No one wants their smartphone to break or crack — that’s why most of us spring for cases and screen protectors in the first place. That said, some of the best Android phones are surprisingly resilient, and you don’t have to take our word for it. Zack at JerryRigEverything has dedicated his career to pushing devices to the edge, and he’s returned to test one of the most powerful gaming phones ever released. Unfortunately for Asus, it looks like the ROG Phone 6 Pro might share a fate with its predecessor.
Previously on JerryRigEverything, Zack took a look at the ROG Phone 5. Putting it lightly, it didn’t go so well for Asus. In the bend test, the most painful and stressful part of any JRE video, the ROG Phone 5’s display shorted out after pressing on the top and bottom of the device. After flipping it over and pressing from the back, it effectively shattered into two halves.
That said, it’s been a year and a half — certainly long enough for Asus to reinforce the body of one of its most premium, powerful devices. I’m sure you can see where I’m going with this.
It’s worth watching the entire video, especially if you want to see the ROG Phone 6 Pro in a pristine condition. It’s a unique looking device, with a small display on the back for notifications and other system info, alongside some of the other usual gaming-focused features we’ve seen Asus deliver in the past.
While most of the test goes as well as you’d expect — the screen scratches at a Mohs hardness level 6; the OLED panel retains a burn mark under a lighter; the fingerprint scanner continues to function when scratched — but it all goes sideways during the durability section. As with the ROG Phone 5, Asus is using two separate battery cells to deliver unbeatable battery performance. Unfortunately, two separate cells doesn’t make for a fortified chassis, and, well… a single bend from the front snaps the phone in two.
Although we’ll have to wait for a full teardown to find out what went wrong here, the current assumption is also the most obvious. Asus failed to tweak its design from last year, and without any additional reinforcements between the two battery cells, the device once again cracked in half. Actually, this year’s device snapped faster, as the 2021 model took a second press from the back to finish the job.
It’s rough stuff for Asus, especially considering the expensive price attached to this device. If we’re sticking with gaming terminology, JerryRigEverything just delivered one hell of a fatality at the end of round two.
