ASUS ROG Phone 8 rumors and what we hope to see

Update, October 31, 2023 (11:25 AM ET): We have updated our ROG Phone 8 rumor hub with information about the possibility of a very early release.

As Windows- and Linux-based gaming handhelds pick up steam, Android-based gaming phones appear to be going the other way, fading into obscurity and with increasingly fewer options to consider. However, of all the companies still making gaming phones, none can compare to the mighty ASUS. The ROG Phone series represents not only the best gaming phones you can get but some of the best phones you can get, in general. With the 2023 ROG Phone 7 series behind us, what can we expect from the ASUS ROG Phone 8 series in 2024?

Below, you’ll find all the credible rumors we’ve seen so far about the 2024 ROG Phones. At the end, we’ve also included a wishlist of features — things we hope to see but don’t have evidence for yet.

Will there be an ASUS ROG Phone 8?

ASUS has released a new ROG Phone every year since the first model landed in 2018. As such, there’s every reason to believe ASUS will continue with the tradition with a ROG Phone 8 series.

Of course, the gaming phone landscape has changed significantly since 2018, with most modern flagships outfitted with game modes and powerful chipsets. That’s without even mentioning the glut of dedicated handhelds like the Steam Deck and ASUS’ own ROG Ally that have joined the Nintendo Switch to fulfill gamers’ needs on the go.

Regardless, we see no reason why ASUS would abandon the market yet. The company is the gaming phone leader from where we stand, so it has every reason to keep at it. In other words, until we hear otherwise, we fully expect the ASUS ROG Phone 8 series to land in 2024.

• ASUS ROG Phone 3: July 22, 2020
• ASUS ROG Phone 5: March 10, 2021
• ASUS ROG Phone 6: July 5, 2022
• ASUS ROG Phone 7: April 13, 2023

The list above gives you an idea of how inconsistent ASUS is when it comes to launching a new ROG Phone. The general timeframe is pretty predictable — the end of Q1 or somewhere in Q2 — but there’s no way to pin down a specific month as being “ROG Phone month.” As such, it’s currently anyone’s guess when ASUS could launch the ROG Phone 8 in 2024.

Also, note that there’s no typo on that list: there was never an ASUS ROG Phone 4. Being a Chinese company, ASUS skipped over the number four due to the widespread East Asian superstition of tetraphobia.

It’s also possible we’ll see a new ROG Phone much earlier than usual. A leaked ROG Phone promotional photo suggests the tease cycle could start months earlier than in the past — possibly even before the end of 2023. We won’t know for sure until we see teases from ASUS directly, but a launch in the first few months of 2024 is looking likely.

Regardless of when ASUS launches the ROG Phone 8, there will be a significant delay before US citizens can buy one. ASUS habitually announces products one month and then makes them available in North America months after that. Case in point: the ROG Phone 7 launched on April 13 but didn’t hit the US until June 15, or roughly two months later.

It’s quite early in the launch cycle to have too many reliable rumors for the ASUS ROG Phone 8 series. However, we can make plenty of assumptions based on previous launches.

Design

Barring some minor details, the design and overall look of ROG Phones has stayed consistent. The phones are always massive with uninterrupted displays (i.e., no notch or camera cutout). The ROG (Republic of Gamers) branding is all over the back of the device, and a secondary adapter is available for connecting peripherals, such as the AeroActive Cooler. We are certain the ROG Phone 8 will have all or at least most of these design elements in 2024 for the standard, Pro, and Ultimate models.

Over the past few years, on some models, ASUS has also incorporated a tiny rear display that primarily exists for aesthetics and a mechanized cooling port (pictured above) for superior temperature management with the AeroActive fan attached. This trend will likely continue next year, too.

Specs and cameras

As far as specs go, it’s virtually guaranteed the phone will come with the 2024 top-of-the-line Qualcomm mobile processor: the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. Not only does the previously mentioned leak teaser show an SD8 Gen 3, but every ROG Phone in the main series has had a fresh Qualcomm chip, so there’s no reason to think the ROG Phone 8 will stray from that path. We may also see a second model with a MediaTek processor, though these typically don’t launch in the US.

The ROG Phone 8 Ultimate appeared on a Geekbench listing in September, revealing it has an octa-core processor that has a 1+5+2 CPU architecture. This would seem to confirm a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip. The listing also revealed that the model number is ASUS_AI2401_A, it will at least come with a 16GB RAM variant, and have Android 14 out of the box.

Speaking of RAM, ROG Phones always have a ridiculous amount of it, with the entry-level 2023 phone starting with 12GB and going up to 16GB. Being that the phones are primarily geared towards mobile gamers who appreciate that much RAM, the ROG Phone 8 will probably have the same choices. Granted, the OnePlus Ace 2 Pro is rumored to come with 24GB of RAM — an industry first — so ASUS might need to up the ante in response. We’ll see how that pans out.

