Asus recently launched the ROG Phone 3 with some ridiculous specs. You get a Snapdragon 865+, up to 12GB RAM, air triggers, and a 6,000mAh battery. Plus, there’s a 144Hz display to boot, making the phone an amazing buy for gamers. However, it seems that the ROG Phone 3 actually can support an even higher refresh rate — 160Hz to be precise.
Discovered by the folks over at XDA Developers, there’s a hidden 160Hz mode for the ROG Phone 3. However, to be able to enable it, you will need to use an ADB command. In case you’re unaware of how to install ADB and use it you should check out our article on the same. The command you will need to run is
adb shell setprop debug.vendor.asus.fps.eng 1
Once the command is executed, and you have rebooted your device, you will find the new refresh rate option in Settings -> Display -> Refresh Rate. Alternatively, you can enable it using the Quick Settings tile for refresh rate in the ROG Phone 3. Moreover, if you’re worried about apps actually supporting this refresh rate, the report says that most apps that Asus says work at 144Hz will actually work just fine on 160Hz as well.
However, it’s important to note that the phone’s display isn’t calibrated to work at a 160Hz refresh rate. As such, you will have to make some manual adjustments to the display settings in order to make the display look fine if you switch to 160Hz. These can be performed within Settings -> Display -> Splendid.
If things look less than pleasant to you, you can always disable the 160Hz mode using the following command:
adb shell setprop debug.vendor.asus.fps.eng 0
It’s unclear why this hidden feature is available on the ROG Phone 3. It could be an engineering test that Asus was running on the phones to see just how far it can push the display. Or maybe, the company is planning on making the feature accessible to all with a future OTA update. Either way, it’s exciting to know that such a feature exists on the ROG Phone 3, and if you want to, you can try and make the display become even smoother than it is.
