RedMagic 8 Pro Review – A Powerful Gaming Smartphone

The bottom of the phone is home to several essential ports and slots. Among them are the SIM card slots and 3.0 USB-C slots.

The SIM card slot is particularly noteworthy as it supports a physical dual-card dual-standby function. It can hold up to 2 Nano SIMs, allowing users to switch between carriers easily. Additionally, the slot supports 5G connectivity, which is a significant feature for modern smartphones. The bottom of the device also houses one of the two stereo speakers that the phone has. These speakers are bi-amplified and compatible with DTS Ultra X sound, ensuring that users have a premium audio experience.

As we turn our attention to the upper side of the device, we can spot the second speaker and a 35mm jack for headphones, and microphone. Having this feature is always appreciated, as it allows users to connect their headphones and microphones easily.

Display

The RedMagic 8 Pro is a remarkable smartphone with a true full-screen display that supports an under-screen camera. While the previous RedMagic 7 and 7S series also featured an under-screen camera, this time, it’s the first under-screen flexible straight screen, and the lower camera technology has been upgraded again. The device boasts a 6.8-inch AMOLED panel, developed by BOE, with a 20:9 aspect ratio and FHD+ resolution, offering a stunning 2480 x 1116 pixels and an impressive 400 PPI density. The front surface of the device is almost entirely occupied by the display, which also features a 120 Hz refresh rate and a 960 Hz multi-touch recognition update rate.

This impressive update rate minimizes the response to just 1.4 ms, making the device a game-changer for those who love to play mobile games. Compatible with HDR content, this panel specifies a brightness of 1300 nits (peak) and has DC Dimming, also offering a 10-bit palette and 16 million colors that makes it cover 100% of the DCI-P3 spectrum. In addition, its screen is covered by a layer of Gorilla Glass 5 for its protection, offering minimal bezels around it.

This under-display camera is located in the center of the screen. It is very well hidden, and it is difficult for users to find it. Whether you change the background of the screen to white or black or other colors, you can look directly at the hidden camera from the front. It is very difficult to find and aim at a suitable light source, and it is possible to see the camera with a slightly different color under the screen at a specific angle from the side.

The principle of the under-screen camera is to hide the camera under the screen. Although the camera is hidden, it does not mean that there is nothing under the camera. The camera needs to be transparent; the more transparent the screen, the clearer the camera can take pictures. But the screen needs to play a display role, and the more transparent the screen, the higher the pixels displayed cannot be. Therefore, high-pixel display and high light transmittance are two contradictions. To make an under-screen camera is to balance these two.

The benefits of the under-screen camera for playing games are obvious. The screen is completely free of any occlusion. The screen is where the naked eye can see, and the view will not be blocked during the battle. Naturally, playing games is more comfortable. This under-screen camera is inferior to the front camera, with large pixels and a large aperture for selfies. However, considering that game phone users rarely use the front camera to take selfies, this combination is a match made in heaven.

Hardware and Performance

The RedMagic 8 Pro boasts cutting-edge technology with the incorporation of Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset. This 4nm chip comes equipped with a powerful ARM Cortex-X3 primary core that can reach up to 3.2GHz. Alongside it are two 2.8 GHz Cortex-A715, two 2.8 GHz Cortex-A710, and three 2.0 GHz Cortex-A510 cores, providing a high-performance computing experience. The chipset also features an Adreno 740 integrated GPU, ensuring top-of-the-line graphics.

The RedMagic 8 Pro takes advantage of this chipset’s power by pairing it with LPDDR5X RAM and UFS 4.0 storage, a significant improvement over UFS 3.1. Additionally, the move to LPDDR5X RAM provides a performance boost, being twice as fast as LPDDR5. The test unit comes with 12 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage, but the device can also be purchased with up to 16 GB of RAM and 512 GB of storage.