The cameras ASUS includes with ROG Phones are always good — but not great. You can expect a higher-end primary shooter, a mid-range ultrawide, and a low-end tertiary lens of some sort, such as a macro sensor. In our ASUS ROG Phone 7 Ultimate review, we said the included camera system can produce standard shots that look “reasonably OK in good lighting.” In other words, you can expect a good-enough camera system on the ROG Phone 8, but it likely won’t be one of the best camera phones you can get.

Notably, the ROG Phone 8 will probably have an included 3.5mm headphone jack. ASUS removed this feature on the ROG Phone 3 series but immediately brought it back with the ROG Phone 5 and all subsequent models after severe backlash from fans. It’s unlikely ASUS will make that mistake again.

Other expected specs include a 6,000mAh battery, at least 256GB of internal storage, a large display with a refresh rate of 144Hz or more, and fast wired charging with a charger in the box. These are things every recent ROG Phone has had, so we’re comfortable in thinking they’ll carry over to the 2024 release.

Finally, it is unlikely the ROG Phone 8 will have wireless charging or a microSD card slot. Neither feature has ever landed with a ROG Phone before.

• ASUS ROG Phone 3: $999 (starting price)
• ASUS ROG Phone 5: $999 (starting price)
• ASUS ROG Phone 6: $999 (starting price)
• ASUS ROG Phone 7: $999 (starting price)

The list above gives you an excellent idea of what you’ll probably spend on an entry-tier ASUS ROG Phone 8. As long as you only need the basics, you’ll probably spend $999 to get it.

Of course, ASUS always has higher-tier versions of its phones. The most recent ROG Phone 7 with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage started at $999, but the same phone with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage ran for $1,099. Meanwhile, the all-out ROG Phone 7 Ultimate with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage costs $1,399. In other words, it’s safe to expect to buy a ROG Phone 8 for $999, but there will probably be some significant upgrades available if you spend a bit more.

The processor is the biggest differentiator between a ROG Phone of one year and the ROG Phone of the previous year. This spec is the most important when it comes to gaming. Obviously, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 is superior to the 8 Gen 2. The question then becomes whether or not you think that the jump in performance necessitates waiting for the ROG Phone 8.

If you want a great gaming phone without needing to wait until 2024, you’ll likely do OK buying an ASUS ROG Phone 7 ($999 at Amazon) or ROG Phone 7 Ultimate ($1440 at Amazon). This would be especially advisable if you can find either one on sale.

Of course, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t wait for the ROG Phone 8. It’s possible it could have new features, a new design, better cameras, etc. But if you would rather not wait, the 2023 models are still terrific.

If, for whatever reason, you want a gaming phone not made by ASUS, your next-best bet would be the Nubia RedMagic 8S Pro ($649 at Red Magic). It will feature a lot of the same specs as the ROG Phone 7 but at a slightly cheaper price. You won’t get nearly the same software experience, though, and availability is not as robust.

Finally, don’t write off phones not explicitly designed for gaming. The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra ($1199.99 at Samsung), for example, is a fantastic phone with many comparable specs to the ROG Phone 7. It will also have much better cameras, better/more extended software support, and will be an all-around good phone, not just a good gaming phone.

We have no qualms about calling the ASUS ROG Phone 7 the best gaming phone you can currently get. However, it is by no means perfect. Here are some features the ROG Phone 7 didn’t have that we hope we see on the ROG Phone 8 series.

Wireless charging

Year after year, ASUS releases a new ROG Phone; year after year, that phone lacks wireless charging. We understand that the various design elements of a ROG Phone would make wireless charging support difficult, such as the peripheral connector and the rear display panel. However, we posit that there are more people out there who would prefer wireless charging over those features. Wireless charging is a standard feature of any flagship phone, and the fact that ROG Phones don’t have it has always been a head-scratcher.

Better cameras

One thing the ROG Phone series has never been able to measure up on when compared to other devices in its price range is the camera. Granted, ASUS deserves lots of credit for making the camera system pretty good for a gaming phone. But if it wants more people to buy the phones year after year, it needs to stop only appealing to hardcore gamers and instead appeal to both hardcore and casual gamers. Casual gamers want an excellent overall phone that can also game. If ASUS wants to deliver that, the phone will need a better camera than what the ROG Phone series has traditionally offered.

More incentive to go Ultimate

The standard ROG Phone 7 costs $999. The Ultimate model has slightly more RAM and doubles the storage, starting at $1,399. What is that extra $400 going towards? As far as we can tell, it’s not enough. There aren’t many compelling differences between the standard model and the Ultimate, so we hope ASUS offers more with the Ultimate in 2024. Some cool ideas could be a longer software update commitment, better cameras, a 1440p display, or even a microSD card slot. Whatever it chooses, it’s weird that there’s an “Ultimate” version of a phone that doesn’t at all feel “Ultimate.”