Best Gaming Phone 2018: The 10 Top Gaming Phone We've Reviewed

1. Asus ROG Phone

• Great Battery
• Beautiful design
• Asus' ROG Gaming Center app 
• Audio quality 

Release date: 2018, Q3 | Weight: 200 g (7.05 oz)  |  Dimensions: 158.8 x 76.2 x 8.7 mm (6.25 x 3.00 x 0.34 in) | OS: Android 8.1 Oreo | Screen size: 6 inches,  92.9 cm2 | Resolution:1080 x 2160 pixels, 18:9 ratio | CPU: Snapdragon 845 | RAM: 8GB | Storage: 128GB / 512 GB | Battery: 4,000mAh | Rear camera: Dual 12MP | Front camera: 8MP

A gamer's dream come true? 

Asus promised us a few surprises at Computex 2018 this year, and the company is staying true to its word. The Taiwanese PC and smartphone company came to this year’s event with its first gaming smartphone released under its ROG brand. it’s the third gaming-centric smartphone we’ve seen in recent times, following the Xiaomi Black Shark and Razer Phone. The device follows the ROG design language, with sharp lines, a black finish and distinctly 'gamer' looks. Even the fingerprint sensor, camera and flash modules on the back are distinct from other phones, and you see the glowing ROG logo under them. And yes, the ROG logo does light up, and you can change the color if you want. The ROG Phone runs on the Snapdragon 845, but the chipset hits a higher clock speed on this device. 

Specs and Performance

Asus says it worked with Qualcomm for the chipsets, and the clock speed can reach 2.9GHz, about 100MHz higher than normal. But more importantly, the ROG Phone has a 1080p AMOLED display with 90Hz refresh rate. While that's lower than Razer's 120Hz spec, neither would make a big difference until games really start supporting them. The same is true for HDR playback, which the display does support. we streamed the game to a TV from a ROG phone for over half an hour, and although you could feel the phone getting hot, we still experienced no frame drops. There's also a version of Asus' ROG Gaming Center app on this device. This shows you what frequency the CPU and GPU are at, the phone's temperature and more. Of course, you don't get the same level of control over these as you do on gaming PCs. However, this app can let you toggle the 'X-Mode' that lets you set the CPU clock higher and to its maximum, if needed. You can also squeeze the edges for this, or turn it on from Android's quick settings dock. Audio quality is also noticeably better than from regular smartphones, although we wouldn’t recommend making this your go-to music device. 

Accessories

One of the major elements of the Asus ROG Phone are the accessories that go with it. In addition to the vapor cooling, Asus will be bundling a fan accessory with the phone; this attaches to the USB-C ports on the side, and helps cool the phone when you're gaming for long periods. It's worth noting that this is the only accessory Asus is bundling – the rest have to be purchased separately.

One of these is a TwinView Dock, which allows a dual-screen handheld gaming experience. The phone fits into the top part of the dock, and you can then use the phone to watch a movie, for example, while a screen on the base can be used to game.

There's also a Gamevice controller, which gives you console-like controls for gaming, while the WiGig Dock enables you to cast the phone onto a monitor and play using a keyboard and mouse. The ROG Phone also supports Asus' AuraSync and RGB lighting features.

2. Samsung  Galaxy note 9

• Great Battery
• Beautiful design
• Big Screen 
• Great Power
• And also S Pan 
• Capable cameras

Release date: 2018, 24 August | Weight: 201 g (7.09 oz)  |  Dimensions: 161.9 x 76.4 x 8.8 mm (6.37 x 3.01 x 0.35 in) | OS: Android 8.1 Oreo | Screen size:6.4 inches, 103.2 cm2 (~83.4% screen-to-body ratio) | Resolution: 1440 x 2960 pixels, 18.5:9 ratio | CPU: Snapdragon 845/Exynos 9810  | RAM: 8GB | Storage: 128GB/ 512GB | Battery: 4,000mAh | Rear camera: Dual 12MP | Front camera: 8MP

The biggest, beastliest phone of the year is here, and spoiler alert, the Galaxy Note 9 lives up to the lofty expectations. In addition to a huge battery, large screen and generous onboard storage, Samsung taught the old S Pen a few new tricks that should make the stylus more useful to a wide audience. The Note 9 has a few minor quirks, but overall it feels like more than the sum of its parts.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is a great gaming phone that won't make you better at Fortnite, Playing the most popular game in the world on Samsung's new Flagship phone.
If you're familiar with the Note8, then there aren’t a ton of surprises in its successor. The AMOLED screen moves up to 6.4-inches from 6.3-inches in the Note 8. The Note 9 also uses the newest Snapdragon 845 processor and moves up to a maximum of 512GB of storage, which you can eventually expand up over 1TB with the release of Samsung’s 512GB MicroSD card. It’s all more than the average person really needs. The storage is enough for tens of thousands of photos and hours of 4K video. 

