Technologies

Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro: $1,300 Phone Maxes Out Everything but the Camera

This high-priced gaming phone puts power and style at the front, with plenty of ideas I’d love to see in mainstream phones.

The Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro is a $1,300 gaming phone behemoth. Released last summer, the phone justifies its high price with more premium specifications that offer more power and style than the average phone. This includes the phone’s 6.78-inch OLED display with a 165Hz refresh rate, a 6,000mAh battery and a colorful second LED display on the back that adds a dynamic look to the rear of the phone.

I’ve been using the Phone 6 Pro for the last few months — testing it both as a gaming device and as an everyday phone. While I largely enjoy using the Phone 6 Pro, some of the choices Asus made for gamers do not necessarily benefit a mainstream phone user. There are some design quirks, and the camera isn’t as impressive as it should be for such an expensive device. It’s also missing wireless charging, which may not be a necessity but is considered common on most phones.

But if you can cast aside these shortcomings, the Phone 6 Pro has a number of features that could end up on a future iPhone or Galaxy device. Asus also succeeds at catering to those who want to get the most out of their phone as a gaming device.

Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro with LED display on — The Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro has a rear LED display that lights up with various animations and notification icons.

Mike Sorrentino/CNET

A futuristic design highlighted by a rear LED display

The Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro’s design makes a statement. My review unit is a satellite-like white color that’s adorned with blue accents and a black line that diagonally traces around its LED display.

That rear display reminds me of the notification LED that I used to see on BlackBerry phones, but evolved into something more like the cover screen on a Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4. The display shows icons for notifications, a Game Start animation (for when you start a game of course), a battery indicator and other animations that you customize within the phone’s settings.

A static LED that outlines the words «Ready to Play» is also on the back of the device to really emphasize that this is a gaming phone. The color of that text can be customized from within the menus.

I would love to see other phones experiment with more artistic colors and designs like Asus. The midrange Nothing Phone 1 is already doing something similar with its Glyph LED design. For now, the closest most mainstream phones get to customization is when you throw on a skin or case.

Yet another design choice to place the phone’s front-facing camera in a bezel above the phone’s display makes sense in order to provide an uninterrupted screen, but that choice is a rather dated idea for a phone this expensive. This makes the phone a little bit taller than the display, which harks back to older designs like 2018’s Samsung Galaxy S9. Gaming phone rival RedMagic now uses an under-display front-facing camera, starting with its 7S Pro, but image quality is still a work in progress on phones giving that a try.

Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro with Marvel Snap — The Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro has a 6.78-inch screen, and chooses to put the front-facing camera within a bezel above the display.

Mike Sorrentino/CNET

Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro’s screen animates and reacts fast

As one would expect with an expensive phone, the Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro’s 6.78-inch OLED looked great no matter what type of content I was viewing. By default, it uses an automatic refresh rate that changes depending on what you’re using. After turning on the setting that keeps it at 165Hz at all times, I was able to enjoy extremely smooth scrolling, gaming animations and reading. While Marvel Snap maxes at 60 frames per second, the card game seemed to animate especially well with all of its graphics settings turned on. The same goes for quickly jumping in and out of Gameloft’s Modern Combat 5 and Warner Bros.’ Mortal Kombat — the latter of which natively supports the 165Hz refresh rate.

The screen also has a 720Hz touch sampling rate, or how quickly the screen reacts to taps and scrolls for games. In my experience, that’s particularly useful for first-person shooters and fighting games.

This isn’t the first time I’ve seen a 165Hz refresh rate or a 720Hz touch sampling rate; last year’s $629 RedMagic 7 phone also includes those features. But features like these are starting to make their way into more mainstream devices at lower prices. Motorola’s $500 Edge phone from last summer, for instance, has a display with a 144Hz refresh rate. I’m expecting these higher frame rates to continue reaching mainstream phones and perhaps pushing even higher on gaming phones, a trend that we’re also seeing on some televisions and computer monitors.