The company claims impressive performance figures, stating that the new CPU can offer up to 37% more performance, while the GPU can be up to 42% faster. Additionally, the chipset consumes 50% less power, making the device more energy-efficient. These figures are likely based on comparisons with the RedMagic 7S Pro, which had the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset.

Additionally, the RedMagic 8 Pro and Qualcomm have collaborated to introduce mobile light-chasing technology, marking the beginning of a new era in mobile gaming. This technology is equipped with the Red Core R2 game chip, which allows for precise control of various aspects of gaming such as shoulder keys, vibration, touch, and sound effects. This results in a multi-faceted and immersive gaming experience, unlike any other.

Benchmark Test

The RedMagic 8 Pro has proven to be a powerhouse when it comes to benchmark scores. With a score of over 1.3 million on AnTuTu, it has surpassed many of its competitors. In addition, it achieved impressive single-core and multi-core scores of 821 and 4489 respectively on GeekBench 5. The device also demonstrated remarkable stability, scoring 98.3% in the 3DMark Wild Life Extreme Stress Test. These exceptional results confirm that the RedMagic 8 Pro is currently at the forefront of the smartphone industry in terms of performance.

The RedMagic 8 Pro demonstrated impressive results in the test flash memory speed. Specifically, the device achieved a sequential read speed of 3602.1MB/s and a sequential write speed of 2730.5MB/s. Furthermore, the device showcased exceptional read and write capabilities across other metrics, achieving a very high level of performance overall.

Gaming Performance

As for gaming phones, it’s only natural to test them with the most demanding games of the moment. So, without any further delay, let’s jump straight into the ultimate test: ‘Genshin Impact’.

When playing the game “Genshin Impact” on a mobile phone with full HD+ 60 frame quality and Rise mode, the power consumption of the phone is around 12% after a 30-minute session. The frame rate for this game can reach an impressive 60.4 frames, resulting in a visually stunning display on the RedMagic screen. The graphics and scenery of “Genshin Impact’s” vast world look extremely pleasing to the eye, making it a tempting escape for those looking for a break from work or daily routines. With higher performance, the power consumption of the game will likely increase. The average power consumption of 5.3W is higher than that of other games, but it can be considered a good indicator of the Snapdragon 8Gen2’s overall performance level.

The RedMagic smartphone provides an excellent PUBG mobile gaming experience with its 90-frame mode. During a 20-minute game test, only a minor frame drop occurred, but the screen’s continuity remained good with an average frame rate of 90.4 FPS and minimal fluctuations. The power consumption of 4.4W is significantly lower than that of other devices. For an improved gaming experience, the independent IC touch shoulder button and dual X-axis linear motors’ 4G three-dimensional vibration technology are very practical, providing feedback on body sensation and making the gunfight games more enjoyable. In terms of temperature, the front of the fuselage reached 38.4 degrees Celsius, while the back was only 37.3 degrees Celsius. Overall, RedMagic provides a seamless and satisfying gaming experience with its practical features and optimal temperature management.

Excellent Temperature Control

After 30 minutes of playing “Genshin Impact”, an outrageous body temperature appeared. The phone’s highest temperature, measured on its back, was only 34.2°C, which is significantly lower than other phones with the same Snapdragon 8 processor, whose temperatures were around 45°C – a full 11°C higher. Even in the winter’s colder temperatures, the RedMagic 8 Pro’s body temperature remained impressively low. The middle frame of the phone’s fuselage had the highest temperature of 33.9°C, while the front screen was slightly higher at 39.4°C. This demonstrates that the passive cooling and fans of the RedMagic 8 Pro are indeed effective.

RedMagic OS6 with Android 13

The Red Magic 8 Pro smartphone comes with the RedMagic OS6 built on top of Android 13. While the version jump from its predecessor is significant, the changes in the latest Redmagic OS are incremental rather than drastic. The user interface appears clean and straightforward at first glance, but there are numerous features and customization options available.