Playing the game

The download itself is big, checking in around 2GB, which is where that extra storage on the Note 9 comes in. Other popular games like Blizzard’s Hearthstone or Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds Mobile also require gigabytes of storage that would eat up a 32GB phone’s space in a hurry.One notable difference, however, between dedicated gaming phones like the Razer Phone or the not-available-in-the-U.S. ROG phone, is that this Samsung device has a typical 60 Hz refresh rate. Other phones have cranked that stat to 90 Hz or 120 Hz to make motion appear smoother on the screen, but motion on the Note 9 feels like a typical smartphone. There are so few high refresh rate phones around that this isn’t a knock against the Note 9, but maybe an indicator of what we’ll see from future Galaxy devices if the focus on gaming remains.

Should you buy it and play Fortnite on it?

If you’re seriously into mobile gaming, then the Note 9 has a lot going for it. It doesn’t have the fancy, fast-refreshing screen of the Razer phone, but you do get all the other Galaxy features, including the excellent S Pen stylus (which has also gotten some key improvements, but they have nothing to do with Fortnite, so we won’t go into those here).

The bottom line when it comes to considering this phone is how much you really crave overkill. While Apple charges you $1,000 for an iPhone X that’s more sophisticated and refined than its typical iPhone offerings, Samsung is about brute force power and features.



3.  Xiaomi Black Shark

• Great Battery 
• Beautiful design
• Xiaomi Black Shark Gamepad
• water-cooling system

Release date: 20 April 2018 | Weight: 190.00  |   OS: Android 8 Oreo | Screen size: 5.99-inch | Resolution: 1080 x 2160 pixels | CPU: Snapdragon 845  | RAM: 6GB | Storage: 64GB | Battery: 4,000mAh | Rear camera: Dual 20MP | Front camera: 20MP

The Xiaomi Black Shark gaming phone offers a water-cooling system, a metal case in an industrial design, and an optional gamepad. Several optimizations are meant to turn the Black Shark into any gamer's dream: First, a special menu with a button that enables the user to open installed games extremely fast. Then, the phone also comes with a gamepad as an optional accessory, and with a water-cooled Snapdragon 845 for an exceptionally high performance. 

4.  Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9 plus

• Giant 5.8- and 6.3-inch screen
• Game Tools app is actually helpful
• Battery not amazing

Release date: March 2018 | Weight: 189g | Dimensions: 158.1 x 73.8 x 8.5mm | OS: Android 8 Oreo | Screen size: 6.2-inch | Resolution: 1440 x 2960 | CPU: Snapdragon 845 / Exynos 9810 | RAM: 6GB | Storage: 64GB/128GB | Battery: 3,500mAh | Rear camera: Dual 12MP | Front camera: 8MP

The Snapdragon 845, Adreno 630 graphics, and 4GB of RAM (6GB in the S9 Plus) make both of these phones incredible performers both in game and out. a powerful chipset isn’t all that earns the Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus its ranking. The S9 has a plenty large and plenty sharp 1440 X 2960, 5.8-inch display, and the S9 Plus has an even larger 6.2-inch display with the same resolution. Both are Super AMOLED and support HDR10 for stunning visuals. Samsung also has the impressive Gear VR headsets that offer super sharp virtual reality experiences with the Galaxy S9’s and S9 Plus’s pixel-dense displays.

5.  Razer Phone

• Screen has a 120 Hz refresh rate
• Big 4,000mAh battery
• Last year's Snapdragon 835 chip
• Big and bulky
• The Razer Phone is an Android device meant for mobile gaming, and it has the 

Release date: November 2017 | Weight: 197g | Dimensions: 158.5 x 77.7 x 8mm | OS: Android 8 | Screen size: 5.7-inch | Resolution: 1440 x 2560 | CPU: Snapdragon 835 | RAM: 8GB | Battery: 4,000mAh | Rear camera: 12MP | Front camera: 8MP

The Razer Phone is an Android device meant for mobile gaming, and it has the specs to prove it. It runs on a Snapdragon 835. The Razer Phone’s mobile gaming bona fides include a 5.7-inch QHD display with a refresh rate of 120Hz for buttery smooth visuals, a behemoth 4,000mAh battery for long playtimes, and some of the best smartphone speakers around for rocking game audio.  Expandable storage via microSD is just a bonus perk.