The 720Hz rate is still largely found on gaming phones, but the Samsung Galaxy S23 does have a 240Hz touch sampling rate that is more than adequate outside the competitive gaming space.

Two front-facing speakers are located around the display, which is especially useful as it’s less likely that your hands will cover them while playing games. Plus, the phone has a wired headphone jack, making it one of the very few phones to still include the port. Having the option makes a lot of sense, since it allows for hardwiring into the phone for audio while using the USB-C port for charging. A second USB-C port on the phone is also available for accessories.

Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro has one of the biggest batteries I’ve seen

The Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro packs one of the largest batteries I’ve seen on a phone, with a 6,000mAh capacity. The closest we’ve otherwise seen in readily available phones like the Galaxy S23 Ultra is 5,000mAh. Even when I cranked up the refresh rate to 165Hz and turned on the phone’s always-on display, I made it through an entire day or two with a single charge fairly easily. I did not run all of CNET’s battery benchmarks on the Phone 6 Pro, but between the large capacity and support for 65W fast charging, getting the phone through a day isn’t an issue.

Additional battery life is very likely to make its way into more mainstream phones eventually, but currently faster charging already is available in phones like the OnePlus 11 5G. That phone offers 100W charging in the UK and 80W charging in the US.

Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro’s 18GB of RAM is overkill

The phone also includes 512GB of space alongside a ludicrous 18GB of LPDDR5 RAM. Multitasking is a breeze, as it’s able to handle several apps at the same time without lagging at all if I swapped quickly between them.

Games themselves load quickly too, thanks in part to the now previous-gen Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 processor. Hopping into a game, texting, and then launching a website before returning to the game is simple and fast. Whenever I use a gaming phone like the Phone 6 Pro, having this much RAM alongside a fast processor allows me to go into a game’s settings menu and crank up every graphics setting possible, with little worry that it’s going to hurt the performance of the title.

It’s worth noting that 2023 mainstream phones like the Galaxy S23 and gaming phones like the RedMagic 8 Pro are including the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor, both of which arrived after the ROG Phone 6 Pro.

The large amount of RAM is also one of the areas where the phone’s high price is quite obvious. It is common for phones like the iPhone 14 Pro or the Galaxy S23 Plus to include a 512GB storage tier at the $1,300 price range, but incorporating 18GB of RAM is very unusual. By comparison, this is more RAM than most computers at a similar price range include.

That said, the sheer amount of RAM included in the phone does show that while the Phone 6 Pro spares no expense on specs that help it run fast. It instead cuts corners on photography, which runs quite counter to what we typically see on the mainstream side of the phone industry.

Gaming focus comes at the expense of the cameras

When it comes to the phone’s cameras, photos are generally a weak point despite the inclusion of a 50-megapixel main camera, a 13-megapixel ultrawide camera and a 5-megapixel macro camera.

Beef pho noodle bowl photo captured on the Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro.

Mike Sorrentino/CNET

I took photos in several indoor settings, including during a tour of Samsung’s recently reopened 837 store in New York and during a nighttime ice skating session.

Ice skating photo taken on the Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro.

Sean Keane/CNET

The photos are nice, but they aren’t $1,300 phone nice.

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I know this is a «gaming phone» and not a «camera phone,» but I still expected more from such a pricey device. Most phones in this price range support more colors and detail, using a combination of a high-quality camera and software to bring out the most of a photo in a variety of situations. Yet the lack of focus in this area is understandable when considering how a rear camera rarely ever becomes a part of most mobile phone games. If camera quality is your concern, consider a Galaxy S23 Ultra, Pixel 7 Pro or iPhone 14 Pro Max.

Asus customizations don’t overwhelm Android

The Phone 6 Pro, which received the update to Android 13 during my time with it, has the right amount of software customization options. The tweaks made by Asus were noticeable, but didn’t get in my way when using the device.

