Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro vs. Redmagic 9 Pro: Game on

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  Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro

  Gamer’s dream

  The Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro features a new toned-down design that’s still characteristically unique. It’s a true powerhouse with the latest hardware, ready to elevate your gaming experience, with shoulder triggers and specialized software with great gaming features. It can run all graphically intensive mobile games and is excellent for competitive gamers.

  Pros

  • Large and highly responsive 165Hz responsive display
  • Great at playing demanding games
  • Long battery life

  Cons

  • Plastic back is too slippery
  • Only one speaker faces the user
  • Too expensive

• 

  Nubia RedMagic 9 Pro

  Value gaming

  The Nubia Redmagic 9 Pro is a massive upgrade over its predecessor, bringing the latest hardware, major enhancements, and all the power you need to play demanding mobile games competitively. It’s fast and responsive and can outlast most other devices with its massive 6500mAh battery that supports 80W fast wired charging.

  Pros

  • Stylish gamer aesthetics
  • Powerful hardware
  • Long-lasting battery with fast wired charging

  Cons

  • Very large and boxy design
  • Uninspiring camera performance

Gaming smartphones have a lot in common. Most importantly, they always seem to have a gamer aesthetic with RGB lights, shoulder triggers, massive displays, and, of course, the latest specs. The Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro and the Nubia Redmagic 9 Pro fulfill a lot of these requirements. Both devices are equipped with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, have plenty of memory and storage, and, in most cases, offer a less-than-stellar camera experience. But how do you determine which phone’s approach is best? We pit the two phones against each other to conclude which wins out.

Price, availability, and specs

The Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro was unveiled in January 2024. It’s the successor of the ROG Phone 7 Pro and sports a new toned-down design and the latest specs and hardware. The phone comes in two flavors: a $1,200 version with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage and an even larger version with 24GB of RAM and 1TB of storage for $1,500. The phone is available from T-Mobile and Amazon.

The Nubia Redmagic 9 Pro was unveiled in November 2023, but don’t let the date fool you. In many ways, it sports the latest specs, identical to the Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro. The device has 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage by default for $650. There’s another model with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage for $749, and it’s available from Amazon and Redmagic. It’s worth noting that the gaming phone doesn’t support mmWave 5G, so connectivity and high-speed 5G will depend on your carrier in the US.

• 	Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro	Nubia RedMagic 9 Pro
  SoC	Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3	Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
  Display dimensions	6.78″	6.8″
  Display resolution	1080 x 2400	1116 x 2480
  RAM	16GB or 24GB	12GB, 16GB
  Storage	512GB or 1TB	256GB, 512GB
  Battery	5500mAh	6500mAh
  Charge speed	65W wired, 15W wireless	80W wired
  Ports	USB-C, 3.5mm headphone jack	USB-C, 3.5mm headphone jack
  SIM support	Dual	Dual SIM
  Operating System	Android 14	Android 14
  Front camera	32MP RGBW	16MP, f/2.0
  Rear camera	50MP, f/1.9 main; 13MP, f/2.2 ultrawide; 32MP, f/2.4 telephoto	50MP main with OIS; 50MP, f/2.2 ultrawide; 2MP macro
  Wi-Fi connectivity	Wi-Fi 7	Wi-Fi 7
  Bluetooth	Bluetooth 5.3	Bluetooth 5.3
  Dimensions	163.8 x 76.8 x 8.9mm	164 x 76.4 x 8.9 mm
  Weight	225g	229g
  Colors	Phantom Black	Sleet (Black), Snowfall (Silver), Cyclone (Transparent Black)
  Price	$1,200	$649

Design

Minimalist and toned-down vs bold and confident

There are some pretty stark differences between the ROG Phone 8 Pro and the Redmagic 9 Pro, but they both follow the same gamer-y aesthetic. What’s superior in this category will come down to preference.

That said, the devices’ dimensions are very similar. Both phones are on the larger side, with the ROG Phone 8 Pro measuring 163.8 x 76.8 x 8.9mm and the Redmagic 9 Pro measuring 164 x 76.4 x 8.9mm. The Redmagic is 0.2mm taller and 0.2mm narrower than the ROG phone, and they have the same thickness. The weight is also negligible, with the ROG amassing 225g, and the Redmagic 229g. However, the Nubia feels much larger due to the sharper corners and flat sides.

The Asus is more rounded and easy to hold, while the Nubia is a very large rectangle with sharper lines. On the back, the ROG packs a 341 Mini LED programmable matrix light that you can set up to display anything your heart desires. The downside is that it’s not RGB, and you’ll only be able to display content in white.

The Redmagic 9 Pro, on the other hand, has a built-in cooling fan with RGB lights and a separate light strip that you can set up to show notifications during calls, while charging, and even while gaming. While it’s not as cool as the matrix LEDs on the Asus, the RGB lights certainly add a bit more to the overall gamer look.

Both smartphones feature pressure-sensitive trigger zones on the side, but only the ROG Phone 8 Pro features an IP68 certificate, protecting the internal components from dust and water. So it[‘s a better package overall for those who often find themselves in more challenging environments.

