There may be a few reasons not to appreciate the REDMAGIC 8S Pro phone: its square shape, its average photographic capacity, its interface imperfectly translated into French. But if you’re into gaming, those details don’t matter: this is the phone of choice.
When the Chinese manufacturer Nubia announces that it has once again inflated its phone dedicated to video games with steroids, it is easy to believe: since 2018, its REDMAGIC have beaten all Android phones in terms of power. This is obviously the case with the latest, the REDMAGIC 8S Pro, as evidenced by our benchmark tests.
We gave some flowers to video gamers who choose the phone, the favorite console of nearly one in two gamers at the latest news. The home interface is based on square characters by default, and the icons are personalized Nubia style.
It’s one of the only phones in 2023 to retain its 3.5mm audio jack, the one gamers prefer over the latency and instability of Bluetooth. The processor is the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, with Red Core 2 chip specifically reserved for gaming. There is the choice between 12 and 16 GB of RAM, as well as 256 or 512 GB of storage for a dual battery totaling 6000 mAh. It accepts fast charging at 65 watts, for which the charger is provided.
We still have a ventilation hatch for the fan at 20,000 revolutions per minute, enough to amaze the visit. This phone gets a little noticeable, but not bothersome, when running big games like Call of Duty, PUBG or Genshin Impact. Cloud computing platforms such as GeForce Now or Xbox Cloud Gaming are as efficient there as on a computer.
The 6.8-inch AMOLED screen is particularly bright and colorful, and its technical specifications are up to par: 120Hz, maximum brightness of 1300 nits, 16 million colors and resolution of 2480 by 1116 pixels. We have returned to a screen sensitivity of 960 Hz, almost triple the standard of usual phones, which ensures maximum responsiveness to games.
All these treats for gamers, non-gamers obviously benefit from them for day-to-day activities and streaming video content.
The small red button at the bottom right, on the other hand, is reserved: this is what opens the interface in which we find all the games downloaded on the phone, which appear in a large flash of light worthy of science fiction . It is also here, in the plugins section, that you can enrich the experience with equalizers, apps for configuring vibrations or aiming assistance.
For unlocking, we are spoiled for choice: facial recognition or fingerprint reader under the screen. Both work without a hitch.
As usual, despite amazing performance, the REDMAGICs are still relatively reasonably priced, $855 for the lowest-cost model.
The REDMAGIC 8S Pro is far from being under-equipped when it comes to photo lenses, with three rear cameras, a 50 MP wide-angle, an 8 MP ultra wide-angle and a 2 MP macro. Except that in the test, in front of a champion in the field, the iPhone 14 Pro Max, the photos of the REDMAGIC 8S Pro appear very washed out and the contrasts, weak. Here are two comparisons, the REDMAGIC on the left, the iPhone on the right.
We do not have the magnetic refill.
The hull was redesigned to prioritize “simplicity and minimalism”. We find the whole thing a bit square.
Finally, after years, still the same observation: some menus in the French interface are not translated and continue to be displayed in English.
For an Android phone game lover, the REDMAGIC 8S Pro is undoubtedly the best choice. But this is obviously a niche product, and certainly not the best camera.
That said, as is the case in all areas of technology, devices designed for video gamers are first and foremost excellent devices. They simply exceed the needs of most users.
