Red Magic 3S review - The perfect gaming phone - Android

Gaming phones typically offer high performance, fast displays, big batteries and some kind of advanced cooling system. The Red Magic 3 offered all of those and more. Can its successor, the Red Magic 3S, bring something extra to the table?

Red Magic 3S review: It’s all about gaming

The Red Magic 3S is the latest gaming device from Nubia and an upgrade to its predecessor, the Red Magic 3. The specs of this device are impressive. It uses the Snapdragon 855+, has a 90Hz, 6.65-inch Full HD display with Corning Gorilla Glass, and packs at least 8GB of RAM (12GB on some models). Plus there is a 5,000mAh battery, 8K video recording, a built-in fan, hardware gaming buttons, and a dedicated gaming launcher. Expensive? Not really, the 8GB/128GB variant starts at $479 (€479/£419).

What is it like to use the Red Magic 3S?

Everything about the Red Magic 3S screams “gaming phone”. Its metal build, the RGB LED strip in the back, the shoulder buttons, the active cooling, and the dedicated game mode switch should give you a clue. That means you will probably either love it or hate it.

It feels well-made and weighs a hefty 215g, thanks partly to the size and partly to the aluminum construction. It is a big device with a big screen. Just what gamers want — but don’t expect it to slip easily into your pocket.

The back of the device has a distinctive design and includes an RGB LED strip. The strip can pull off all kinds of neat effects controlled in the settings, though it isn’t particularly bright during the day. On the sides are the shoulder buttons, a switch for entering Game Space, and a pin connector. Above the LED strip is a traditional fingerprint reader. It proved to be reliable and fast.

In its normal mode, the Red Magic 3S comes with fairly stock Android 9 Pie and includes no bloatware, and no pre-installed games. But you do get the Google standard apps such as the Play Store, Gmail, and YouTube. This is all normal for the 3S. But then there is Game Space!

Is the Red Magic 3S good for gaming?

Flicking the small red side switch activates Game Space, a dedicated launcher for playing games. As well as putting games front and center, the launcher also gives you controls for the fan, the RGB strip, the shoulder gaming buttons, and a way to mute notifications.

Perhaps the most notable thing here is the capacitive shoulder triggers. Thanks to some clever software, the buttons are surprisingly useful. You can map literally any point on the screen to the shoulder buttons in seconds, and save the settings on a per-game basis. Want to drift while playing Asphalt 9? Just use the hardware triggers!

A good display is important for a gaming phone and thankfully the Red Magic 3S doesn’t disappoint. The screen is large (too large?) at 6.65 inches. Plus it is a 90Hz panel. Only a handful of games actually support 90Hz displays, so don’t expect to see a difference all the time. But, when it is supported by the game, pixel peepers will be happy. However, don’t make the mistake of confusing frame rate with refresh rate, there are two very different things. If you want to know more about the difference, then I have a video for you: 90Hz Displays, SurfaceFlinger, and Display Processors.

The purpose of the built-in fan is to enable long-term sustained performance.

As for gaming performance, you won’t be disappointed. The Snapdragon 855+, 8GB/12GB of RAM, and that fan are a sure recipe for success. Gameplay is smooth, especially for games such as