nubia Red Magic 9S Pro review

Introduction

If anyone out there is really and truly playing the specs game, it has to be the Red Magic team. The endless pursuit for the best mobile hardware inevitably results in similar devices with just incremental upgrades, which is definitely one way to view the Red Magic 9S Pro. It is so similar to the Red Magic 9 Pro that the two practically have the exact same dimensions and weight. Most of our observations in the Red Magic 9 Pro review are thus still applicable to the Red Magic 9S Pro.

But wait a second. If both of these devices rocking the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset what's the point of the new one? Well, you might notice that while both phones feature the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, the new Red Magic 9S Pro has the ultimate SM8650-AC version of the chip, dubbed "Leading Version", but also known as the "Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy" when used by Samsung. The Samsung exclusivity contract clearly ended, so the Red Magic team finally has access to the best version of the flagship Qualcomm chipset. The one that runs its prime Cortex-X4 CPU core at up to 3.4 GHz (instead of 3.3 GHz) and boosts GPU frequency up to 1 GHz.

ZTE nubia Red Magic 9S Pro specs at a glance:

• Body: 164.0x76.4x8.9mm, 229g; Glass front (Gorilla Glass 5), aluminum frame, glass/metal synthetic back; Pressure sensitive zones (520Hz touch-sensing), Built-in cooling fan, Aviation aluminum middle frame, RGB light strip.
• Display: 6.80" AMOLED, 1B colors, 120Hz, 1600 nits (peak), 1116x2480px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 400ppi.
• Chipset: Qualcomm SM8650-AC Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (4 nm): Octa-core (1x3.4 GHz Cortex-X4 & 3x3.2 GHz Cortex-A720 & 2x3.0 GHz Cortex-A720 & 2x2.3 GHz Cortex-A520); Adreno 750 (1 GHz).
• Memory: 256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 16GB RAM; UFS 4.0.
• OS/Software: Android 14, Redmagic OS 9.5.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 50 MP, 1/1.57", 1.0µm, PDAF, OIS; Ultra wide angle: 50 MP, f/2.2, 1/2.76", 0.64µm; Depth: 2 MP, f/2.4.
• Front camera: 16 MP, f/2.0, (wide), 1.12µm, under display.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 8K@30fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240fps; Front camera: 1080p@30/60fps.
• Battery: 6500mAh; 80W wired, PD3.0, 100% in 35 min (advertised).
• Connectivity: 5G; Dual SIM; Wi-Fi 7; BT; NFC; Infrared port; 3.5mm jack.
• Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, optical); stereo speakers.

It goes beyond the higher clocked chipset too - the Red Magic 9S Pro also has an upgraded cooling system. The 22,000 RPM integrated active cooling fan is still at its helm, but the new ICE 13.5 setup also has a 10,182mm2 vapor chamber and a new cooling gel compared to the ICE 13 setup inside the Red Magic 9 Pro. This apparently allows the cooling to reduce chipset temperature by up to 19.5 degree C compared to 18 degree C for the ICE 13 system.

The result of those upgrades as per the company claims is 2,369,542 points in AnTuTu - the highest of any Android yet. And that's what the Red Magic 9S Pro is all about - ultimate performance.

The phone we have for review today is the 16 GB/512 GB Red Magic 9S Pro with a 6,500 mAh battery and 80W charging. This is the international version of the device. The keen-eyed among you might have noticed that 16 GB RAM was originally only available on the Red Magic 9S Pro+, but this is apparently not the case for international models. The only other difference besides memory is Plus model has a smaller 5,500 mAh battery but faster 165W charging. So you can apply all of the other findings in this review to the Red Magic 9S Pro+.

Unboxing

The Red Magic 9S Pro ships in a sturdy two-piece cardboard box. It is finished in silver, which is pretty eye-catching. The inside features a plastic cradle for the phone and some of the accessories, which is not great from an environmental standpoint but does provide excellent protection while shipping.

The Red Magic 9S Pro has a rich accessory package. The phone comes with a bundled charger rated for 80W of charging and seems that it delivers over PD + PPS. However, Quick Charge 5 is supported as well. You also get a red, sturdy Type-C to Type-C passive 3A cable to go along with the charger. Plus, a nice transparent hard case.