The phone defaults to dark mode, which better compliments some of the Asus settings found in the company’s Armoury Crate app. This app lets you make adjustments to the LED display and game performance.

I appreciate the separation, as sometimes a phone’s settings menu can become overwhelming with options from both Android 13 and the device maker’s specific offerings. I would, however, appreciate some shortcuts from the device settings menu that bring you to the Asus app. There were some occasions when I wasn’t sure how to make certain changes. It wasn’t clear, for instance, how to adjust the rear LED.

As far as actual gaming goes, Asus includes a Game Genie hub that you can access while playing a game by tracing diagonally from the corners of the screen. This brings up a space-themed dashboard with settings for adjusting the device’s refresh rate, allowing or blocking phone calls, screen recording or adjusting the AirTriggers. These are the shoulder button-like sensors on the phone that can be customized for different commands. Gaming mode options like these are great for gaming phones or other high-end phones, but I don’t expect wider adoption: When I reviewed the $228 OnePlus N300, seeing a similar gaming mode on that cheaper phone seemed to give away that it didn’t have as much power to run games at higher graphics settings.

Asphalt Xtreme on the Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro.

Mike Sorrentino/CNET

Asus offers a lot, but for a specific gamer audience

The Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro brings a lot of personality to an otherwise niche and expensive device. I appreciate its flourishes — especially the rear LED — and how the phone prioritizes gaming and media consumption over all else. Features like the high-quality display, the rear LED, fast charging, the front-facing speakers and a headphone jack would likely be appreciated by a lot of regular phone users, too.

But Asus makes compromises in other areas, particularly when it comes to the cameras and the lack of wireless charging. While the high touch sampling rate is useful for gamers, it’s not significant enough to make me want it in a standard, non-gaming phone. This is ultimately still a very expensive phone — even for a niche audience. It’s also worth remembering that many of the specs can be found in cheaper options like the RedMagic, even if it’s at the expense of the user experience. But if you really want to have 18GB of RAM and a fancy second screen in your smartphone, be prepared to pay the $1,300.

Technologies

I’m Still Waiting for Amazon’s Big Alexa AI Upgrade: Here’s What to Know About the Delay

Like the Apple Siri AI upgrade, it looks like Amazon’s Alexa Plus is taking much longer than anticipated. Here’s why these voice assistants are dragging their digital feet.

We attended Amazon’s February announcement of a massive Alexa AI upgrade with great interest. The new service, called Alexa Plus, promised us conversational AI to set reservations, learn what we like, analyze home video for us and control our smart entertainment on the fly — even if it came with a wee bit of privacy loss.

The enhanced Alexa was supposed to be ready to try in March. Now it’s the middle of May and we’re still waiting. I wish I could say I was surprised. Here’s what’s happening and why Echo users should practice their patience.

Read more: Amazon Alexa Just Changed Its Privacy Settings. CNET Survey Reveals 73% of Device Users Were Already Worried

Alexa Plus stalls out: We’ve seen this before

So, where’s the AI? For now, it’s still in early access, and that early access period appears to be limited. Even the few who have tried out Alexa Plus have been quiet about it. Those who’ve spoken up have said the AI is lacking critical features that were mentioned at the announcement, including ordering food on Grubhub with a conversation, entering into a story mode with kids, visually identifying family members during conversations, brainstorming ideas in a casual conversation mode, and using Alexa Plus on the Web. In other words, it’s just not ready yet.

Read more: The Best Smart Displays for 2025

I’ve seen this before, very recently, with Apple’s announcement that it will be delaying Siri’s big AI upgrade, not only for a year after WWDC 2024, but then again in 2025 and possibly for as long as until 2027 according to our latest info. It’s possible Amazon watched the fallout from these delay announcements plus leaked employee complaints, and decided to be much quieter about the Alexa Plus rollout.

Either way, it could be months before the average consumer sees an option to upgrade to Alexa Plus, and with staggered rollouts, some Amazon customers could be waiting quite some time for the chatty new Alexa. No one at CNET has gotten an early access look at Alexa Plus yet, but the testing period is still ongoing, so we’re hopeful to get our hands on it very soon.

