Last-minute ROG Phone 5 renders show off some stylish changes, including a new white color option

We’ve been seeing a bit more of the ROG Phone 5, the Asus-branded gamer phone, in the leadup to its official announcement. Yesterday a chip supplier let slip that at least one model will be equipped with a staggering 18GB of memory. Today a Twitter leak appears to show the phone in rendered form, revealing a white variant and a clip-on cooler unit carried over from the last model, and what appears to be an LED dot matrix on the back.

Assuming that the images posted by Ishan Agarwal are legit—and they certainly match the leak from last month—the RGB LEDs integrated into the rear of the phone mirror another Asus hardware design. The ROG Zephyrus G14 laptop includes a similar LED “aniMe Matrix” screen on its top lid as an eye-catching feature. If the rear of the ROG Phone 5 is similar, it would offer user-adjustable decorative display settings and animations, like an equalizer display. Its practical applications would be fairly limited, but the laptop uses it to show the date and charge status. The rendered photos only show the ROG eye logo.

And here is the ASUS ROG Phone 5 White Color Variant!

It looks much better IMO. Definitely my choice over the black. I hope this one is launching in India! #ASUS #ROGPhone5 #ASUSROGPhone5 https://t.co/5nEwHqEaBz pic.twitter.com/eIKJIuSEXf

— Ishan Agarwal (@ishanagarwal24) March 9, 2021

The snazzy white version shows a similar design. It’s not clear from the renders if the additional slanted text and arrow icons on the rear are part of the rear LCD display shown in the older leak, or if the dot matrix section is replacing it. for comparison, here’s the previous video leak showing what’s definitely an LCD screen, and which doesn’t match the text and icons of the renders above:

Of course since this is all unofficial, the video might be of a pre-production model with a design that’s since been abandoned. It’s also possible that there will be different variants of the phone: one with a conventional LCD on the rear, one with the dot matrix. Other details visible in the images are triple rear cameras and a bottom-mounted power port (the better to keep your hands clear for gaming), both of which are carryovers from the ROG Phone 3. There also appear to be a fold-out kickstand and buttons of some kind on the updated active cooler clip-on—maybe dedicated rear trigger buttons?

The styling has been adjusted, keeping the angular approach with full bezels (no notches or hole punches) and a new distinctive “GLHF!” decorative cover on the bottom. Based on the little hole, it might be a SIM card tray that’s decided it doesn’t want anything to do with subtlety. Asus is expected to officially announce the ROG Phone 5 tomorrow. Pricing and availability aren’t known, but “expensive” and “limited” seem like safe bets, respectively.