6.  Apple iPhone X

• Great game app ecosystem
• Maximized OLED screen
• The notch can be distracting
• A very expensive smartphone

Release date: October 2017 | Weight: 174g | Dimensions: 143.6 x 70.9 x 7.7mm | OS: iOS 11 | Screen size: 5.8-inch | Resolution: 1125x2436 | CPU: A11 Bionic | RAM: 3GB | Storage: 64/256GB | Battery: 2716mAh | Rear camera: 12MP+12MP | Front camera: 7MP


Apple's App Store in ten years old, and even if Macs aren't the best for gaming, the company's iPhones are fantastic for games of all sorts. Part of this is due to the love developers show the App Store. iPhones almost always get the best games first, like Fortnite’s so-far exclusive iOS launch. The iPhone X has a slightly bigger battery than the iPhone 8 Plus, which should give it enough power to game for a while. Plus, the iPhone X’s 5.8-inch OLED display will offer plenty of screen space for games along with incredible contrast ratios. 

7.  Google Pixel 2  XL

• Front-facing speakers
• Very little screen bezel
• No 3.5mm headphone port 
• Screen has poor viewing angles 

Release date: October 2017 | Weight: 175g | Dimensions: 157.9 x 76.7 x 7.9mm | OS: Android 8 | Screen size: 6-inch | Resolution: 1440 x 2880 | CPU: Snapdragon 835 | RAM: 4GB | Storage: 64GB/128GB | Battery: 3,520mAh | Rear camera: 12MP | Front camera: 8MP

Google’s biggest and best smartphone, the Pixel 2 XL, also has what it takes to be a great gaming smartphone. It’s 6-inch display offers plenty of real estate for gaming without having your thumbs cover everything up. That display is also a 1440 x 2880 pOLED panel, so the visuals will be crisp with excellent contrast. 

8. Samsung Galaxy S8

• Cheaper after one year of availability
• Samsung's Game Tools are helpful
• Last year's great specs
•  Battery life could be better

Release date: April 2017 | Weight: 173g | Dimensions: 159.5 x 73.4 x 8.1mm | OS: Android 8 | Screen size: 6.2-inch | Resolution: 1440 x 2960 | CPU: Exynos 8895 | RAM: 4GB | Storage: 64GB | Battery: 3,500mAh | Rear camera: 12MP | Front camera: 8MP

The Samsung Galaxy S8 has pretty much all the same things going for it that the S9 does, except it’s a little slower and a lot cheaper. It has the same 1440x2960 Super AMOLED display that never fails to dazzle the eyes. It has an equally sized 3,000mAh battery. It also can slot into a Gear VR headset.

9. Sony Xperia XZ2

• Beautiful HDR display
• Dynamic Vibration System
• Dynamic Vibration a gimmick
• Not easily available in the US

Release date: February 2018 | Weight: 198g | Dimensions: 153 x 72 x 11.1mm | OS: Android 8 | Screen size: 5.7-inch | Resolution: 1080 x 2160 | CPU: Snapdragon 845 | RAM: 4GB | Battery: 3,180mAh | Rear camera: 19MP | Front camera: 5MP

Aided by a 5.7-inch 1080 x 2160 HDR display and the same Snapdragon 845 chipset powering the latest Galaxy smartphones, Sony’s Xperia XZ2 jumps ahead of much of the competition. This new offering from Sony is simply a great phone, and having the latest Qualcomm system-on-a-chip gives it stunning video game performance. The 3,180mAh battery offers decent gaming battery life as well. And, for mobile gamers that have a big library, microSD support provides up to 400GB of extra storage.

10. iPhone 8 Plus

• Great game app ecosystem
• Large 5.5-inch LCD display
• Lots of bezel makes the phone too big
• Expensive

Release date: September 2017 | Weight: 202g | Dimensions: 158.4 x 78.1 x 7.5mm | OS: iOS 11 | Screen size: 5.5-inch | Resolution: 1080 x 1920 | CPU: A11 Bionic | RAM: 3GB | Storage: 64/256GB | Battery: 2691mAh | Rear camera: Dual 12MP | Front camera: 7MP

The iPhone 8 Plus has a less-showy Full HD display, but in our experience is still great for gaming. The 5.5-inch screen is plenty spacious. Apple’s A11 Bionic CPU and graphics make for a mean gaming experience, and ARkit offers up augmented reality games that give Apple’s iPhones more to offer gamers.