Waiting for the Show

We’re ready with Amazon Echos, Echo Shows, home cameras, smart gadgets and more to test out just what’s changed with Alexa Plus and what features have actually arrived (and what we still can’t do). But for now, it looks like we’re waiting for our own wake word — and I wouldn’t be surprised if Alexa Plus is on a similar trajectory to Siri’s AI delays, sans the troubling announcements and exposes we saw with Apple.

If you’re desperate to see what Amazon is doing with the latest Alexa AI technology, there is a way to get to the front of the line. Amazon has mentioned that during the early access period, it will focus on releasing Alexa Plus for Echo Shows. If you have an Echo Show 8, Show 10, Show 15 or Show 21, you’re more likely to see an offer for Alexa Plus if you sign up for the program.

Otherwise, we’ll keep you updated. Check out our AI Atlas to get the latest on Siri, Google Gemini, ChatGPT, Grok and, yes, Alexa Plus as we learn more and test out new capabilities.

Read more: The Best Smart Speakers for 2025

(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET’s parent company, in April filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.)

Technologies

Kia Electric Truck: What We Know So Far About the New Pickup EV

Here’s everything we know right now about Kia’s upcoming electric pickup truck that will be coming to the US.

Technologies

18 Amazon Prime Perks That Will Make Your Life Easier

Think Prime’s just for packages? These extra perks might surprise you.

You probably already know that an Amazon Prime membership gets you free two-day shipping and access to events like Prime Day. But there are plenty of other perks that fly under the radar, including discounts you can use beyond Amazon.

One unexpected benefit? You can actually save money on gas with your Prime subscription. From grocery deals to streaming extras, there’s a lot more value packed into your membership than most people realize.

Sure, a 30-day free trial lets you take advantage of limited-time deals, but it only lets you scratch the surface of all that a membership has to offer. It might surprise you to learn what else you can get by being a Prime member. Below, we’re going to break down some of the best perks you may not know about.

Spoiler: Some of them are bangers.

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1. Watch HBO or other premium TV channels without cable

You probably know about Prime Video and Amazon Music Prime, but you might not know all the special details. Amazon Prime members have access to a large number of feature-length movies and hit original TV shows like The Boys and The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power, as well as an Amazon Music Prime library featuring 2 million songs and thousands of curated playlists.

Prime members can also download movies and TV shows for watching later offline.

If a show or movie you want to watch is not included as part of your basic Prime subscription, you can subscribe to premium channels such as HBO, Showtime and Starz for $5 to $15 a month, with no need for cable or satellite service.

Music lovers can upgrade to Amazon Music Unlimited to get a library of 90 million songs that can be streamed to multiple devices for $9 a month or $89 a year.

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2. Get money back by choosing no-rush shipping

If you don’t need your purchase to be delivered quickly, you can opt out of two-day or shorter delivery options by selecting «no-rush shipping» and receive your package in about six days. In return for your patience, Amazon will give you rewards.

There’s no standard for no-rush shipping rewards — they vary from item to item — but they generally provide discounts on products and services that you might buy from Amazon.

Some common rewards are $1 credits for Amazon digital services like movies, music and ebooks, $3 coupons for Amazon’s Happy Belly-branded snacks, $10 to $20 off TV or furniture purchases and $10 to $20 off Amazon Home Services.

The value of no-rush shipping will depend on whether you’ll use any of the rewards. It might not seem like much, but a few no-rush shipping selections could easily earn you the $3 to $4 you need for a free movie rental from Prime Video.

3. Whole Foods grocery discounts

If you’re a frequent shopper at Whole Foods, an Amazon Prime membership can reap serious dividends. Prime Member Deals available in physical Whole Foods stores give members discounts of 10% to 20% on selected items marked with blue Amazon stickers.