From a user interface perspective, the RedMagic UI remains heavily customized, with a few odd translations here and there. It is not what one would call vanilla Android, so users will have to adapt to the different icons, settings menus, and quick toggles in the notification shade.

Nearly every aspect of the UI is customizable to the user’s liking. The RedMagic 8 Pro’s always-on display functionality offers a variety of customizable clock styles and presets, including the ability to schedule looping GIFs and videos. However, this may consume more power.

Redmagic UI enables apps to be reduced to small interactive windows, but not all apps support this feature. To enter this mode, users must open the notification panel and press the Free Window button while an app is in the foreground. The application window cannot be resized, but it can be moved around the screen, allowing for easy multitasking. However, users must always open the notifications screen to get into that mode, and only one app can be put in a small window.

The split-screen view is available for multitasking with two apps and can be accessed from a special icon in the recent app’s carousel. The entertainment toolbox, similar to Samsung’s Edge Panel, can be opened by swiping from the right edge of the screen. Unfortunately, it cannot be moved, and its position is fixed, but users can assign quick tasks or open specific apps.

The fingerprint reader works well, and it is fast, reliable, and accurate. It also serves as a heart rate monitor, although it can be a bit inconsistent for some users.

GameSpace

The GameSpace overlay has undergone a major redesign with Redmagic OS6. It now consists of two large symmetrical menus on either side of the screen. Most of the features are easily accessible with a single tap, which is nice. You can control CPU and GPU frequency and most of all game fps by using an overlay. There are also some shortcuts to the compatible messaging apps, to make it more convenient to chat through Windows while playing the game.

Most of the cool and powerful settings are in their own submenu within the overlay. You can adjust CPU and GPU performance profiles, display sensitivity, and sample rate, and enable a specific visual profile for the display to make certain elements of the game more easily visible.

Game Shorthand is a new feature in GameSpace. Basically, it is a library where you can save game screenshots and attach notes to them. So you can quickly see up to 50 of them at once, which is ideal for remembering clues and puzzles on point-and-click adventures.

Plugins are a relatively new addition to RedMagic’s GameSpace. Unfortunately, like many other parts of the user interface, they suffer from poor and incomplete translations, and it’s somewhat difficult to discern what each one does.

X Gravity is the system that Nubia uses to map external devices such as a controller or keyboard and mouse to on-screen controls. The RedMagic 8 Pro enables you to do this effortlessly straight out of the box. Some may consider it controversial for competitive play since it provides a significant advantage.

The auxiliary line is a way of defining on-screen circles that appear around your character and signify things like the area of effect of certain abilities or attacks – particularly useful for MOBA games. Timers are offered to the player on the screen to time things like the cooldown of an ability or spell on enemies.

In addition, the Red Magic 8 Pro also has this virtual assistant called MORA built in, which looks very cute. Taping the girl will have different reactions, which is very interesting. Users can also set the magic girl to appear in the designated game and give voice or text prompts when killing enemies or performing actions.

Of course, there are the triggers, one of the best gaming features on the RedMagic 8 Pro by far. They provide a really nice experience for racing and first-person shooter games. The software allows you to assign certain controls to the triggers and adjust the pressure sensitivity to avoid errors.

In GameSpace’s settings, users can also set the network, screen, anti-disturb settings, and other functions. The user can configure the game center to draw twice before opening it, which prevents accidental touches when playing the machine. If the user turns off the competition button while the application or game is running, they can also adjust the interface transition. In the center, you can also set the color and lighting effect of the competitive RGB atmosphere light.

Getting back to X Gravity and the ability to map on-screen game controls to physical accessories like a joystick or keyboard and mouse, don’t underestimate the importance of this feature on the RedMagic 8 Pro. The phone itself offers a number of convenient ways to connect to peripherals. First of all, there is the alternative USB mode. Using a compatible mount, you can get HDMI or DP output from the RedMagic 8 Pro and USB inputs back on the phone. This is a great way to connect directly to a monitor or TV.

