The ROG Phone 8 series launched in January this year didn't receive the same level of interest as its predecessors. Its design isn't 'gamer-like' anymore, and none of its features stands out. However, it had great hardware that the ROG Phone 9 could improve on.
A screenshot of a new ASUS device certified by the China Quality Certification Centre was spotted on Weibo. For your info, this institution certifies products sold in China and is the equivalent of our SIRIM. The source claimed that the certified device is the ROG Phone 9. At the same time, the certification confirms that this is a 5G smartphone that supports 65W fast charging.
The source also said that the ROG Phone 9 will sport a Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 chipset, 24GB of RAM, 1TB of storage, and an improved display. Interestingly, Qualcomm's Snapdragon Summit for 2024 is held from 24-26 October 2024. So while the ROG Phone 9 is already certified, it's unlikely to launch anytime soon. The earliest possible launch date is 24 October 2024. That's when Qualcomm will probably reveal the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4.
As for the new display, we might get a bump in refresh rate to 165Hz and no visible punch-hole for the front camera. But don't expect any other big upgrades. Besides the display, the camera is something that ASUS could improve. Camera performance has always been the ROG Phone series' main weakness, so improvements could entice more casual smartphone users, especially after the company canned the gaming phone design for a more generic one (check our review for our thoughts on that).
Anyway, what do you think ASUS can improve to get people to buy the ROG Phone 9? Better specs or a return to a gamer-centric design? Share your thoughts in the comments below and stay tuned to TechNave for more news like this.
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