RedMagic Astra Gaming Tablet REVIEW Powerful Performance in a Handheld-Friendly Size

A high-refresh OLED display, strong cooling, and top-tier mobile performance make the RedMagic Astra a standout tablet for Call of Duty: Mobile and serious handheld gaming

Not that long ago, I acquired the RedMagic Nova gaming tablet. It’s been an amazing gaming device, but for me, it’s a little too large for playing anything handheld. I’ve tried gaming on my iPhone 17 Pro Max, but the screen is just too small for some details. Since the Nova has been such a great gaming companion, I was thrilled to hear about the RedMagic Astra, which is a much more manageable size for handheld gaming.

For some added context, I have been an avid Call of Duty: Mobile player since 2021 and have tested nearly every mobile gaming option available. I usually play with a controller on the RedMagic Nova, but I have been wanting to sharpen my skills using touch controls. I gave the iPad mini a shot, but it falls short in two major ways. It overheats quickly, making longer play sessions impractical, and its 60Hz display is simply not sufficient for a fast-paced first-person shooter like CODM, where a higher refresh rate makes a noticeable difference.

About RedMagic Astra

The RedMagic Astra is a high-performance Android tablet built for people who want serious gaming power and everyday versatility. It combines one of Qualcomm’s top mobile processors with generous memory and storage options to deliver smooth gameplay and fast app performance. The vibrant OLED display with a high refresh rate brings games and media to life with crisp visuals and responsive touch control. Advanced cooling technology keeps performance stable during long play sessions, while a large battery supports extended use on the go.

RedMagic’s gaming software and strong peripheral support make it easy to connect controllers, keyboards, and displays for a flexible play experience. Rich audio and tactile feedback add immersion whether you are in a competitive match or watching your favorite show. With capable cameras and practical everyday features, the Astra is designed to be both a powerful gaming device and a reliable tablet for daily use.

Main Features

Display & Touch

• 9.06-inch OLED panel with 2.4K (2400×1504) resolution and vibrant colors.
• Up to 165 Hz refresh rate for smooth visuals.
• Ultra-fast touch sampling up to ~2000 Hz for responsive gameplay.
• High brightness (~1600 nits) and eye protection certification.

Performance

• Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite flagship chipset.
• Optional RedCore R3 Pro co-processor to help display and gaming performance.
• Up to 24 GB LPDDR5T RAM and 1 TB UFS 4.1 Pro storage.
• Runs RedMagic OS 10.5 based on Android 15 with Google AI support.

Thermal & Cooling

• Advanced 13-layer ICE-X cooling system, including a high-speed fan, graphene and vapor chambers to minimize throttling.

Audio & Haptics

• Dual symmetrical 1620 stereo speakers with DTS:X Ultra audio.
• Dual X-axis linear motors for immersive vibration feedback.

Battery & Charging

• Large 8,200 mAh battery for extended play and media use.
• Fast charging support (often ~80 W with compatible adapter).

Cameras & Sensors

• 13 MP rear and 9 MP front cameras.
• Fingerprint sensor and face unlock for security.

Connectivity & Ports

• USB-C with USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) data speeds and DisplayPort output support.
• Wi-Fi 6/7 and Bluetooth 5.4 for wireless connections.
• USB On-The-Go support for controllers, keyboards, storage, and more.

Design & Build

• Sleek metal and glass construction, lightweight (~370 g) and slim (≈6.9 mm).
• IP54 splash and dust resistance.

Gaming & Software Features

• Dedicated Game Space / X-Gravity Gaming Center with performance tuning and game tools.
• Supports high-resolution output and casting.

Pricing & Availability

The pricing for the Astra tablet starts at $549 on redmagic.tech

Evaluation

We use a mix of benchmarking tools and real-world testing to evaluate tablets and mobile devices. Our process examines key areas such as design, display quality, sustained performance, gaming capability, and everyday usability to ensure a balanced and practical assessment. Here is what we discovered while testing the RedMagic Astra gaming tablet.

OVERALL DESIGN: The Astra features a sleek design and is very similar to the Nova gaming tablet only smaller. It is the ideal size for a large hand-held mobile device and it’s not too heavy to hold for longer periods of time. I’ve never thought its size felt awkward at all. The OLED display is definitely a highlight. Colors are vibrant and the touch controls are very responsive. The only weak feature of the Astra is the camera system, but with a tablet like this your focus is going to be on gaming and not using it for photos. The speakers are plenty loud and the battery life is very strong as well.

NETWORK SPEED: We always test the network speed of new devices especially when they are intended for gaming. For gaming, you want to have an stable internet for download, updates, and online play. Our home network is powered by AT&T Fiber networking. For testing, the RedMagic Astra was connected over Wi-Fi and positioned roughly 20 feet away from the router. I used Speedtest.net by Ookla to measure network performance and repeated the same test on an iPhone 16 Pro Max under similar conditions.

