ROG Phone 6 is here, and more

🌞 Hey there, Hadlee here again! I only just found out that Coheed and Cambria released a new album a few weeks ago. So I know what I’m going to listen to this week.

Asus ROG Phone 6: more than a gaming phone?

Asus finally has the ROG Phone 6, the latest device in its long-running gaming phone line. It certainly looks like a beast of a phone for gamers when you look at the spec sheet and feature list. Between the new Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 processor, 6,000 mAh battery, capacitive shoulder triggers, and 165 Hz OLED display, there’s a lot to love. It even has a 3.5mm port! There is also a Pro model, equipped with more RAM and a secondary rear display.

What’s the catch then?

• We published the ROG Phone 6 Pro review yesterday, and my colleague Rob Triggs felt that the company has indeed pulled out all the stops for mobile gamers.
• However, he noted that the Pro model was very hard to sell in Europe at €1,299 (~$1331).
• At this price, you would expect a number of features such as wireless charging, a telephoto lens and an IP68 rating. But these features are all missing here.
• Now we don’t normally expect premium flagship extras on gaming phones.
• After all, the whole point of a gaming phone is to, well… play games! So resources are spent on the chipset, cooling, things like shoulder triggers, a big battery and software.
• But your typical 2022 gaming phones like the Red Magic 7 Series and Black Shark 5 Pro cost $800. It’s much easier to excuse missing premium extras at this price.

Gaming phones don’t exist on their own

• The ROG Phone 6 Pro is about $500 more expensive than its rivals. That puts it in the same area as the Galaxy S22 Ultra.
• Yes, you’re missing updated silicon, capacitive shoulder triggers, and fantastic sustained performance (and a 3.5mm port), but the S22 Ultra is still a good choice for modern games.
• Samsung’s phone also offers wireless charging, a great rear camera system (including a 10x periscope camera), and an IP68 rating.
• Asus also only releases two years of OS and security updates. For a phone that costs ~$1,300 and has 18GB of RAM.
• Samsung opts for four OS upgrades and five years of security patches. Even other players like OnePlus and Xiaomi bring longer update commitments.

Consider the standard ROG Phone 6 . instead

• Fortunately, the standard ROG Phone 6 is also an option. It’s available for a much tastier £899 or €999.
• It’s still a bit expensive compared to competing gaming phones and in line with flagship phones.
• But those aforementioned omissions are much easier to excuse if you pay $300 less than the Pro version.
• In saying this, Asus has still not signed any carrier partnerships for these phones.
• I think the online-driven strategy works just fine given the niche nature of these devices.

To round up

The EU just slapped Big Tech again — These are the latest rules: The Digital Services Act and Digital Markets Act compete with Google and Apple (android authority†

Minions: The Rise of Gru is now in theaters, but it turns out that some theaters are banning young people in suits from attending these screenings. It all sounds really weird, but it turns out that groups of teens are dressing up in formal attire to attend the movie as part of a #gentleminions trend. Universal Pictures even endorsed the trend with a tweet last week.

Unfortunately, the BBC reports that some of these teens made noise, threw things, abused staff, and stood up during screenings. Some cinema representatives noted the significant financial impact of having to make refunds to families and other people affected by the disturbances.

Have a nice day and respect your fellow moviegoers!