Out of the box, the REDMAGIC 11S Pro comes with a power brick and a standard wired charging cord—much like the 11 Pro model. The main issue I had with the charging cord was that it was still a standard size. For a gaming phone, I expected they would make the cord longer, to keep gamers in the game longer—meaning I could stay plugged in whenever I knew I was going to be sitting and gaming for a while. Other than that, the red colour scheme was a nice touch, but I would also have appreciated a braided cord.
The REDMAGIC 11S Pro is powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5, the leading version, which helps balance processing power for power-intensive games. REDMAGIC classifies it as the fastest mobile SoC, with a maximum clock speed of 4.74 GHz. I can attest that switching apps was fast, and having many apps open still barely caused the phone to stutter. I appreciated that every time I loaded up a game, I saw the Energy Cube 3.0 x Snapdragon Elite Gaming optimization engine go to work, delivering the best gaming experience. Some enhancements included adjustments for smoother framerates, lower energy consumption and more.
Cooling on a gaming phone like the REDMAGIC 11S Pro is integral to the whole build, supporting long gaming sessions without overheating the user’s hands. With this latest model, REDMAGIC refined the heat dissipation capabilities, improving efficiency by 50 percent. To maintain safe temperatures, this smartphone uses the AquaCore Cooling System, featuring the industry’s first mass-produced liquid-cooled smartphone technology, along with a turbo fan and liquid metal.
Completing the whole cooling system, the 11S Pro contains the REDMAGIC signature fan, reaching speeds up to 24,000 RPM. Even though REDMAGIC boasts a supreme cooling system, I noticed the device still felt hot in my hands while playing. With the case, it was more manageable but still relatively warm. I tried turning off the RGB lighting as well, but that was the only thing that helped. The way the external liquid cooling system looks is fire, though.
“Cooling on a gaming phone like the REDMAGIC 11S Pro is integral to the whole build, supporting long gaming sessions without overheating the user’s hands.”
The RGB lighting is fully customizable, just like a gaming keyboard, with the usual lighting patterns and colour options. The only peeve I have with it is that you have to make sure to close the game app when you are done playing, otherwise the RGB lights will continue to run. There is an option to turn off all the lights in general. However, it does feel satisfying to look at when I am not focused on the game.
To keep mobile gamers in the action, this phone houses a solid whopping 7,500mAh battery—with 80W wired and wireless fast charging. So, it offers a bit more than the REDMAGIC 11 Air. Like most modern phones, it also supports wired and wireless charging. I attested that going from near-zero to 40 percent in 15 minutes told the whole battery-charging story. Essentially, I was able to game for hours on a single charge, but it took less than 45 minutes to get back to a full charge and get back into the game.
To put the REDMAGIC 11S Pro to the test, I played a lot of Fortnite, Asphalt Legends 3, Genshin Impact, Call of Duty Mobile, and Free Fire. REDMAGIC provided a great list of games to stress-test this phone’s entire system. In terms of breaking down the different gaming experiences, I found this gaming phone thrilling. The size and form factor fit into my hands well. I would still argue that having an external or attached controller to this would feel better. However, it naturally sat in my hands.
“Whether I was watching visually stunning shows or high-graphics RPGs like Genshin Impact, the REDMAGIC 11S Pro’s screen maintained its clarity.”
From an entertainment aspect, I wanted to see how beautiful the 6.85-inch AMOLED screen on the REDMAGIC 11S Pro held up. The display supports up to 144Hz refresh rate with peak brightness reaching 1,800 nits and 100% DCI-P3 wide colour gamut—bringing true-to-life colours to the forefront. The most interesting aspect of the screen, to me, was exploring the REDMAGIC 11S Pro’s touch responsiveness and accuracy. Luckily, there were some rainy days when I could try out the phone’s Wet Mode, which let me game outdoors. This surprisingly worked well to a certain point when the whole screen was dripping with water all over.
Much like gaming, watching my favourite anime shows like Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End and Jujutsu Kaisen on the REDMAGIC 11S Pro’s screen looked incredible. The full-screen BOE X10 AMOLED display truly was a visual spectacle. Whether I was watching visually stunning shows or high-graphics RPGs like Genshin Impact, the REDMAGIC 11S Pro’s screen maintained its clarity. After hours of gaming, I also found the screen did not smudge as easily as on other phones I have tried.
The natural sound system was a little disappointing, as the audio output was quite tinny. I would have loved to hear more bass or depth in the sound when watching my shows. However, when playing Battle Royale games like Free Fire and Fortnite, the directional sounds were worth this phone’s weight in gold. Also, I did not expect how much high-level haptic feedback on a phone would matter before using the REDMAGIC 11S Pro. REDMAGIC particularly recommends testing the 4D vibration feedback in games like Call of Duty: Mobile, Fortnite, and Free Fire.
Every piece of hardware and software runs off the REDMAGIC OS 11.5, with enhanced AI-driven gaming features. In general, the AI in this system integrates Google Gemini and REDMAGIC’s AI-powered input method. REDMAGIC’s proprietary AI features are more specifically highlighted in Game Space.
Since all the features of the REDMAGIC 11S Pro are geared towards gaming, the camera was overlooked. The device features a 16 MP front camera, 50 MP rear main camera, 50 MP wide-angle camera, and a third 2 MP camera—along with Optimal Image Stabilization and APL-coated anti-glare. I found this strange, having four cameras included. Was the camera design just for show? From a design standpoint, having the fan beside the main camera was strange. Initially, I thought it was a fifth camera, only to find out it was the fan.
Speaking of the camera on the REDMAGIC 11S Pro, do not expect this one to be among the best. I can forgive its lack of quality since this is a gaming phone. But if you are looking for something good at both, this might not be in your top choice. The pros were that they captured a lot of colour from my subjects and had a simple UI and zoom options. From a design standpoint, I thought having the entire back of the phone covered was smart because my hands wouldn’t be able to smudge the camera directly on the back while playing games.
One of the biggest cons was that the camera customizability is less than that of most big-hitter phones from the likes of Samsung, Google, and Apple. The other issue I had was how much it compensated for capturing colours, making them pop excessively rather than look natural. But again, I can slightly forgive this sin because its focus is more on the gaming aspect.
More on the REDMAGIC 11S Pro’s design: I tested the Nightfreeze colourway on the 16GB RAM + 512GB ROM model—sporting a sleek, stainless-steel black look. This same colourway is also available in a smaller memory configuration, with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of ROM. Subzero is the other colourway, offering a shimmering silver metal look. This colourway is only available in the 16GB RAM + 512GB ROM configuration.
Ultimately, the REDMAGIC 11S Pro is a beast of a gaming smartphone—all for an amazing $799 price point. While I have a bunch of design gripes, the design perks can outweigh the shortcomings. REDMAGIC boasted some supreme cooling features, but I was let down by the phone being a lot warmer than I expected from only 30 minutes of playing. Still, I would recommend this phone to anyone looking for a great gaming smartphone with beefy, premium performance.