Speed Test Results (Ookla):

• iPhone 16 Pro Max: 749 Mbps download, 423 Mbps upload, 19 ms ping
• RedMagic Astra tablet: 399.76 Mbps download, 364.08 Mbps upload, 25 ms ping

While both devices delivered strong results, the difference in peak download speed is noticeable. This gap is largely due to hardware and software optimization rather than network quality. Apple equips the iPhone 16 Pro Max with a highly advanced Wi-Fi radio, antenna design, and network stack that can take advantage of wider Wi-Fi channels and more aggressive throughput tuning. These optimizations tend to favor burst-heavy tests like Speedtest, resulting in significantly higher download numbers and slightly lower latency.

The RedMagic Astra, on the other hand, still performs well but appears to operate within a more conservative Wi-Fi configuration, likely using narrower channel widths and fewer spatial streams. Its upload performance closely matches the iPhone’s results, which indicates a stable, healthy connection and confirms that the tablet is not being throttled or suffering from signal issues.

In real-world use, both devices provide fast, reliable connectivity for gaming, streaming, and downloads. The iPhone simply excels at peak Wi-Fi throughput, while the RedMagic Astra delivers consistent performance that remains more than sufficient for everyday and gaming-focused workloads.

GENERAL PERFORMANCE: When it came to testing the performance, I ran two benchmark tests: Basemark 3.0 on Chrome and Geekbench.

Basemark 3.0 is a cross-platform benchmarking tool designed to measure real-world system performance across devices. It evaluates GPU, CPU, and overall system capability using consistent, graphics-heavy workloads on platforms like Android, iOS, Windows, and macOS, making it useful for fair performance comparisons.

• Score: 815
• Resize Capabilities: 76.12
• Array Test: 1748.64
• Bitwise Test: 435.80
• Built-in Objects Test: 174.96
• Shader Pipeline Test: 1044
• Draw-cell Stress Test: 181.72
• Geometry Stress Test: 1866.99

The RedMagic Astra’s Basemark 3.0 results place it comfortably above most standard Android tablets and in line with dedicated mobile gaming devices. An overall score of 815 reflects strong, well-balanced performance rather than chasing peak synthetic numbers. High scores in shader processing and geometry stress tests highlight solid GPU capability, which translates well to gaming and graphics-heavy tasks.

While Basemark 3.0 is not the most commonly cited benchmark for direct device rankings, the Astra’s results align with what other benchmarks show: it consistently performs at or near the top tier of Android tablets, especially under sustained loads. Compared to mainstream Android tablets, it delivers noticeably stronger and more consistent performance, making it well suited for gaming and demanding real-world use.

Geekbench is a widely used cross-platform benchmarking tool that measures overall system performance. It focuses primarily on CPU and memory performance by running a series of short, repeatable tests that simulate real-world computing tasks such as image processing, data compression, machine learning workloads, and multitasking. Because Geekbench uses the same workloads across platforms like Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, and Linux, it allows for easy performance comparisons between different devices and processors.

CPU

• Single-Core Score: 3141
• Multi-Core Score: 9945

GPU OpenCL Score

• 19061

These Geekbench results show that the device delivers top-tier performance for a mobile platform. The strong single-core score indicates fast responsiveness for everyday tasks and games, while the high multi-core score highlights excellent performance for demanding workloads like multitasking, gaming, and content creation. The GPU OpenCL score reflects solid graphics and compute capability, confirming that the hardware is well suited for high-end gaming and graphics-intensive applications.

GAMING ABILITY: The RedMagic Astra has proven to be an excellent platform for Call of Duty: Mobile, which remains my primary use case. Gaming on the Astra using touch controls has been a joy, feeling both natural and comfortable during long sessions thanks to the tablet’s size, weight balance, and responsive display. CODM runs smoothly at its highest supported settings, delivering consistently high frame rates that make movement and aiming feel fluid and precise. The Astra’s screen provides ample room for on-screen controls without feeling cramped, making it an ideal mobile gaming device for competitive play. As a dedicated gaming tablet, it delivers exactly what I was looking for: strong performance, smooth visuals, and a comfortable, immersive experience tailored for touch-based shooters like CODM.

Conclusion

The RedMagic Astra delivers exactly what it promises: a powerful, purpose-built Android tablet designed for serious mobile gaming. Its size strikes an ideal balance between immersion and comfort, making it far more enjoyable for handheld play than larger tablets while still offering plenty of screen real estate. Performance is consistently strong, the high-refresh OLED display enhances fast-paced games like Call of Duty: Mobile, and the advanced cooling system allows for long gaming sessions without noticeable throttling. While the camera system and external display limitations may matter to some users, they do little to detract from what is otherwise one of the best handheld gaming tablets available today.

For more information, visit redmagic.tech