Yellow tags indicate even further savings, usually at least another 10% off an already discounted price. Prime members who scan the Whole Foods Market or Amazon app at checkout get an extra 10% off storewide sales. Prime membership also gives you access to special online deals.

4. Exclusive access to Thursday night NFL football games

It’s the second year that Amazon Prime has had exclusive rights to air Thursday Night Football, and Prime seems to be killing the game. It received five Sports Emmys nominations for its 2022 coverage and boasts a stacked cast of experts, commentators and former players.

If you are a Prime subscriber, you can stream 2023-2024 Thursday Night Football games on Prime Video, NFL +, Amazon.com or Twitch. There is also a Spanish-language broadcast available on Prime Video. TNF pregame coverage begins at 7 p.m. EST each Thursday.

5. Free same-day Amazon Fresh delivery

Whole Foods isn’t the only grocery option available to Amazon Prime members. Subscribers also have access to the online grocery store Amazon Fresh, which provides free deliveries to some locations. Amazon Fresh has some similar products to Whole Foods but generally focuses on a broader range of groceries and home products at lower prices.

Anyone can purchase products from Amazon Fresh, but only Prime members get free same-day delivery. Amazon Fresh also has 44 physical locations that offer special weekly deals for Prime members.

6. Try on clothes and shoes before you buy them

It’s almost impossible to size clothing correctly online — to know if it fits, you have to try it on. Prime members get that chance with Amazon’s Try Before You Buy service. In specific personal shopping categories like clothes, shoes and accessories, you can order items and keep them for seven days without paying for them.

Return what you don’t want before the trial week is over, and you’ll only pay for the items that you keep. Eligible products are indicated on Amazon with a «Try Before You Buy» icon. Several online reports have indicated a limit of six products for Try Before You Buy, but the Amazon site doesn’t specify a maximum.

7. Borrow unlimited books, magazines and comics

Amazon Prime members gain access to Prime Reading, a service similar to Kindle Unlimited with a different collection of materials. You can borrow as many books as you like, and many include audible narration, so you can switch back and forth between reading and listening. The electronic downloads don’t require a Kindle or Fire device.

Amazon First Reads gives Prime members access to editors’ selections of early book releases. Anyone with a Prime membership gets one free Kindle book a month, as well as regular discounts on selected titles.

8. Prime-exclusive deals and promos

Amazon offers Prime-exclusive deals all-year round on top products meaning you can make back the cost of your membership in savings. For big shopping seasons like Black Friday or Prime Day, there are even more member-only prices to shop.

Plus, Prime subscribers often get early access to Lightning Deals. These are sort of like Amazon’s version of a fire sale, featuring very low prices for a limited number of products that usually sell out very quickly. The good news for Amazon Prime members is that they get access to these deals earlier than everyone else. The bad news? There are a lot of Amazon Prime members.

9. Exclusive Zappos deals, faster shipping and a test month for running shoes

Amazon acquired the online shoe giant Zappos back in 2009, and it now provides a number of benefits for Prime members who link their accounts on Zappos.com. Prime members get faster shipping, bonus reward points for shopping and exclusive deals on certain products.

Zappos also lets Prime members participate in Runlimited, a 30-day guarantee program for running shoes.

10. Save money on prescription drugs online or at your local pharmacy

Amazon Prime Rx Savings program gives Prime members discounts on prescription medicine, whether it’s purchased at Amazon Pharmacy or in-store at a physical pharmacy. An Amazon Rx savings card can be printed out or saved digitally and used for discounts at more than 60,000 participating pharmacies, including CVS, Walgreens and Rite Aid.

Amazon says that members can save up to 80% on common prescription drugs using Prime Rx, but it’s important to note that Amazon’s Prime Rx savings program does not work with health insurance. You’ll need to be sure that any savings you get from the program are more than you’d get from insurance coverage.

For more about Amazon Prime, learn about what to expect from this year’s back-to-school deals.

