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Asus has been putting enormous amounts of efforts into the Indian market since the past 1.5 years when it launched the Asus Zenfone Max Pro M1. It marked a new beginning for Asus in the Indian market by going completely online with exclusive partnership with Flipkart and therefore providing amazing specification phones at a great value. Last year Asus announced its first ever gaming phone and was from its sub-brand, ROG Phone. It was an amazing device but with a staggering price which didn’t please many except few a gamers.

OnePlus as everyone knows is a well established brand now and continues to provide high end specs at a valuable price. But in the past it has started to make some compromises here and there. OnePlus 7T is the next iteration in OnePlus devices and packs lot of goodness from the flagship OnePlus 7 Pro. One the other hand Asus ROG Phone 2 was a phone for a different segment of the customers but that seems to change as many literally many people even non-gamers are showing keen interest on the ROG Phone 2 because of the price it has been launched in and is a monster in terms of specifications.

Both phones are similar in specifications but way different in terms of overall usage. So let’s cover those things and our opinions on the same.

What’s simple & minimal on OnePlus 7T?

The OnePlus 7T as any other phone be it any range has this glass metal sandwich design and to look more appealing brands are following a gradient design which same has been done on the OnePlus 7T. The phone comes in 2 colours, grey and blue (no one really cares of the fancy names so ya). These colours look really nice especially the grey one but who knows it might just be stickers under the back glass panel and brands just over hype the manufacturing process. Can’t wait for JerryRigEverything’s video for the same.

Now, on the front there is some changes like now the notch is more narrower and resembles the water drop notches on the Samsung Galaxy M series of smartphones which we think is better then previous notches found on OnePlus 6T & OnePlus 7. Also the screen is now more taller and narrower as well. The curves on the display are less curvy too. The curves are more like the OnePlus 6. This is a 6.5″ FullHD+ sAMOLED display. We feel this is the best OnePlus front design ever among all the displays since the OnePlus 6. But the best thing about the front is the 90hz refresh rate display borrowed from the flagship & much expensive OnePlus 7 Pro. You’ll have to experience it to know how smooth the tech is. It also has stereo speakers. One on the top and other under beneath the phone.

The cameras also have got an upgrade from 2 lens to 3 lens. Finally, OnePlus remembered to add a wide-angle camera which it should have done way back on the OnePlus 6T. Along with that it has the same 48MP IMX586 sensor and a 12MP telefoto lens. The ultra-wide camera is of 16MP with f/2.2 aperture. The selfie camera is a 16MP shooter with f/2.0.

Now for the small things which do not matter much but can be very helpful in day to day tasks. First of, as expected OnePlus 7T doesn’t have a headphone reason being introduction of in-display fingerprint scanner but that’s just excuse to make the customer buy their own wireless headphones. The phone doesn’t have a notification light neither Alway On Display inspite of an AMOLED display and OnePlus 7T also doesn’t have FM Radio. FM Radio usage is rare these days because of the on demand services but on long road trips where there is no network coverage and at the same time no internet connection then what you’ll use for music? Obviously FM Radio. On top of that the ROG Phone 2 has all of the missing features above.

Rest specs include the following which the OnePlus 7 already had or a little improvements have been made:-

• Snapdragon 855 Plus SoC
• 3800mAh battery with 30W Wrap charging
• 128GB/256GB ROM with 8GB RAM
• Android 10 with Oxygen OS 10

What’s so ultimate about ROG Phone 2?

ROG Phone 2 just blows every phone’s spec sheet out of the water! Indeed a gamers fantasy phone. This device is one of the chunkiest for sure as it makes so many goodies that indeed it would require so much room to accumulate everything. Though some may not at all prefer that. First of all it has this 6.59″ FullHD+ AMOLED display with not 120Hz refresh rate! If 90Hz is smooth then imagine how smooth 120Hz would be.

ROG Phone to has this massive 6000mAh battery which is the best and baddest in business. After all it has a 120Hz screen which would require serious amount of battery juice. But even with that refresh rate, it would easily last a day with heavy gaming. The SoC here used is the Snapdragon 855 Plus after all it is a gaming phone so why not use the latest and greatest chip available on the market.

The cameras on this one are exactly the same as Zenfone 6/Asus 6z which 48MP IMX586 sensor along with a 13MP wide-angle camera. On the front there’s a 24MP sensor for selfies. The cameras on ROG Phone 2 won’t be as good as the Asus 6z inspite of the same sensors because if they optimise the cameras so well then why not buy ROG Phone 2 only instead of Asus 6z by cashing in few more bucks.

Now coming to small features which make ROG Phone 2 a helpful gadget in day to day tasks. It has 4 Wifi bands which means better internet reception and on the other hand an average smartphone has 2 -3 WiFi bands. For all the gaming geek, there are air triggers present on right side of the phone. Also the phone doesn’t have 1 but 2 USB Type-c ports. One at the bottom and the other at left side of the phone. You can plug and play through the side charging port and the wires won’t interfere a bit. Rest all the basics like headphone jack, notification LED and FM Radio are also present. This small & little things give an edge over the OnePlus 7T.

All specifications in brief:-

• 6.59″ AMOLED Display
• Snapdragon 855+
• 6000mAh battery with 18W fast charging
• 8GB RAM 128GB ROM/ 12GB RAM 256GB ROM
• 48MP + 13MP wide-angle camera (rear)
• 24MP camera (front)
• Android 9 Pie with ZenUI 6
• In-display fingerprint scanner

Design & Aesthetics of OnePlus 7T & ROG Phone 2

The ROG Phone 2 and OnePlus 7T have day & night difference in terms of designs and looks and even how the way they feel in hand. The ROG Phone 2 is a chunky device and the OnePlus is a slim and like any other smartphone, minimal.

Which should you buy?

Well, to buy something you are supposed to have a budget. This calls for the price. OnePlus 7T price is set for Rs. 38,000 for 8GB RAM & 128GB ROM & Rs. 40,000 for 8GB RAM & 256GB ROM respectively. ROG Phone 2 price is Rs. 38,000 for 8GB RAM & 128GB ROM and Rs. 60,000 for 12GB RAM & 256GB ROM respectively.

Both devices are exactly priced for atleast the base variants with same storage configurations. Before ROG Phone 2 launch event no one expected it to be priced so aggressively. But it is what it is and Asus posed a threat to OnePlus after launching this device. The ROG Phone 2 was never meant for the general customers buying a smartphone. It targeted only gaming centric people as it did last year with ROG Phone. But now the tables have turned, even a general person is showing interest towards the ROG Phone 2 because of the specs and the valuable price it offers. OnePlus on the other hand has brought many features from the OnePlus 7 Pro to the OnePlus 7T like the triple camera setup, 90Hz display.

So, if you are a heavy user and want that mega battery, go for ROG Phone and if you think that the design is a little too much for you then apply an opaque cover maybe? Because the battery life ROG provides none can beat it be it any price range. If you are more towards the photography side then go for OnePlus 7T. Day to day performance on both is literally same & snappy thanks to the Snapdragon 855 Plus and respective UI optimisations on both the devices. But in gaming obviously the ROG has an edge.

Checkout our other post on innovations here