This year there are only three gaming devices arriving in the Malaysian market, namely the Black Shark 5, Red Magic 7S Pro and also the Asus ROG Phone 6/6D series. The one I was able to test myself was the Red Magic and it had a solid design but was let down by the software which was not very satisfying
When the Asus ROG Phone 6D arrived at the our lab, I had the opportunity to use this Dimensity 9000+ chip-powered device and it was fantastic and had performance beyond my expectations.
Specifications And Design
Asus ROG Phone 6D
6.78″ AMOLED FHD+ screen (1080×2400)
165Hz, HDR10+
MediaTek Dimensity 9000+ processor (4nm)
1x 3.35 GHz Cortex-X2 chip
3x 3.20 GHz Cortex-A710
4x 1.80 GHz Cortex-A510
Mali-G710 MC10 Graphics Chip
RAM 12GB LPDDR5X
Internal Storage 256GB UFS 3.1
Primary Camera 50MP, f/1.9 (Primary)
13MP, f/2.2 (Ultra-wide angle)
5MP (Macro)
12MP Selfie Camera
6000 mAh battery
65W wired charging (PD)
SIM/Telephony Dual SIM nano
5G
NFC Available
Stereo Audio
Heading forward
Dirac HD Sound, Hi-Res
3.5mm
IPX4 Waterproof
Scan System Fingerprint scan under the screen
Sale Price RM 3,499 (12/256 GB)
Asus ROG Phone 6D is the first device in Malaysia to be powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 9000+ chip. It is also paired with 12GB LPDDR5X RAM memory and 256GB UFS3.1 internal storage. This device also uses the same screen as the Asus ROG Phone 6, which is a 6.78-inch AMOLED FHD+ 165Hz with a touch rate of up to 720Hz and also supports HDR10+ display with eye protection support for users.
The screen of this device is also one of the best in the market because it is able to display various contents without any problems. For example when I stream a video on Netflix or YouTube, the HDR10+ content has sharp colors, clear details and provides the best viewing experience.
Not forgetting the very fast refresh rate of 165Hz, there is no problem of time lag or lag on every touch and during use. If you feel that your phone's 120Hz screen is fast and smooth enough, this ROG Phone 6D screen is more robust.
The screen however still has a fairly prominent forehead and chin area. ASUS refuses to use under-screen camera technology, camera hole or notch. Their decision is actually correct because the camera placed on the forehead does not interfere with the visual displayed on the screen when watching a video and more importantly during the first session.
The design of the device is the same as the previous ROG Phone. The only difference is in the pattern on the back and the color used. The right side houses the power button and volume button along with the AirTrigger touch button to become a shoulder button when playing first with the support of the X-Haptic vibration system that gives realistic press feedback.
There is nothing above but below is the first USB-C charging port 3.5mm audio jack which is now becoming extinct on modern smartphones. Asus also includes another USB-C port on the left side for charging purposes or for installing accessories such as the AeroActive Cooler 6 or the Kunai Gamepad 3 controller. Through this secondary charging port, there is no cable issue blocking fingers when the device is held horizontally.
Asus ROG Phone 6D runs the ROG UI operating system which focuses on the original or Zen UI which is close to the original Android built on Android 12. The battery of the device is 6000mAh with 65W Power Delivery charging support.
The back panel of the device made of metal also has the ROG logo with RGB support that can be controlled by the user either to look bright when playing first or as an LED light for notifications.
This gaming phone is quite heavy and thick because there are various additional cooling systems and the size of the battery is very large. However, for a gaming phone this is not a negative thing because the ROG Phone 6D is very comfortable and pleasant in the hand. More importantly, it also passes the IPX4 waterproof standard.
Use And Software
As I said earlier, this device offers two launcher options which are ROG UI or Zen UI. Throughout my use, I prefer to use Zen UI because it is similar to the original Android 12 which is simple, pleasing to the eye and not dizzying. ROG UI is actually more or less the same, only the icons and colors used look messy and messy to me. It's a little disappointing that the device still uses Android 12 because Android 13 was officially launched more than three months ago.
Even so, no matter which launcher is used both still offer the same features. Most important is the Armoury-Crate support which allows users to control RGB settings, presets, AeroActive Cooler 6/Kunai Gamepad 3 settings and most importantly the ability to overclock with X-Mode mode to put the device in the highest performance mode.
What is disappointing with this device is the software support which is only two years old with two versions of Android and two years of security patch updates. Devices costing more than RM3000 should offer at least three years of update support. This indirectly forces users to change devices after two years of use if they do not want to fall victim to security vulnerabilities.
It's hard to forgive Asus in this regard considering Samsung is able to offer four Android version updates and up to five years of security patches on their much cheaper Galaxy A series devices.
Play first on this device is the best in the market right now. True, the Black Shark 5 and 5 Pro are equipped with physical shoulder buttons providing an experience that looks more like a console game controller. But after more than two weeks of use, AirTrigger is actually a good function with the help of the X-Haptic vibration system.
The sensitivity level of the shoulder buttons can be adjusted on the Armoury-Crate such as to press gently or press hard. Not only that, AirTrigger can also detect scrolling and be programmed to do macros in the first place. In terms of functionality, AirTrigger allows more additional things to be activated for example to activate gyroscope detection in the first flight for example.
It also allows users to customize the function of each button, like in PUBG Mobile or COD Mobile – left button to aim the weapon and right button to shoot. Users can even set one of the buttons to activate the X-Mode mode that overclocks the CPU or to call a virtual assistant.
