Nubia Redmagic 7 review: The gaming revolution in smartphone guise?

The smartphone market is now so broad that pretty much everyone can find one. Size plays a particularly important role here. It doesn’t matter whether it’s in a handy pocket format or with a gigantic display for friends of movies and series on the go. Everything has its advantages and disadvantages and also its suitable buyers.

One area that is still rather stepmotherly treated by many manufacturers so far is the gaming smartphone segment. Nubia’s Redmagic 7 wants to make it clear what the perfect device for mobile gaming fans should look like. Size and weight do not play a role. All that counts is uncompromising hardware power. Whether the ZTE subsidiary can keep this promise, we will clarify in the test.

Technical data

Scope of delivery

The first positive surprise I experienced was with the packaging of the Redmagic 7. Here, Nubia goes for a chic and modern comic book look that reminds me a bit of the classic “Sin City”.

Once unpacked, the manufacturer does without bells and whistles and only includes the bare essentials with the gaming smartphone itself. Besides Fast Charging power adapter (65 watts) and charging cable (USB-C to USB-C), you will find a practical case and the usual paperwork.

Design and workmanship

Let’s not kid ourselves. Everyone should probably assign the Redmagic 7 to the “real eye-catcher” category. This is not necessarily due to the classically designed front. Nubia rather follows the saying “a nice back can also be charming” and gives the smartphone a unique back.

At least in our color version with the name “Supernova”, we really like the device. This provides a glimpse into the interior and lets us guess where which hardware component is located. Alternatively, the Redmagic 7 is also available in the colors “Obsidian” and “Pulsar”.

If you hold the device in your hands, it quickly becomes clear that this is no lightweight. With its 215 grams, it might be too heavy for some people. Of course, the weight is no coincidence. Besides the powerful hardware under the hood, the sheer dimensions of the smartphone are also responsible for the not inconsiderable weight.

Nubia goes for an aluminum frame here and covers the back with glass. It all feels very high-quality and resistant. Those who want to provide additional protection can use the included case. On the left side, there is a classic volume rocker for one. Above that we find ventilation slots for the installed fans. Last but not least, you can find the striking red switch for turning the gaming mode on and off.

On the right side there are again ventilation slots. You can also find a microphone and the classic standby button here. The fact that this is a gaming smartphone is made clear by the special shoulder buttons. These are based on touch technology and are supposed to make controlling easier, especially in shooters.

On the bottom, you will find another microphone as well as the USB-C port, which is used to charge the battery as well as connect to the PC. The smartphone’s third and last microphone is on the top. You can also find a 3.5 mm jack here.

All in all, the Redmagic 7 impresses with its high-quality workmanship. Personally, however, it is too bulky for me due to its sheer size and weight. However, this is entirely a matter of taste. Since it is a gaming smartphone, the device will mainly appeal to buyers who do not care too much about compact dimensions anyway.

Display

The Redmagic features a 6.8-inch AMOLED display, which resolves in FHD+ (1,080 x 2,400 pixels). So far so good. However, neither the panel nor the resolution are really impressive. A real eye-catcher are the buttery smooth moving images that flicker across the screen. This is made possible by a maximum refresh rate of 165 Hz. This not only provides decisive competitive advantages in gaming, but also makes scrolling in the browser extremely pleasant. After all, distorted pictures are simply not present here.

The display also scores in the other disciplines. Nubia offers a sampling rate of 720 Hz. Thus, multiple inputs via finger gestures are recognized as fast as lightning. Furthermore, the screen-to-body ratio of 91.28 percent ensures that you hardly see ugly screen edges. It can also be played well in bright environments. Finally, the display offers a maximum brightness of a very good 700 nits. Another highlight is the so-called MAGIC GPU feature.

This can be compared with the Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) of full-fledged graphics cards and always promises smooth frame rates. This worked flawlessly in practice. A fingerprint sensor is hidden under the display, which always responded reliably and quickly in the test.

The same even offers the possibility to measure the pulse. That could be quite exciting in exciting gaming sessions. Furthermore, the front camera is embedded to the left of the earcups.

Camera

Not many words need to be said about the Redmagic 7’s camera. Nubia has equipped its smartphone with a triple camera on the back. This is composed of the main camera with 64 megapixels and 2 other lenses with 2 megapixels and 8 megapixels, respectively. The three cameras are enriched by the associated flash.

Certainly, solid pictures can be taken with the smartphone in good lighting conditions. However, it becomes clear that the camera was installed by Nubia out of a sense of duty. Enthusiasts will by no means get their money’s worth here. This also becomes clear in the night mode.

The gaming smartphone’s selfie camera resolves with 8 megapixels. That’s certainly enough for a portrait in between.

Moving images can also be recorded. The Redmagic 7 allows video in crisp 8K at 30fps, in 4K at 30 or 60fps, or in 1080p at 30, 60, 120 or even 240fps.

