REDMAGIC 11 Pro is the first smartphone in the world with true liquid cooling, in the sense that it goes beyond the concept of vapor chamber cooling and pushes the concept of gaming phone towards territories previously reserved for much bulkier products such as portable consoles. In Europe, and in Italy, it debuts today, but we have been trying it for a few weeks.
Design and construction: many interesting solutions
Although the design remains in line with RedMagic’s stylistic language, with 11 Pro it is immediately clear that we are faced with a different product because the rear body is semi-transparent and reveals the internal fan. In a world of increasingly protruding cameras, the fact that here we find ourselves with a smartphone is greatly appreciated completely flat even at the back.
Perhaps, in the hand, it will not give a premium feeling like other products, but RedMagic it focuses more on those who look at the substance because under the body it has the same generation of processors as the most famous brands given that there is a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 as on Samsung’s S25 Ultra. Finally, the IPX8 treatment makes it resistant to water and dust and the gaming keys are well integrated, backlit and comfortable to reach given that the overall thickness is the right one and, if it had been as thin as an iPhone 17 Air, the ergonomics in long gaming sessions would have been compromised.
Display and performance: Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5
The heart of the RedMagic 11 Pro is Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 supported by the additional chipset (RedCore R4) which manages effects, vibrations and energy consumption. The 3nm Snapdragon platform is the one we have come to know during 2025 because it has been the reference for many top-of-the-range smartphones. Here it reaches 4.6 GHz with 16 GB of RAM and 512 GB of internal memory in the tested version (NightFreeze), but there are also 12+256 and 24+1TB variants.
The chipset was able to manage the latest video games with stable framerate without performance dropsalso thanks to the liquid cooling which really makes the difference compared to competitors (even more prestigious) which are not as effective as this smartphone when put under stress.
The AMOLED display from 6.85 inches it reaches 144 Hz frequency and the 3,000 Hz of touch sampling: it is one of the most responsive panels on the market, with brightness up to 1,800 nits and very thin bezels. In addition to helping in the most frenetic video games thanks to a very high refresh rate, the advantage of the excellent performance in “reading” the touches of our fingers is noticeable when playing online because it returns an immediate response to our inputs.
On the connectivity side, there is no lack of NFC, USB 3.2 Gen 2, Bluetooth 5.4, dual GPS and dual SIM, 5G and a fingerprint sensor hidden under the display which is always immediate in recognition and has never failed even with slightly wet hands.
Cooling and stability in performance, the real advantage
RedMagic plays the ace with the system AquaCore Coolingthe first to integrate a fluorinated liquid in a sealed circuit driven by a piezoelectric micropump. So imagine a miniature “river” extracting heat from inside the smartphone while the fan then takes care of expelling the heated air stored in a vapor chamber. After more than an hour of continuous gaming at 60 FPS (granite), the temperature remained low (below 44 degrees), allowing you to hold the smartphone in your hand without problems even without the cover, which is included in the package.
And the advantage is not just in video games: with competing smartphones, even from premium brands, if you record 4K videos for a long time the body gets particularly hot, while RedMagic 11 Pro has superior performance in terms of cooling and thermal management.
Autonomy and charging: 7,500 mAh and 80 W also wireless
There 7,500 mAh battery it is slightly smaller than the one announced at the launch of the Chinese model (8,000 mAh), but the practical differences are minimal because the Snapdragon is an efficient chipset and here it is also helped by the active cooling system. In daily use we achieved without any problems a couple of days of traditional and work use.
With video games you can easily exceed 6/8 hours of use and, furthermore, lCharging is very fast as it reaches 80 W. Finally, like a multipurpose Swiss army knife the phone turns into a power bank for other smartphones with reverse charging function.
Audio, vibrations and controls for video games
For the most avid gamers, audio is as important as video because it helps, especially in competitive gaming, to understand where enemy shots are coming from, for example. Here we have excellent sound performance with the speakers integrated into the bodyAnd the 3.5 mm jack remainsdisappeared almost everywhere, precisely because a gamer might want to connect headphones.