Display

Same size, different outcomes

Given the small dimensional differences between the two gamer phones, you might not be surprised to see a display of a similar size on both devices. The Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro packs a 6.78-inch LTPO AMOLED panel with a 165Hz refresh rate and up to 2,500 nits of peak brightness. It’s a 1080 x 2400 resolution panel, covered by Gorilla Glass Victus 2.

In contrast, the Redmagic 9 Pro features a 0.2-inch larger, 6.8-inch AMOLED display. It has a slightly lower refresh rate at 120Hz, but that’s not super noticeable as the difference between 165Hz and 120Hz is fairly minimal. The brightness peaks at 1,600 nits, making the Asus brighter and more enjoyable for viewing HDR10 content. The Redmagic 9 Pro has a 1116 x 2480 resolution panel, covered by the older Gorilla Glass 5. Though it’s fair to say that the ROG phone will be far more impervious to scratches, screen protectors are an inexpensive solution for added protection.

In terms of daily use, the devices will serve gamers’ needs just fine, but the ROG Phone 8 Pro does offer a few real advantages. It has a brighter screen and a higher refresh rate that’s better and more responsive, especially for FPS games where precision is key. The screen is also covered by more durable glass, protecting it from scratches and everyday wear and tear. Overall, it’s a better display for media consumption and playing games. Still, you get great value for money when you factor in the price of the Redmagic 9 Pro.

Software and performance

Gaming features and stock-ish looks

The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 is an excellent flagship chipset, offering great performance. Given the gamer moniker on the two devices, it’s unsurprising to see the premium chipset power both models. As such, the Asus and Nubia phones offer a competitive and similar experience that is stable, smooth, and snappy. Thanks to their unique cooling technologies, they don’t throttle under general loads and hold up well, even after long gaming sessions.

The Redmagic has an active fan that can help prevent throttling, even when it’s set to run the most demanding games in the highest settings, and it holds up extremely well.

In terms of software, the Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro has a more standard user interface, with many features for customizing the gaming experience. Nubia also offers similar features that enable users to tweak their layouts, looks, and many gamer features.

Of course, there are some gimmicky features, but they both contain generally useful options, such as crosshairs, customizable shoulder triggers, and specific gaming modes to help get the most out of the device or conserve battery. The overall gaming experience is fairly similar, so it will come down to your preferences when picking the system.

Generally speaking, the device manufacturers steered more toward stock Android, and as such, the overall UI looks very familiar and similar to what you may have already seen in recent years on many other devices.

Battery life

Power for days

The battery life on the two phones is exceptional and some of the longest we’ve ever seen on a modern smartphone. The ROG Phone 8 Pro packs a 5500mAh battery, while the Redmagic 9 Pro has a whopping 6,500mAh cell, providing 1000 mAh more than the Asus.

Charging is also faster on the Redmagic, thanks to its 80W fast wired charging that enables the battery to go from zero to 100% in just 35 minutes. Asus also provides a respectable 65W fast wired charging, allowing the device to go from zero to 100% in just 39 minutes. However, Asus is far more versatile, allowing wireless charging at 15W using the Qi charging standard and 10W reverse wireless charging to other devices.

In terms of battery life, it’s obvious that the Nubia would do better, but the difference between the phones isn’t all that big. Both phones can last a full day on a single charge, and even gamers and power users will get a couple of hours of graphics-intensive sessions from each phone, providing a comfortable gaming experience where frequent charging isn’t necessary.

Camera

There’s a clear winner

Gaming smartphones have never been really good at cameras, and that still applies to the ROG Phone 8 Pro and the Redmagic 9 Pro. However, it’s worth noting that Asus changed the game with the Phone 8 Pro; it’s the first device in the series that takes photography a bit more seriously.

The ROG Phone 8 Pro has a triple camera array, consisting of a 50MP primary, 13MP ultrawide, and 32MP telephoto. We found that the ROG is roughly on par with the Zenfone series, and it’s even better in some situations. All three sensors provide great results in most lighting conditions, and even the selfie camera does a decent job.

The Redmagic 9 Pro also sports a triple camera setup, but it consists of a 50MP primary, a 50MP ultrawide, and a measly 2MP macro camera. We found that the photos are adequate in good lighting conditions and outdoors, but will fall off a cliff when it gets dark and in low light. The front-facing camera, likewise, doesn’t take great photos in any environment, and the under-display camera has consistently remained unimpressive.

Which is right for you?

At first glance, it might look like there are a lot of variations between the two devices. Their shapes are slightly different as well as their price tags.

If you’re looking for a premium gamer phone that doesn’t break the bank and offers RGB lights, shoulder triggers, and a bright, responsive, and large display, you can’t go wrong with the Redmagic 9 Pro. It’s an excellent phone, providing all the gamer-oriented features a competitive player might need or want. It also has an active cooling fan with RGB lights, and generally looks a lot like a gaming phone.

However, the Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro offers a much better package, albeit, at a much higher price tag. If you don’t mind paying a premium for what is otherwise a rather similar experience to the Redmagic (aside from a more usable camera and more versatile charging solution), the ROG Phone 8 Pro could be a better decision. If you want a stealthy gaming device with a fully customizable mini LED matrix display, the ROG Phone 8 Pro could be an ideal alternative.