Asus ROG Phone 9 Pro

The Asus ROG Phone 9 Pro is the most powerful phone on the market at the time of writing. It's also remarkably easy to use day-to-day, with a relatively subtle design, outstanding battery life, an adequate camera, and plenty of pleasing quality-of-life features. It isn't fully optimized for either purpose – gaming or everyday use – but it takes a pretty convincing stab at covering all bases.

A bigger battery and new chipset allows the ROG Phone 9 Pro to take the dual titles of most powerful and longest-lasting phone we've ever had the honor of testing. It's designed to be a great gaming phone, but it could make for a strong regular flagship choice (at least until more competitors with the new chip show up) if you don't mind fewer Android updates and some underwhelming cameras.

The Asus ROG Phone 9 Pro is one of the fastest, flashiest and most feature-packed gaming phones available today. It’s also one of the easiest to live with, as it has a decent camera system, good software and a relatively slim construction. Unfortunately, high pricing will limit its mainstream appeal.

That said, there's a good reason why the ROG Phones have a strong following in the gaming niche. Asus hold nothing back and they are always the top performers to compare others to. They are truly an enthusiast's smartphone. If you are in that niche, you have probably already decided on buying it. And we're here to say — it won't disappoint you!

The Asus ROG Phone 9 Pro could be great for prior ROG owners along with the gaming phone-curious as the device is certainly capable of meeting most needs. But if you want to buy a phone that costs over $1,000 as a longer-term investment and mobile gaming is less of a core feature for you, it's quite likely that a device from Samsung, Google or OnePlus is the way to go.

The ASUS ROG Phone 9 and 9 Pro are the gaming phones to beat — offering exceptional performance, multi-day battery life, and a suite of features to level up your gaming. It's still not quite in the same league as mainstream flagships for photography and software, but the ROG's new AI and camera feature means you won't feel like you're missing out on much.

As we said, it's all about refinement in this generation, and we are here for it. While the ROG Phone 9 and 9 Pro hold more mainstream appeal than ever, we still believe that Asus is rightfully targeting the underserviced hardcore mobile gaming niche. If you want the best mobile gaming experience with no compromise, you've come to the right place.

With prodigious performance and gamer-focused features, the Asus ROG Phone 9 Pro is the undisputed king of its niche. You’ve got to be committed to take one over an all-rounder flagship, though.