Thursday, March 28, 2024

These are the best phones for playing PUBG Mobile

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PUBG Mobile is a graphics-intensive game that demands a powerful phone. If you want the best results and get more Chicken Dinners, you’re going to need a phone for gamers that truly stands out from the pack, and in 2019 that’s the ASUS ROG Phone 2. Not only is it a great phone that was specifically designed with gaming in mind, but it also includes some of the most advanced smartphone features for those who love to live on the bleeding edge.

Best Overall: ASUS ROG Phone 2

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The ASUS ROG Phone wasn’t the first gaming smartphone to hit the market, but it did deliver a number of compelling features that helped it stand out from the pack. For the follow up, ASUS stepped up the specs with an upgrade to the Snapdragon 855 Plus, 12GB of RAMm and a massive 512GB of internal storage. That’s plenty of power and storage to get the best performance playing PUBG Mobile — and anything else you do with your phone.

You’ll also be able to play longer thanks to the massive 6,000mAh battery. Things will look incredibly smooth on the 6.6-inch AMOLED display, which has an improved and incredible 120Hz refresh rate.

One of the best returning features, aside from the 3.5mm headphone jack, is the AirTrigger controls. This feature give mobile gamers customizable capacitive shoulder buttons on the edge of the phone that can be mapped to areas of the screen. ASUS has reduced the latency and lowered the actuation force, meaning the AirTriggers will respond faster to the touch in the heat of the battle.

All in all, the new ASUS ROG Phone 2 is as future-proof a gaming phone as you’ll find. If the raw power and AirTriggers doesn’t help you get more Chicken Dinners in PUBG Mobile, then it ain’t the phone that’s the problem.

Pros:

  • 6.6-inch 120Hz AMOLED Display
  • 12GB of RAM
  • 6,000mAh battery
  • Unique cooling system
  • Enhanced AirTrigger controls
  • Game Genie cuts out distractions

Cons:

  • No water resistance
  • No wireless charging

Best Overall

ASUS ROG Phone 2

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  • $929 at Amazon

The best phone for PUBG Mobile

The ASUS ROG Phone 2 is a premium gaming smartphone that was designed specifically for those who demand the best performance while playing PUBG Mobile.

Best All-Purpose: OnePlus 7 Pro

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PUBG Mobile has been developed to run pretty well on old and new phones alike, but you’ll need a phone with admirable specs to run it at the highest graphics settings. Even the base model OnePlus 7 Pro fits the bill, with 6GB of RAM and a Snapdragon 855 processor both delivering enough memory and processing power for great gaming performance.

That performance will only improve if you opt for the models with 8GB or 12GB of RAM. Oxygen OS continues to deliver a simple and speedy software experience that allows for customization, including the Fnatic gaming mode, which offers fine controls for avoiding distractions while gaming. You can limit notifications to alarms and calls or set custom notifications for displaying messages while you game.

Then there’s the part you’ll be staring at for hours on end. The display of the OnePlus 7 Pro delivers the best version of a bezel-free smartphone with no compromise for notches. That means the entire display’s real estate will be devoted to the game, with a front-facing speaker somehow squeezed in the top to deliver stereo sound.

Just like the offerings from Razer and ASUS, the display supports a bumped up display refresh rate — up to 90Hz where available. That means everything will look silky smooth to your eye, whether you’re earning Chicken Dinners in PUBG Mobile or scrolling though Instagram. This is OnePlus following all the best smartphone trends except the one where phones are priced around $1,000. The OnePlus 7 Pro base model will run just PUBG Mobile wonderfully before even considering RAM and storage upgrades available that will serve you better in the long run.

Pros:

  • 30W fast charging
  • 8GB/12GB of RAM
  • Fnatic Mode included
  • 90Hz Display

Cons:

  • Not the greatest battery life
  • No expandable storage

Best All-Purpose

OnePlus 7 Pro

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  • From $567 at Amazon

One of the best phones released in 2019

The OnePlus 7 Pro burst onto the scene with top-end hardware specs at a great price. The 90Hz display will look fantastic running graphically-intensive games.

Best on a Budget: Razer Phone 2

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Oh how the mighty have fallen… in price! The Razer Phone 2 is Razer’s follow up to their first attempt at making a smartphone for gamers. The first Razer Phone was… let’s just be nice and say it missed the mark in a lot of ways. But to its credit, Razer address many of the issues that held back the first phone with the Razer Phone 2.

I still love the design of this phone, which is built around a 5.7-inch 1440p screen that offers up to 120Hz refresh rate. The display is bookended by two beefy front-facing speakers that are powered by Dolby Atmos technology. There’s still no headphone jack, but Razer includes a THX Certified DAC, which is a great compromise in my book. I also find the flat-edge design to be more comfortable to hold than phones with curved displays, but that’s a matter of personal preference.

Razer has done a great job offering a mostly stock version of Android that runs smoothly for daily use. However, this phone shines brightest while playing games like PUBG Mobile. There’s also the Game Booster app that lets you fine tune the game’s performance to prioritize game performance or battery life depending on your situation.

Another innovation included with the Razer Phone 2 is the same style of vapor chamber cooling system that Razer uses in its line of gaming laptops. It was added here to help the phone avoid getting too hot while playing resource-demanding games such as PUBG Mobile. Keeping a phone like this is key when you’re planning to play extended sessions of PUBG Mobile, because other phone will get quite hot after a while.

For all that the Razer Phone 2 does right for gamers, the camera performance is lacking and that really was a legitimate knock on it when it first came out and was sold for close to $900. At it’s deeply discounted price, its a worthwhile option to consider.

