset, along with 12GB of LPDDR4X RAM and up to 512GB UFS 3.0 storage. All of this kept at bay by a powerful cooling system, borrowed and improved from the original ROG Phone, complete with a refined active cooling snap-on fan.

More modern sensors and connectivity options than you can shake a stick at, including a whopping two USB Type-C ports. An impressive Dual front-facing speaker, DTS:X sound setup and the proven camera setup borrowed from the Zenfone 6 (48MP main + 13MP ultra-wide), all stuffed inside a gorgeous metal body with distinct gamer's aesthetics. Throw a whopping 6000 mAh battery in the mix and you get a hefty 240g bundle of gaming power that is definitely not your average Android device. There's a lot to unpack and go through with the ROG Phone II, so bear with us as we delve into the review process.