PC World - USA (2020-11)

NOVEMBER 2020 PCWorld 93

covered many of the most
popular gaming phones, there
are three key features (beyond
their raw power) that help
phones like the Asus ROG Phone
3 and Lenovo Legion Phone Duel
stand out from the mainstream
masses.

1. A SUPREME
   AUDIO EXPERIENCE
   As an audio engineer by trade,
   I’ve always put great audio at the
   forefront of my purchasing
   decisions. Unfortunately the trend in most
   major smartphones has been to sacrifice
   audio—like removing the headphone jack—
   and it hurts my heart. Phones rarely have great
   speakers and/or DACs. Sure, there are
   companies like LG who tout quad-DACs and
   “Crystal Sound OLED” technology, but most
   phone makers treat audio as lip
   service. Most people have
   moved to Bluetooth
   headphones and prefer slim
   bezels to big, booming built-in
   speakers anyway.
   Then there’s the Asus ROG
   Phone 3 (go.pcworld.com/
   rog3). It (and most gaming
   phones) packs front-facing
   stereo speakers that will make
   your ears quiver. The sound that
   comes out of the ROG Phone 3

will blow your mind after using a normal

smartphone speaker. And even though I have

plenty of headphones, sometimes I don’t

always want to put something in or on my

ears. The rich-sounding speakers of a gaming

phone is perfect for us audio nerds.

Even better, some gaming phones have

Large stereo front-firing speakers are amazing.

The Asus ROG Phone with the AeroActive Cooler 3 attached.