Asus ROG Phone 5 vs Samsung Galaxy S21

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• Asus ROG Phone 5 vs Samsung Galaxy S21

The Samsung Galaxy S21 hasn't had much competition yet this year, but with the release of the Asus ROG Phone 5, one of its early rivals of 2021 has arrived. ROG Phone 5 is built for gamers, but that means it packs a ton of features. power, a big battery, and most of the other things you'd expect from a flagship phone. So whether you're a mobile gamer or not, it might be worth considering. But how does it compare to the Samsung Galaxy S21? To answer that question, we've compared these two phones on all fronts, including design, display, camera, battery, power, and more, so you can see for yourself which one is the right choice.

(Image credit: future)

Integrated

The Asus ROG Phone 5 is not a subtle phone. Its glass back has an RGB logo that can display two colors at once and supports eight different lighting schemes. A triple-lens camera runs horizontally across the top of the back, and around the front is a flat display with slim bezels at the top and bottom. The front camera is housed in the top frame, so there are no notches or punch holes. The phone comes in Phantom Black and Storm White shades and is big and heavy at 172,8 x 77,2 x 10,29mm and 238g. The Samsung Galaxy S21, on the other hand, stands out a lot less, as there's no RGB lighting on its rather plain back, and it has a plastic rather than glass back. Its triple-lens camera runs vertically along the left edge of the back, so the look is different too, and around the front is a hole-punch camera, and thus less bezel than on the ROG Phone 5. The Samsung Galaxy S21 is also IP68 certified, which means it's waterproof to depths of 1,5 meters for up to 30 minutes. You don't get such protection in the Asus ROG Phone 5. Samsung's phone is also available in more colors, with Phantom Grey, Phantom White, Phantom Violet, and Phantom Pink, and comes in at 151,7 x 71,2 x 7,9mm. and 171 g.

The Samsung Galaxy S21 has a plastic back (Image credit: TechRadar) Thus, the Samsung Galaxy S21 is smaller, lighter and thinner than the Asus ROG Phone 5. It's also better protected against the elements, it's available in more colors and sports a more discreet design. But with its flashy looks and glass back, the Asus ROG Phone 5 looks a bit more expensive.

(Image credit: future)

Show

The Asus ROG Phone 5 features a 1080-inch AMOLED 2448 x 6.78 display, with 395 pixels per inch, a 144Hz refresh rate, and HDR10+ support. The Samsung Galaxy S21, on the other hand, has a 1080-inch 2400 x 6.2 AMOLED display with 421 pixels per inch, a 120Hz refresh rate, and HDR10+ support. So their resolutions are similar, but the Samsung Galaxy S21's screen is significantly smaller and therefore also has a slightly higher pixel density.

The Samsung Galaxy S21 has a much smaller screen (Image credit: TechRadar) Both phones have high maximum refresh rates, but the ROG Phone 5 has the advantage, also having a likely higher 300Hz touch sampling rate That is the number of times a screen searches. One touch input per second, and a high frequency is important for gaming. Samsung doesn't seem to have specified the touch sampling rate on the Galaxy S21, but the S20 series has a 240Hz touch sampling rate. However, the Samsung Galaxy S21 and Asus ROG Phone 5 have a flat screen and both use Gorilla Glass Victus, so they are also well protected against drops. Both also have an in-display fingerprint scanner.

(Image credit: future)

Camera and battery life

Since the Asus ROG Phone 5 is primarily a gaming phone, you might expect the camera to be an afterthought, but on paper it at least looks solid. The phone has a 64MP f/1.8 main camera, a 13MP f/2.4 ultra-wide camera, and a 5MP f/2.0 macro camera, as well as a 24MP f/2.45 front-facing snapper. The Samsung Galaxy S21, on the other hand, has a 12MP f/1.8 main camera, a 64MP f/2.0 telephoto lens (with 3x hybrid optical zoom), and a 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide camera, plus a 10MP f/2.2. / 8 camera in front. Both phones can also record video in up to 21K quality, with the Galaxy S24 doing it at 5fps, while the ROG Phone 30 does it at XNUMXfps.

Both phones have a triple-lens camera, but only the S21 has a telephoto one (Image credit: TechRadar) In practice, we've been reasonably impressed with the Galaxy S21's cameras, and its telephoto is arguably more useful than the macro that has the ROG Phone 5, but that will be somewhat subjective. In terms of battery capacity, the Asus ROG Phone 5 is the clear winner, with a whopping 6000 mAh, compared to 4000 mAh in the Samsung Galaxy S21. The ROG Phone 5's battery also charges faster, supporting 65W charging (going from zero to 100% in 52 minutes) and comes with a 65W charger. The Galaxy S21, on the other hand, comes with a 65W charger. To it, it tops out at 25W charging and doesn't come with a charger in the box, though it also supports wireless charging, which you don't get with the ROG Phone 5.

(Image credit: future)

Specifications and Features

Both phones are packed with power, but the Asus ROG Phone 5 has the upper hand. It has a higher-end Snapdragon 888 chipset paired with up to 16GB of RAM, whereas the Galaxy S21 has the same chipset (in some regions anyway, others get the comparable Exynos 2100), it only has 8GB of RAM. As a gaming phone, the ROG Phone 5 has additional features to help you make the most of its power, such as AirTriggers, which provide off-screen buttons for use in games. It is also compatible with a variety of optional gaming accessories. Both phones have up to 256GB of storage and support 5G, and neither have a microSD card slot. Both also use Android 11.

(Image credit: future)

Prices and availability

The Asus ROG Phone 5 is expected to land before the end of March and start at 799 Euros (around $950 / £685 / AU$1,235) for 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, increasing to 899 Euros (around €1,070 / £770 / AU$1,390) for 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, and Euros 999 (about €1,190 / £855 / AU$1,540) for 16GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. The Samsung Galaxy S21 is available now, starting at $799 / £769 / AU$1,249. That gets you 128GB of storage, while for 256GB you're looking at $849 / £819 / AU$1,349.

(Image credit: future)

Wear

The Asus ROG Phone 5 has a lot going for it, with its refresh rate, RAM, battery size, charging speed, and glass back all being better than what the Samsung Galaxy S21 has to offer. It also has a bigger screen, useful gaming features, and roughly matches the S21 in most other ways, like resolution, storage, and 5G support. That said, the ROG Phone 5's flashy design and RGB lights certainly won't appeal to everyone, and while it has the same number of cameras as Samsung's phone, it lacks a telephoto lens. It's also bigger, thicker, and doesn't have the IP rating found on the Galaxy S21, so it probably shouldn't get the ROG Phone 5 wet. Overall, there's enough going for each phone that there's no winner. Of course if we only look at the specifications. Which phone is best for you will likely depend on what matters most to you in a phone.