Pros:

  • 120Hz display refresh rate
  • 8GB of RAM
  • Vapor Chamber cooling system
  • Expandable storage via microSD
  • Dolby Atmos sound

Cons:

  • No headphone jack
  • Uses older chipset
  • Unimpressive camera

Best on a Budget

Razer Phone 2

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  • $400 at Amazon $499 at Walmart

A brick of gaming power

The Razer Phone 2 is a unique phone that delivers impressive sound with front-facing speakers that completely justifies the return to massive bezels.

Best Display: Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus

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There’s a lot of things that make the Note 10 Plus an easy recommendation for gamers, but we’re going to focus in on the display. Samsung continues to lead the pack with a beautiful and massive 6.8-inch AMOLED display that, while lacking a higher refresh rate, still offers the best brightness and color clarity available

It’s also running the latest Snapdragon 855 chipset and offers 12GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage on the base model. All that, paired with a 4,300mAh battery and Samsung’s Game Booster software, means you’re going to get obscene performance while gaming on this phone.

Samsung has been including these gaming-centric software enhancements for years, which helps minimize distractions while you game, disable the navigation buttons so you don’t accidentally exit out of the game in the middle of a match, and give you quick access to screen recording and other tools while you’re playing PUGB Mobile.

Beyond that, there’s the S-Pen that doesn’t really factor into playing PUBG Mobile, but is a large reason why the Note series stands out year after year. Samsung has ditched the headphone jack, but shouldn’t be a dealbreaker given industry trends.

Pros:

  • 6.8-inch Dynamic AMOLED Display is stunning
  • 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage
  • Game Booster software is really useful
  • S Pen sets the Note series apart
  • Game Genie cuts out distractions

Cons:

  • No headphone jack
  • Expensive!

Best Display

Samsung Galaxy Note 10+

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  • $1,000 at Amazon $900 at Best Buy

Samsung’s best of the year

The Samsung Note 10+ offers the biggest and best display in 2019, backed by a beefy battery and Samsung’s Game Booster software optimizations.

Best for International Gamers: Huawei P30 Pro

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Despite Huawei releasing the P30 Pro early into 2019, it still remains in the conversation as one of the best phones of the year. Not only is this phone visually stunning from front to back, but it also delivers serious specs for gamers.

Huawei’s Kirin 980 chipset might not be as fast as the Snapdragon 855, but it’s still plenty powerful for gaming with 8GB of RAM to keep things running smoothly. You get a 6.5-inch curved OLED display that’s big, bright, and nearly bezel-less, albeit with a slower refresh rate than some of its competition. It’s also got one of the most impressive camera set ups of the year, which is great for those times when you’re not playing PUBG Mobile.

Most people will be aware of the issues Huawei has run into in the U.S., meaning this great phone may be hard to come by stateside. However, for international gamers looking for an impressive phone that won’t stutter or struggle when playing PUBG Mobile, it’s a great choice.

Pros:

  • Big 6.5-inch display is nearly bezel-less
  • Outstanding battery life backed by fast charging
  • Delivers excellent performance for gaming
  • One of the best phone cameras of the year

Cons:

  • Single, down-firing speaker
  • Not widely available in U.S.
  • 60Hz display refresh rate

Best for International Gamers

Huawei P30 Pro

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  • $688 at Amazon

Great if you can get your hands on it

The P30 Pro is still a great phone but falls short of topping our list due to its slower display refresh rate and lack of any real stand-out features for gamers.

Best for iOS: iPhone 11 Max Pro

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Even though this is Android Central, we know that not everyone who plays PUBG Mobile is down with the green droid. In fact, there are millions of iPhone users who play PUBG Mobile, making it one of the most popular free-to-play games for both Android and iOS.

The iPhone 11 Pro Max stands out as the best gaming iPhone because it delivers all-day battery life, runs on Apple’s latest A13 Bionic chipset, and has a huge 6.5-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display. Those are the two biggest factors because you definitely want a big and bright display to better see your enemies and battery life that won’t leave you scrambling for your charging accessories in the middle of a match.

Even though it only has 4GB of RAM, PUBG Mobile and any other app should run nice and smooth thanks to Apple’s focus on software optimizations. However, one tip we can give to iOS gamers is to avoid downloading the latest iOS betas since those can occasionally cause issues with games like PUBG Mobile.

The lack of a headphone jack might be an issue but there’s always the Lightning-to-3.5mm dongle, which lets you use your favorite pair of wired headphones. Otherwise, your AirPods or other Bluetooth headphones will serve you just as well here.

Pros:

  • iOS is very user friendly
  • 6.5-inch display is dynamic and bright
  • Largest iPhone battery yet
  • Huge bright screen

Cons:

  • No headphone jack
  • Only 4GB of RAM
  • No higher display refresh rate

Best for iOS

iPhone 11 Max Pro

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  • $1,000 from Best Buy

The biggest and best iPhone (until next year)

The iPhone 11 Pro Max is Apple’s top flagship phone offering a massive display and the largest iPhone battery yet to help extend your PUBG sessions.

Bottom Line

The wild popularity of PUBG Mobile has proven that there is indeed demand for a smartphone designed with gamers in mind. The core specs you’ll want are a great display, long-lasting battery life, and enough RAM to keep things running smoothly — and you can find that on any of the phones on our list.

But what sets the ASUS ROG Phone 2 apart from its competition and at the top of our list here is the attention to details and features that you simply won’t find elsewhere. I’m taking about the future-proof specs and unique AirTrigger controls that are wholly unique to the experience of using an ROG Phone.

Credits — The team that worked on this guide

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Marc Lagace is the Apps and Games Editor at Android Central. He’s been a gamer for most of his life and actually took a university course on Video Game Theory — which he aced! You can reach out to him on Twitter @spacelagace.

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