Black Shark 5 US Release Date Revealed
The Black Shark 5 series of gaming phones have finally made their global debut. Starting at $549 for the standard Black Shark 5 and $799 for the speedier Pro model, the two phones were released for interested buyers in the U.S. on June 9, 2022, via the company's official website, Amazon, and Ali Express. The company has also introduced a pair of $80 noise-canceling earbuds called the Joybuds Pro that claims to offer a low latency audio experience while taking generous design cues from Apple's AirPods Pro.
Starting with the design, it's quite a huge leap from the aggressive styling seen on the brand's older phones. The sharp lines are gone in favor of a smooth glass-and-metal sandwich design. The vanilla Black Shark 5 offers a relatively clean rear panel with only a bold branding at the corner and comes in Matte Black or Explorer Grey colors, while the Black Shark 5 Pro employs linear patterns across the rear panel for an edgy look that is served in Stellar Black and Nebula White trims.
Aside from the distinct aesthetics, there are a few key differences under the hood as well. The Black Shark 5 Pro comes armed with Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip ticking alongside up to 16GB of faster LPDDR5 (6400 MHz) RAM, 256GB of storage, and a 108-megapixel primary camera. The non-Pro model is fitted with the Snapdragon 870 SoC paired with 12GB of RAM (5500 MHz), and a 64-megapixel rear snapper.
Gaming phones with mainstream flagship chops
The Black Shark 5 duo packs a 6.67-inch Full HD+ OLED screen that offers a 144Hz refresh rate and 720Hz touch sampling rate, ensuring that the screen processes touch responses at a much faster speed, especially while gaming. The peak brightness is touted to be 1,300 nits, which is higher than the 1,200 nits max brightness (HDR) figure listed for the iPhone 13 Pro Max. Plus, there is no ugly notch to spoil those sharp looks, either.
Both the phones have been fitted with a 4,650mAh battery that supports 120W fast charging and is said to fill the tank in just 15 minutes. However, if you're concerned about the negative impact of such a charging pace on the battery health, there's an option to slow things down and juice up the battery in about 25 minutes. Thankfully, the 120W charging brick is included in the retail package.
The standout add-ons are the gaming triggers that are locked in place using sliders on each side that pop up magnetically. These pressure-sensitive shoulder buttons are said to use gaming-grade microswitches and they can be customized for other tasks like taking screenshots. The triple camera system on the Black Shark 5 (64MP primary + 13MP ultrawide + 2MP macro) and Black Shark 5 Pro (108MP main + 13MP wide + 5MP macro) is also capable of tricks like Super Nightscape, 4K capture at 60fps, and super slo-mo 1080p video recording at 960fps.