Performance

Of course, with a smartphone like the Redmagic 7, we have to talk about performance. This is where the gaming machine really trumps. In particular, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 from Qualcomm ensures that the device just races through every application. No matter if you surf through the browser with the Redmagic 7 or play a demanding game like “Asphalt Legends”. The smartphone does not let you down and is always fast. This is probably not only due to the powerful Qualcomm processor. Our test device also has a whopping 18 GB of working memory. With their support, the device hardly ever breaks a sweat.

What I found truly amazing was the speed at which the Redmagic 7 ran through the benchmarks I ran. With “Geekbench 5” and “3D Mark Wild Life”, I ran through two of the most common ones. And the results were really impressive. It would really be unfair to pit the Redmagic 7 against a “normal” smartphone. That’s why we wanted to make a direct comparison with the ASUS ROG Phone 5, which we put through its paces in October 2021 (test). The latter relies on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888, which is also considered a real power machine.

However, when I compared the two scores, I was blindsided. The ASUS ROG Phone 5 scored 5,725 points in 3D Mark Wild Life at an average of 34 frames per second (fps). In contrast, the Redmagic 7 achieved 9,990 points at 59.8 fps in the same benchmark. Thus, it really outclasses ASUS’ gaming smartphone. The differences are not quite as obvious in Geekbench 5. Here, the Redmagic 7 with 1,243 (single-core score) and 3,791 (multi-core score) only has a subtle lead over the ROG Phone 5 with 1,108 (single-core score) and 3,771 (multi-core score).

Sophisticated cooling system

The superior Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 from Qualcomm in combination with the Adreno graphics unit is undoubtedly responsible for the immense performance advantage in gaming. Both drive the Redmagic 7 to top performance, which can also be felt in the temperature development. As soon as you start a game, the device also gets noticeably warm.

But surprisingly, it keeps the only warm and by no means hot temperatures of the potent hardware at a stable level. The reason for this is the sophisticated cooling and fan system that Nubia has installed here. This is automatically activated when the device threatens to get too warm.

From the outside, the cooling system can be seen not only through the vents on the device. On the back is a small fan that provides decent airflow with up to 20,000 revolutions per minute. Fancy RGB effects set this in scene in bright colors.

To prevent the fan from rotating too loudly, Nubia says it relies on a special metal cover, which is supposed to reduce the noise. We could hear the fan clearly in practice, but it did not bother me. In extremely quiet environments, however, you should be aware that you could definitely reap the one or other evil eye.

Android 12 and Redmagic OS 5.0

Nubial relies on the brand-new Android 12 for its Redmagic 7, which also runs butter-smoothly over the display thanks to the matching hardware power. However, the manufacturer has also supplemented the slightly customized Android with a special gaming interface. The so-called Redmagic OS 5.0 is not only a clearly arranged gaming library. You can also adjust a lot of gaming-related settings here. This does not only include the fan’s performance. You can also make detailed adjustments to input methods like the touch shoulder keys.

The same are another highlight of the smartphone. Thanks to a sampling rate of 500 Hz, they register even the fastest inputs in shooters like “Dead Trigger 2” without problems. Nubia promises that the shoulder buttons can withstand up to 2 million inputs. While I could not verify this during my test phase, I was able to convince myself of the anti-sweat palm surface. Even in tricky, sweaty situations, I didn’t slip off the special shoulder keys. The surface’s feel reminds a bit of a notebook’s touchpad.

Battery with blazing fast fast-charging

Of course, the battery’s staying power also plays an immensely important role in a gaming smartphone. After all, powerful hardware always threatens to draw a decent amount of power. Understandably, this proved to be true in practice. I could observe that the charge level of the 4,500 mAh battery systematically decreased at least when playing demanding games. However, Nubia is obviously aware of this. After all, the company includes a suitable Fast Charger with a proud performance of 65 watts with its gaming smartphone.

This allows the smartphone to be fully recharged within minutes. The big advantage is that the Redmagic 7 can be quickly recharged even while playing demanding games. Thus, you can definitely get over the quickly shrinking battery level. The short charging times are made possible by the cooling system, among other things. After all, the fan not only ensures that the processor and the graphics chip do not overheat. It also takes care of the battery during the charging time.

Conclusion of the Nubia Redmagic 7 review

If you consider yourself a passionate fan of mobile gaming, you might land a golden handle with the Redmagic 7. What’s the reason for that? The device is an uncompromising gaming machine that performs sheerly. This is thanks to the secret star under the hood – Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 1. With its help, Nubia’s gaming smartphone outclasses the competition. However, the other features are also good. Thanks to the practical shoulder buttons, gaming is wonderfully comfortable. The built-in fan also ensures that nothing overheats – neither the battery nor the gaming hardware.

However, the whole thing also has its downsides, which should only bother people who aren’t looking for a pure gaming smartphone anyway. On the one hand, there is the somewhat clunky design. Not only the dimensions of the smartphone with a large 6.8-inch screen, but also the weight of 215 grams will certainly deter some from buying it. Furthermore, the battery life is not really impressive. Those who are annoyed by regular charging via fast-charging will probably be frustrated quickly. Otherwise, Nubia does everything right and offers a real price-performance hit in the otherwise expensive gaming smartphone segment.