RedMagic 7 Pro Review: ‘The Gaming Phone To Rule Them All’

REDMAGIC 7 PRO GAMING PHONE REVIEW.

Mobile gaming has become serious business in recent years, with full-fledged titles like Call of Duty: Mobile, PUBG Mobile, Fortnite, and Genshin Impact making waves across the worlds of casual and competitive gaming. The flexibility of being able to play anywhere on a ubiquitous device is a huge convenience and has made gaming accessible on a whole other level. This explains why companies like Nubia are creating products like the RedMagic 7 Pro, which is as much a video game console as it is a super-powerful phone. For mobile gamers, this could be the new king. Here is my RedMagic 7 Pro review.

Gaming from the get-go

Before I even unboxed the RedMagic 7 Pro, it was clear that the device was made, first and foremost, for gaming. The box has a smattering of game-related graphics readying buyers for the gaming-focused device contained within.

Inside the box is everything you need to get going, including a fast-charging brick. Yep, you don’t have to drop extra cash for a charger. Hell, there’s even a shell case provided in the box and screen protector already applied to the phone. It’s nice to see a premium phone bundled with more in the box, rather than less!

Upon inspecting the outside of the device for the first time, I found myself liking the more subtle design of the Obsidian model. There’s also a Supernova model, which is for those less shy about wielding a gaming phone. With that said, my review sample is still “gamer-y” and has RGB lighting that helps to check the “Gamer Aesthetic” box.

Ready, steady, go

Before my testing began, I wanted to get the phone up to 100% battery. This didn’t take long at all with the provided charger. Though the RedMagic 7 Pro has a 5,000 mAh battery, I fully charged it (from 0% to 100%) in under 30 minutes!

The phone’s internal fan actually kicks in when you’re charging with the included fast-charger, though it’s not loud enough to be annoying. Once charged, that 5,000 mAh battery makes for a reliable two days of use, though heavy gaming can cause that to drop considerably.

Seamless screen

The main party trick of the RedMagic 7 Pro is the under-display camera. This means the front-facing camera is located underneath the display so, when the camera isn’t in use, the display is completely flawless, with no notch or hole-punch in sight. I absolutely love the way it looks, as I have come to hate the iPhone’s notch with a passion, especially because I don’t take that many selfies.

The uninterrupted display makes consuming media an absolute joy. It’s not just games that benefit here, as movies and TV shows also look fantastic. What’s more, it’s nice to just have an unbroken notification bar at the top. This is how a phone display in 2022 should look and I love it.

Some compromises

Unfortunately, the under-display camera does come with a compromise in overall quality. Selfie photos are noticeably less sharp than non-UDC cameras, as though someone has brushed over the lens with grease. The selfie camera isn’t totally invisible either, as it can be easy to spot when you hold the phone at an angle in daylight. Are the seamless display and minimal bezel worth the reduction in selfie quality? I would say so, as I use the far-better rear camera system much more often, but others may disagree.

Another potential deal-breaker is the phone’s massive 6.8″ screen, which is the same as the non-Pro model. These gaming phones are massive, even for people with big hands. While that’s nice for gaming, as enemies are easier to spot and whatnot, it can sometimes feel a little too big. It’s cool for those who want it, but it’s a shame that there’s not a smaller variant.

My only other problem with the RedMagic 7 Pro is the poor explanation of features and/or poor translations. This device has a lot of different features, which could be great if I knew exactly what they did before activating them. While I appreciate the ability to tweak a ridiculous number of settings to make the device exactly the way I want it, too much personalization is hidden behind cryptic phrasing that I can’t understand and do not want to interact with. The UI could really do with a tidy.

So many gaming features

So there are a few negatives, but those are far outweighed by the positives. The RedMagic 7 Pro has been an absolute blast to use for both work and play. Android has come a long way and the RedMagic skin slathered on top doesn’t hamper things.

The physical toggle on the side of the phone makes separating normal use from dedicated gaming even easier, as a flick of the switch puts the phone into gaming mode with all of the various enhancements (and optional notification-blocks) that you could ever want.

Once you do start gaming, the RedMagic 7 Pro kicks into overdrive with the latest CPU and GPU combination, along with 16 GB of RAM and up to 512 GB of storage (with support for MicroSD to expand storage further). This Pro variant also uses the Red Core 1 chip to alleviate some of the tasks that are usually put on the CPU. I could play every single game I tried at maximum detail and, thanks to the capacitive shoulder buttons built into the side of the device, I didn’t have to turn to additional controllers for trigger functions.

While the passive cooling system does a good job of moving heat, the addition of a fan is certainly welcome for longer gaming sessions, especially when playing more graphically intensive titles. Even at maximum speed, the fan is quiet enough to be easily drowned out by game audio.

Speaking of game audio, the dual speakers of the RedMagic 7 Pro are fantastic and aren’t easily covered when holding the device in landscape mode when gaming. Of course, the headphone jack is still here for those rocking wired buds or cans for low-latency sound.

Even after two weeks of use, I feel like I’ve barely scratched the surface of what’s possible for gamers. There are a variety of plug-ins to enable, as well as other enhancements that can be fine-tuned on a per-player basis.

RedMagic 7 Pro Review: Is it worth buying?

Starting at $799 for the Obsidian model (256 GB storage) and $899 for the Supernova model (512 GB storage), the RedMagic 7 Pro is clearly a premium-priced phone. For that price, users are getting zero compromises in performance, fantastic gaming-focused features that enhance the experience in tangible ways, and a flawless display with minimal bezels thanks to the under-display camera. It’s a true beast!

However, while the RedMagic 7 Pro is a fantastic gaming device, the RedMagic 7 (non-Pro) comes close to it with only a few features cut to achieve the (starting at) $629 price tag. The non-Pro is a chunkier device with larger bezels, has a slightly smaller battery, and doesn’t have an under-display camera. These are the key features that earn the “Pro” its name, but also its price tag.

If you can pay to play with a RedMagic 7 Pro, you’ll have the best gaming phone on the battlefield, which is also awesome for consuming other media, and getting work done when playtime is over. This is the one gaming phone to rule them all for 2022.

RedMagic 7 Pro was provided by RedMagic.