In 2018, ASUS stepped into the future of smartphones by creating a gaming smartphone in the form of an entire device, the ROG Phone. Whereas other similarly priced smartphones created by the likes of Samsung, or Apple’s iPhone are devices focused on camera capabilities or design aesthetics, the ROG Phone is dedicated to gaming performance, thermal handling, and audio-visual enjoyment.
Now, the first-gen of the ROG Phone is now 5 years old as of 2023, and is still respected for creating a benchmark for what a true gaming phone should be. Let’s jump back and acknowledge the beast that started it all.
Design & Build: Aggressive Yet Premium
The design of the original ROG Phone was a statement in itself. It didn’t shy away from looking different — aggressive lines, angular accents, and the hallmark ROG RGB logo on the back made it remarkable.
Dimensions: With the size of 158.8 x 76.2 x 8.3 mm, it was large but very stable for the hand, especially for gamers that prefer landscapes.
Weight: At 200g, it had some weight to it which made it feel sturdy and premium – an upgrade from competitors with their plasticky feel.
Build Quality: the device used Gorilla Glass 6 on the front and Gorilla Glass 5 on the back with a metal frame around it, making it both attractive and durable.
Special Touches: ASUS included 3 ultrasonic pressure-sensitive AirTriggers – touch zones located on the sides that acted as gaming shoulder buttons, a big win for gamers!
Water Resistant: Although there was no official IP rating, the device did exhibit some level of water resistance for day-to-day protection.
Every element screamed “Built for battle” – from the aggressive copper heat vents to the electrifying custom RGB back logo.
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Display: Fast, Fluid, and Vivid
The ROG Phone featured a 6.0-inch AMOLED screen that not only looked fantastic, but was advanced for the time in terms of responsiveness.
Refresh Rate: 90Hz refresh rate in 2018 was revolutionary – silky smooth scrolling and gameplay.HDR Support: Real HDR10 support provided extremely rich, deep, and cinematic colors.
Resolution: 1080 x 2160 (18:9 aspect ratio), which equates to ~402ppi – sharp enough to view detailed graphics without stressing out the GPU.
Touch Response: 1ms response time with 108.6% DCI-P3 color gamut was nothing short of spectacular for competitive gaming.
What was important about this display was not just how it looks – but how it win games.
Performance: Powering Through with Snapdragon 845
Inside the ROG Phone was a specially selected version of the Snapdragon 845 processor, but not just a normal Snapdragon 845… ASUS ran a binned chip running at 2.96GHz – the fastest Snapdragon 845 at the time of its release!
- CPU: Octa-core Kryo 385 (4x high-performance + 4x efficient cores).
- GPU: Adreno 630 – still able to run today’s games at medium settings in 2025!
- RAM/Storage: 8GB LPDDR4X RAM with UFS 2.1 storage (128GB and 512GB versions). No card slot, but 128GB and 512GB is plenty of internal memory.
- Cooling System: The phone had a vapor-chamber cooling system to limit thermal throttling. Also, the ROG Phone supported one of those clips-on cooler systems (AeroActive Cooler) for those REALLY long sessions.
With these specs, it was unmatched for sustained performance and thermal performance for the time.
Camera: Capable, Not the Star
The ROG Phone’s camera was more than decent, especially considering it was a gaming-first phone.
- Dual Rear Cameras:
- 12MP main sensor with f/1.8 aperture, dual pixel PDAF, and 4-axis OIS — great for daytime and even low-light shots.
- 8MP ultrawide lens — perfect for landscapes or creative shots, though autofocus was missing.
- Video Recording:
- 4K at 30/60fps
- 1080p up to 240fps — great for slow-motion captures
- 3-axis gyro-EIS offered decent stability
- Front Camera:
- 8MP wide-angle lens with HDR and panorama support
- 1080p@30fps video for solid vlogging or video calls
While not a flagship camera system, it was very respectable for gaming-focused users.
Battery & Audio: Built for Marathon Sessions
The 4000mAh battery with 30W QuickCharge 4.0 meant that the phone could charge quickly, which is a must for gamers that don’t like to wait.
Charging: USB Type-C on the bottom and a side-mounted port so action was uninterrupted while charging in horizontal mode.
Battery Life: Rated 69 hours — pretty good for a 90Hz display.
Audio:
Dual front-firing stereo speakers with smart amplifiers.
24-bit/192kHz Hi-Res audio via 3.5mm jack (very rare today).
Clean and loud with great separation — perfect for in-game effects and totally immersive.
In summary, this phone didn’t just sound like a gaming phone, it sounded like a raging gaming phone!.
Connectivity & Features: No Compromise Setup
ASUS ensured that connectivity wouldn’t bottleneck performance or gaming quality.
- Wi-Fi: Dual-band 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ad with WiGig (60GHz) — faster-than-standard Wi-Fi.
- Bluetooth: 5.0 with aptX HD support for lag-free wireless audio.
- GPS: Full support including GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO, and QZSS.
- NFC: Supported for quick payments or accessories.
- Ports: Side-mounted accessory connector and USB-C 3.1.
- Extras: FM radio, comprehensive sensor array including rear fingerprint scanner.
Benchmark Scores (Legacy Performance)
Even by today’s standards, the ROG Phone’s performance in 2018 was elite.
- AnTuTu v7: 288,821 — one of the highest scores of that year.
- GeekBench 4.4: Multi-core score of 9406 — close to laptop-level in raw numbers.
- GFXBench: 31fps in on-screen gaming test — solid for high-end 3D gaming.
The phone’s cooling ensured sustained high scores during long sessions.
Final Verdict: A True Legend in the Gaming Phone Arena
The ASUS ROG Phone (2018) is so much more than a phone with gaming integrated. It was truly built from the ground-up to be for gamers, with outstanding hardware, aggressive designs, and genuine innovations.
ASUS was able to add everything from AirTrigger buttons and active cooling, Hi-Res audio and 90Hz AMOLED…they were able to load this device to be the most mobile gaming device ever built when it was released.
And even today for casual use and gaming it still holds up rather well, mark this as a legendary part of smartphone history.
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