RedMagic 12 Pro review

Introduction and specs

It's that time of year again. Manufacturers are racing to launch their latest flagship phones powered by the top-tier Snapdragon chipset, and RedMagic, as a gaming-oriented brand, is one of the first at the finish line.

The RedMagic 12 Pro is here, and it rocks the powerful Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 chipset along with an advanced, active cooling system that consists of a fan and liquid-cooled loops. There's also a nice transparent design on the back that shows the so-called AquaCore Cooling System 3.0 as RedMagic likes to call it.

Aside from the supposed improved performance, the device brings a solid battery upgrade - now 8,400 mAh, up from 7,500 mAh on the RedMagic 11S Pro from earlier this year.

ZTE nubia RedMagic 12 Pro specs at a glance:

• Body: 163.0x76.0x8.6mm, 223g; Glass front (Gorilla Glass 7i), aluminum frame, glass back (Gorilla Glass 7i); Pressure-sensitive zones (520Hz touch-sensing), Built-in cooling fan (IPX8 water resistant), IP68/IP69 dust tight and water-resistant (high-pressure water jets; submersible up to 1.5m for 30 min), Aviation aluminum middle frame.
• Display: 6.85" AMOLED, 1B colors, 185Hz, HDR10, 1900 nits (HBM), 5000 nits (peak), 1216x2688px resolution, 19.89:9 aspect ratio, 431ppi.
• Chipset: Qualcomm SM8975 Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 (2 nm).
• Memory: 256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 16GB RAM, 1TB 16GB RAM; UFS 4.1 Pro.
• OS/Software: Android 17, Redmagic OS 12.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 50 MP, f/1.9, 22mm, 1/1.56", 1.0µm, multi-directional PDAF, OIS; Ultra wide angle: 50 MP, f/2.2, 13mm, 1/2.87", 0.61µm.
• Front camera: 16 MP, f/2.0, 26mm (wide), 1/3.06", 1.12µm, under display.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 8K@30fps, 4K@30/60/120fps, 1080p@30/120/240fps; Front camera: 1080p@30/60fps.
• Battery: 8400mAh; 80W wired, 80W wireless, 22.5W reverse wired, Reverse wireless.
• Connectivity: 5G; Wi-Fi 7; BT 6.0; NFC; Infrared port.
• Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, ultrasonic); stereo speakers (Dolby Atmos).

The display also receives some love. While it retains the same 6.85-inch diagonal, the refresh rate has been bumped up to 185Hz along with the brightness. BOE's new X11 OLED panel is also marketed to be more efficient thanks to a new emissive material. As before, the experience remains "full-screen", meaning no obstructions and thin, symmetrical bezels all around. The selfie camera is hidden beneath the panel, and AI algorithms are now in charge of reducing glare and haze, which have been persistent issues with under-display cameras.

The handset has gained two new certifications - IP68 and IP69, but interestingly, RedMagic specifically states that the cooling fan is IPX8-rated instead.

Finally, the device boots the new Redmagic OS 12, based on Android 17, out of the box, improving cross-platform and cross-device connectivity. That includes Steam games through the X-Gravity platform, but more on that later.

Now let's dive in.

Unboxing the RedMagic 12 Pro

The RedMagic 12 Pro comes in a standard retail box, containing the usual user manuals, a USB-C to USB-C cable and a protective case. However, the corresponding 80W fast charger is nowhere to be found.

Typically, we don't expect manufacturers to supply chargers with the phones sold in the EU, but this is the first time we've received a European box from RedMagic without a wall charger.