I tested the RedMagic 12 Pro – and it’s the fastest Android I’ve ever seen

ZDNET’s key takeaways

• The RedMagic 12 Pro is an elite Android phone.
• Outperforming all current Pixel devices, this thing is a beast.
• It could, however, take itself a bit more seriously on the app front.

RedMagic just announced the international launch of the RedMagic 12 Pro — its latest flagship phone. Typically, the company releases devices in China first and then slowly rolls them out to the rest of the world. This time around, the company knew it had a phone that could compete with other flagship devices.

Also: I’ve been a Google Pixel fan for years, but this $500 Android phone is giving me pause

Blazing fast performance

After the initial setup, I installed Geekbench 7 to benchmark the phone and compare it to my Pixel 9 Pro. As for the latest iPhone, according to Geekbench, the iPhone 18 Pro Max comes out ahead in single-core performance, but it just barely falls behind in multi-core performance.

The RedMagic 7 Pro nearly doubled the Pixel 11 Pro’s multi-core score. And Google’s device couldn’t beat the single-core score either. As I said, I’ve never seen a Geekbench score this high.

Real-world usage confirms these numbers, because the phone reacts faster and behaves more smoothly than any Android device I’ve owned or tested. It’s so smooth and fast, it feels like magic. But it’s not just the speed that makes this phone special.

The look and feel

First off, I’ve always liked RedMagic’s Android “skin.” As you use it, it seems to be some amalgamation of Android and iOS. RedMagic is essentially doing what Google’s been trying for years: making the smoothest possible animations on Android.

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The interface is as elegant as any I’ve seen on a mobile device. Pull down the notification shade, and it glides down like it was made of silk. Tap on an app launcher, and it opens immediately. Switch between apps, and there’s zero lag or jitter. On top of that, there’s hardly any bezel to speak of — the display goes nearly to the edge of the device.

Jack Wallen/ZDNET

There’s also no indication of where the front-facing camera is. There’s no pinhole (as you’ll find with many Android devices), and there’s no island (like on iPhones). It’s just a solid display with no interruptions.

The Pro 12 also feels really good in the hand. Both the back and the front are glass. Yes, it invites fingerprints, but it feels so smooth. The back of the phone also has that typical RedMagic look and feel with integrated RGB lighting zones. You can customize the lighting zones for things like fan on/off, game key atmosphere, media atmosphere, incoming calls, charging, and the alarm clock.

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And of course there’s AI. The 12 Pro AI works with apps/features like call assistant, live translation, wallpaper, privacy, transcripts, notepad, and writing. I took it for a ride using the Notepad app, asking it (ironically) to write something about the RedMagic 12 Pro, and the speed at which it worked blew me away.

Everything, and I mean everything, about this phone is fast.

My one issue

The RedMagic 12 Pro is 100% a gaming phone. I installed “Diablo: Immortal” and found it to perform better than the last RedMagic gaming-specific tablet I tested. Not only was it fast, but the graphics were gorgeous. Crisp, smooth, and responsive.

But…here’s the problem I have.

Jack Wallen/ZDNET

Since the RedMagic 12 Pro is advertised as a serious gaming phone, why does it include preinstalled games that are decidedly non-serious? 

On this powerful gaming phone, you’ll find apps like Puzzle Spark, Mahjong Blast, Bolt Twist, GoGo! Blast, and Little Kitty, Big City preinstalled. These are not serious games. In fact, these game titles sound more like they belong on a list of malicious apps (they aren’t).

Also: This 9-inch tablet singlehandedly changed my mind about gaming on Android

I would rather see the Red Magic 12 Pro have zero preinstalled games than the collection it ships with. Yes, you can easily delete those apps, but their being on the phone kind of cheapens it. Given how amazing this phone is, I think RedMagic could get away with shipping a bit less cheese, and a lot more wine.

Either way, the RedMagic 12 Pro is a phone that belongs at the top of the heap among flagships, even above every Pixel phone ever released. If there is a phone that can impress me more than the RedMagic 12 Pro, I’ve yet to see it.

RedMagic 12 Pro tech specs

• Display 6.85-inch AMOLED, 1216 x 2688 pixels (2K resolution), Refresh Rate: Up to 185Hz with 96.3% screen-to-body ratio and ultra-slim 0.96mm bezels
• Processor (SoC): Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 (up to 5.01GHz) paired with the REDMAGIC R5 Gaming Chipset
• GPU: Qualcomm Adreno 850
• RAM: 12GB or 16GB (LPDDR5T)
• Storage: 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB (UFS 4.1 Pro), no card slot
• Cooling System: Dual-loop liquid cooling with active turbo fan (up to 25,500 RPM), vapor chamber, and Liquid Metal 4.0
• Rear Cameras: 50MP primary (with OIS) + 50MP ultrawide + 2MP macro/depth sensor
• Front Camera: 16MP under-display camera
• Battery Capacity: 8,400mAh Li-Polymer battery – Supports fast wired and wireless charging (up to 120W wired / 80W wireless on Pro+ variants)
• Operating System: Android 17 with RedMagic OS 12
• Connectivity: Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6.0, USB Type-C 3.2, dual Nano-SIM
• Extra Features: 700Hz touch shoulder triggers, 0815 X-axis linear motor, and dual symmetrical stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos
• Dimensions: 163.03 x 75.96 x 8.55 mm
• Weight: 223 g
• Build: Flat transparent-style back finishes with integrated RGB lighting zones

Jack Wallen

Contributing Writer

Jack Wallen is what happens when a Gen Xer mind-melds with present-day snark. Jack is a seeker of truth and a writer of words with a quantum mechanical pencil and a disjointed beat of sound and soul. An award-winning writer and novelist, Jack has been covering Linux, open-source, and other topics since the late 1990s for numerous publications such as ZDNET, CNET, TechRepublic, Linux.com, The New Stack, Linode, TechTarget, and Linux New Media. Jack's also written over 50 novels of fiction, at least one of which focuses on the Linux operating system. For more news about Jack Wallen, visit his website jackwallen.com. See full bio