If that seems too cumbersome and you’d rather use a PC to play your mobile games, there’s RedMagic Studio, a Windows app that lets you screencast over Wi-Fi or a USB cable connected directly to your PC. It runs at a refresh rate of up to 120Hz. The entire pairing process with the desktop app is smooth and extremely easy. You can set different mapping profiles for all the games you play and the keyboard/mouse input is pretty solid.

The streaming feature works across all phone menus and apps, not just games. So it can be useful for more than just gaming. Gestures and keyboard typing are native. You can even use your phone itself as a trackpad for touch input, or alternatively choose to have it work completely standalone so you can stream an app to a TV or monitor while using your phone for something else entirely. The entire system is extremely flexible and works surprisingly well. A round of applause for Nubia.

The RedMagic 8 Pro also includes something called a “cubic performance optimizer” (CPO), which promises to smooth out the frame rate in games without increasing power consumption. We assume this is some kind of MEMC chip, though Nubia isn’t particularly descriptive about its nature.

The RedMagic 8 Pro also does something Nubia calls quintuple buffering for game frames generated using a system called “MAGIC GPU”. The idea is that different systems, such as screen recording or casting, may want to access the GPU frames simultaneously, and without sufficient buffering, could interfere with the number of frames that actually end up on the screen. This system gives priority to screen frames before anything else.

Camera

RedMagic has finally updated its camera setup after using the same one for several generations. The 64 MP main camera has been replaced by a 50 MP Samsung GN5 main camera, which is a welcome change. The new sensor model is ISOCELL S5KGN5 and it features 1.0 µm pixels, dual tetra pixel RGB Bayer color filter, and Dual Pixel Pro phase detection autofocus. It is supported by an f/1.88 lens.

In addition, the main camera is accompanied by an 8 MP 120-degree ultra-wide angle camera with an f/2.2 lens. Unfortunately, the sensor model for the ultra-wide angle camera has not been specified, but it is known to have a 1/4.0″ sensor with 1.12 µm pixels. Unlike the main camera, the ultra-wide angle camera does not feature autofocus. Lastly, there is a 2 MP GalaxyCore GC02M1 fixed-focus macro camera located on the back of the Red Magic 8 Pro.

Camera Interface

Judging by the overall user interface! there is little to no change to the default camera app from a couple of generations ago. So it wasn’t hard to find your way around. The app’s layout is still very familiar and easy to navigate! with camera modes that can be switched by simply swiping left or right in a carousel. Additionally, the settings menu remains in the same location, located in the upper right corner of the viewer. The Pro mode, on the other hand, provides a more extensive array of options to experiment with.

Shooting in macro mode is made easier with the inclusion of a magnifying glass that can be moved around the viewfinder and has focus detection! eliminating the need to guess the correct focus distance. However, the macro camera lacks its own switch, which would be a useful addition. Interestingly, the Pro mode can be used not only with the main camera but also with the ultra-wide angle lens! but not with the macro or selfie cameras.

Daylight Photos

The RedMagic 8 Pro has a competent main camera that captures 12.5 MP images with pleasing, true-to-life colors and plenty of fine detail in daylight. However, the dynamic range could be improved. Users can also force the main camera to capture full-size 50 MP images, which have slightly more detail but similar overall quality.

Although lacking a telephoto lens, the main camera can take 2x zoom photos with comparable quality to 1x photos. Portraits are well-done, with subject detection and separation almost perfect, and the background blur is convincing even with non-human subjects. However, especially hairy subjects can still pose a challenge.

The ultra-wide camera captures passable but unimpressive photos, with acceptable detail but softness and blurriness at times.

The 2MP macro camera is surprisingly good, with good detail and colors despite its fixed focus! and a wide and forgiving focal plane.

In addition, the effect of shooting objects indoors is also very good, and the color rendering effect is similar to what the naked eye sees.

Low-light and Night Mode Photos