Bench mark
We are no longer disappointed with MediaTek's processing chips because since releasing their Dimensity chip family they are now comparable to Snapdragon. No more heating issues or performance problems that plagued the Helios series a few years ago.
On the ROG Phone 6D, the Dimensity 9000+ chip is a benchmark device chip that can beat the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip. The benchmark score obtained is also quite high and beyond expectations.
Tests through the AnTuTu 3D application displayed a score of 1,018,653, while on Geekbench 5 it was 1,182/3,782. For 3DMark it displays a score of 2,603. Each of these tests has been performed many times, with or without the AeroActive Cooler and we selected the most optimal score. Here is a comparison with gaming devices Red Magic 7S Pro (Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1), Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro (Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1) and Black Shark 5 Pro (Snapdragon 8 Gen 1)
AnTuTu 3D
Asus ROG Phone 6D – 1,018,653
Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro – 1,099,5132
Red Magic 7S Pro – 1,108,890
Black Shark 5 Pro- 1,018,939
Geekbench 5
Asus ROG Phone 6D – 1182/3782
Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro – 1312/4191
Red Magic 7S Pro – 1345/4201
Black Shark 5 Pro – 1202/3693
3DMark
ROG Phone 6D – 2603
Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro – 2786
Red Magic 7S Pro – 2719
Black Shark 5 Pro: – 2614
Throughout the use of this device as well, I have not experienced any serious heating problems. When playing the first game with high graphics, the device can still be held as usual and the system does not crash or experience time lag problems. In fact, it only gets hot when after playing the game, you continue to stream videos and be active on social media. It also gets hot if the RGB system is constantly activated.
Telephony And GPS
The Asus ROG Phone 6D is also the device with the best network connection I've used this year. Home WiFi which is usually slow and intermittent on other Android devices is not a problem on my device. The mobile data connection is also always stable and I can use this device as a hotspot device for better Internet connection on my other devices.
I also had the opportunity to use 5G with Maxis when in Seremban, because this device is one of the devices listed on the DNB website. For voice calls, the device is equipped with a tri-microphone ASUS Noise Reduction Technology that ensures my voice is always clear and loud. The use of GPS is also satisfactory as the location can be locked quickly and the map application can give directions without getting lost.
Camera
Usually devices that focus first don't have good camera quality. But the Asus ROG Phone 6D is able to provide satisfactory image results, both during the day and at night. This is because of the 50MP Sony IMX766 main sensor that is often used in many flagship devices. A 13MP corner lens is paired with a 5MP macro lens to complement the main tri-camera system while a 12MP sensor is used in front.
So pictures with auto mode, ultra-wide angle, night mode all give satisfactory results. What is not satisfactory is the 5MP macro camera which is just a gimmick. It is better to include only two cameras because the quality of the macro photos taken is not as good as the other two cameras. Here are some sample photos from when I was in Singapore and Penang.
Battery
The 6000 mAh battery on this device is quite large. Battery life actually depends on how each one is used. When I was actively gaming, constantly using the camera and hotspot for connection to my three other devices, regularly streaming videos and actively using social media applications – I achieved a SOT of around 4.5 hours. But with balanced usage and battery saving mode activated, the device has no problem reaching SOT up to 8 hours.
Asus ROG Phone 6D also supports 65W fast charging through Power Delivery HyperCharge technology that can charge the device from 0% to 100% in just 42 minutes. The charging is not as fast as the Black Shark 5 Pro with 120W but still adequate.
More importantly, all ROG Phone 6 series support the pass through charging feature that directly supplies electrical power to the device by bypassing the battery. This will extend the battery life even if the device is connected to the charger all the time.
Audio
Among many flagship devices, the Asus ROG Phone is one of the devices with the best speaker system on the market. ROG Phone 6D still uses a symmetrical speaker system tuned by Dirac HD Sound that points forward. It has loud audio, deep bass, and provides an immersive, balanced listening experience.
The 100% sound level is also quite loud and I rarely use a set of earphones with this device. If you want to use it, there is no problem because there is a 3.5mm audio jack for connecting wired headphones. This is important to avoid lag issues when using bluetooth earphones.
In the box
Here's what you get with every device purchase in Malaysia.
1x Asus ROG Phone 6D.
1x ROG AR Card.
1x USB-C to USB-C charging cable.
1x PD HyperCharge 65W Charger.
1x Aero Case plastic frame.
1x Manual.
1x SIM Pin.
Conclusion
On the Black Shark 5 Pro I like the physical shoulder buttons. On the Red Magic 7S Pro, the beautiful back design is attractive. I like this Asus ROG Phone 6D as a whole. It has a big, fast screen, a solid Dimensity 9000+ chip, a satisfying camera, balanced audio, a long-lasting battery and a very user-friendly operating system. All in a package priced at RM3,499 which is cheaper than the offerings from ASUS competitors.
My only issue with this device is that the design is recycled from the regular ROG Phone 6 and the software update support is only for two years. But if these two things are not important to you, I have no problem recommending this device to anyone. This is the gaming device benchmark that competitors should follow.
Pro
Outstanding performance of the MediaTek Dimensity chip.
Beautiful screen, fast and satisfying.
Balanced audio capabilities.
Satisfactory battery life and fairly fast charging.
Affordable selling price.
Cons
Recycled design.
Update support is only two years.
The AirTrigger shoulder button isn't for everyone.
Only IPX4 and not IP68.