11. Access to Prime Gaming

Prime Gaming is a fun feature that is included with both Amazon Prime and Prime Video. Eligible subscribers are able to download content in-game for their favorite games, free games and even a free monthly Twitch channel subscription.

Prime Gaming is included with annual and monthly Prime subscriptions, Prime Student subscriptions, Amazon Prime free trials, and Prime Video memberships. It’s important to note that only one member per household may claim an offer, and if you have a Prime Video monthly free trial you will be unable to claim a free Twitch subscription. If you are using a free trial of Student Prime, your free Twitch membership will expire when your free trial expires.

12. One Medical membership discounts

One Medical is a membership-based health service that provides primary in-person and virtual health care. Its concierge-like medical service is designed to allow members to easily schedule appointments and care using the company’s mobile app or website.

Amazon acquired One Medical in February and is now offering a major discount for Prime members. Instead of the usual price of $199 a year, Amazon Prime members can subscribe for $99 a year, or $9 per month. To activate the discount, Prime members should visit this page. Existing One Medical subscribers who are Prime members can also take advantage of the discount starting with their next payment.

13. Unlimited photo storage with Amazon Photos

With a subscription to Amazon Prime, you can store unlimited photos and 5GB of video on Amazon Photos. Without Amazon Prime, you’re limited to a total of 5GB of videos and photos total.

You can view or share your photos and videos on Amazon Photos using the iOS or Android app, or on a computer with the desktop or web app. Your photo and video files are both fully encrypted, so they’re only visible to people with whom you intentionally share them.

14. Get discounts on Shutterfly

Amazon has partnered with photography company Shutterfly to offer Prime members 45% off most regular-priced products. Shoppers can also get free shipping on orders of $35 or more. To get the discount, you’ll have to link your Shutterfly and Amazon accounts.

If you store your photos with Amazon, you can now access your Amazon Photos directly from Shutterfly. This makes it extra convenient for Prime members to share images from their extensive photo library.

15. Get a Grubhub Plus membership for free

Don’t feel like cooking tonight? There’s a perk for that, too.

When Amazon announced it would offer Grubhub Plus free for a year in 2022, it was a solid, but temporary, perk added to Prime. In 2023, Prime members were treated to another free year. For 2024, instead of renewing the food delivery service’s premium membership again for another year, Grubhub Plus became a permanent Amazon Prime perk.

Grubhub Plus typically costs $9.99 a month, and provides unlimited free delivery for all orders over $12 in over 4,000 cities nationwide.

16. Save on Amazon Kids Plus

If you have Amazon Prime, you also get access to discounted Amazon Kids Plus. The subscription service features a wide range of ad-free content, including books, games and videos for children ages 3 to 12. Parents can limit the amount of screen time available to their children and manage up to four profiles on iOS and Android.

The Amazon Kids Plus subscription is normally $79 a year, but Prime members can get it for $48 a year.

17. Get your package delivered on the day you want it with Amazon Day

If none of the usual delivery dates work for you, you have one additional option as a Prime member. Amazon Day is a free perk that lets you schedule your packages to arrive on your day of choice. Next time you’re on vacation, you don’t have to arrange for the neighbors to help you bring in your boxes, and you won’t have to worry about porch pirates stealing your delivery on days when you’re not home.

Amazon Day is also a great option to cut down on the number of boxes for your packages, since you can schedule multiple purchases to arrive as a single delivery.

18. Save money on gas

Do you spend several hours each week driving to and from work? If you’re an Amazon Prime member living in the US, your dollar will now stretch a little farther at the gas pump. You can save 10 cents per gallon at BP, Amoco and AM/PM gas stations — there are about 7,000 locations across the 50 states. Amazon estimates that this perk will save the average American nearly $70 per year.

Prime members who want to take advantage of this perk must first activate the offer. After the one-time activation, you can simply go to the pump and input your phone number or linked payment method for instant savings.

For more, check out these Amazon deals on tech and home goods and tips for getting the best Amazon deals.