The vibration motor is excellent which returns an experience very close, despite the limitations of size, to that of console pads in terms of tactile feedback.
Camera: a leap forward, to improve selfies
RedMagic 11 Pro is not the smartphone to take if our primary objective is to take photos and videos, as it focuses on other features. He surprises, however, with one good quality 50 megapixel main camera with optical stabilization, flanked by another 50 megapixel sensor on ultra-wide angle optics. With the main optics we have a high level performance during the day and a good level at night, and the software that has a hand in artificially improving the photos.
The 16 MP front camera does not excel, but it is sufficient for good quality selfies and streaming in optimal light conditions, lacking a little in its performance when the ambient brightness is very low.
In general, also considering the advantage of the flat and non-protruding camera module, the photographic sector can be promoted, not with the ratings of the most famous cameraphones, but it is certainly positioned in the medium/high range of the segment.
Software and AI functions: between Mora and Gemini
The new REDMAGIC OS 11.0 integrates two virtual ones: Mora, the avatar that accompanies game sessions and personalizes screens and notifications, and Google Gemini which offers real-time translations, visual search and assisted writing and is integrated into the operating system, here in the Android 16 version.
Mora can also be used as an animated background and will interact contextually in some functions, but the Game Space is the heart of the experience. The interface collects all the games, can be activated with the red button on the body (customizable functions) and allows you to adjust parameters, create usage profiles, activate the AI Coach for video games.
The interface dedicated to game options opens with a swipe (from the right or from the left) and offers many options, including for example the one for record our sessions. Also interesting is the possibility of map the dedicated keys: on the back there are two touch buttons, the ones that are illuminated in blue in the photo, which allow you to replace the touch of two icons on the screen. With PUBG Mobile, for example, you can assign the right button/”trigger” the command to fire the weapon in play, and the left one another action such as jumping, reloading the weapon and so on.
The system is completely customizable depending on the game and simplifies games a lot because it frees your fingers from having to use the touchscreen, allows you to be quicker in your actions and is also an advantage in terms of competitiveness. You can also set a macro (a sequence of keys that the system will press for us), but in the latter case there is a warning that we could be kicked out of games if we use it with online competitive video games… better to use them exclusively for single-player and offline games.
Price and conclusions
RedMagic 11 Pro is not a simple upgrade but a clear leap in instability and usability, even under load where its competitive advantage is noticeable. All things considered, brings the brand into the era of maturity and allows the manufacturer to really compete with the main players on the market, in short, a top-of-the-range Android smartphone that has little to envy from its competitors.
Maybe it won’t be as elegant as the Samsung models or the iPhone, but it comes at a more interesting price if we consider the complete package, it gives up something on the camera side but, if you’re not a video maker, it will reward you with an excellent battery, excellent performance for gaming, impeccable fluidity and excellent usability even for those who work with a smartphone since everything is there and Google services and related apps are obviously available.
The only flaw? The interface, which can be customized between different themes, is not very elegant and has a less “premium” style than its competitors with Android, as well as still presenting some translation defects in Italian in some system menus and sub-menus.
Finally the price, the biggest surprise: Redmagic 11 Pro Cryo 12+256 GB costs only €699a very interesting figure if we consider its characteristics, especially the processor power and performance. The tested version, the Nightfreeze with 16 GB of RAM and 512 GB of memory, it costs €799. Then there are other versions, but the maximum price reaches €999 for the model with 24 GB of memory and 1 TB of storage space.
Not bad really and, with the first inevitable promotions that will arrive a few months after launch, you can take home a top of the range that is different from everyone else and that he doesn’t give up (almost) anythingwith one huge batterya latest generation processor like the other tops of
range and perfect performance with video games… and more! Who buys it at launchmoreover, will have immediately a discount of €30 paying €669 for the Cryot 12+256 GB version.