RedMagic just dropped its anniversary phone with a battery you won't see on any Galaxy or iPhone
The global model lands on May 27, and the specs we're expecting are wild.
RedMagic 11S Pro. | Image by RedMagic
Gaming phones were supposed to be dying out. Then RedMagic showed up with an 8,000 mAh battery, an overclocked Snapdragon, and a transparent back that makes every other flagship look boring.
There are three variants in play. China gets the 11S Pro and 11S Pro+, and a global 11S Pro is set to arrive later. The Chinese base model carries the largest battery in RedMagic's history at 8,000 mAh, paired with 80W wired and wireless charging.
The difference is the cooling. Where Samsung relies on a vapor chamber and good vibes, RedMagic packs in a 24,000 RPM fan, a 4D vapor chamber, and Composite Liquid Metal 3.0, all behind an IPX8-rated chassis. This chip runs seriously hot in phones with conventional cooling, so RedMagic's overbuilt setup is doing real work.
The Pro+ in China bumps things to 24 GB of RAM, 1 TB of storage, a 7,500 mAh battery, and 120W wired charging with 80W wireless. Pricing starts at 5,499 RMB (about $763 via direct conversion).
This launch arrives at a strange moment. We've argued the category is on its last legs, with the iPhone 17 Pro and OnePlus 15 chewing through AAA titles without melting. RedMagic's response is to lean harder into the things mainstream flagships will not do.
But the 11S Pro is doing something I respect, which is refusing to chase mainstream taste. While Asus is reportedly pausing ROG Phone launches in 2026, RedMagic is shipping a transparent, RGB-lit, fan-cooled beast with the same overclocked silicon as the Galaxy S26 Ultra.
What RedMagic just announced
The RedMagic 11S Pro series is now official in China, and the spec sheet is wild in the best way possible. The launch lands on the brand's eighth anniversary, and according to the official press release, it is a mid-gen refresh of last year's RedMagic 11 Pro, which we called one of the coolest phones we've ever tested, both literally and metaphorically.
The RedMagic 11S Pro (China variant). | Images by RedMagic
A chipset that should sound very familiar
Both Chinese models pack the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 Leading Version, clocked at up to 4.74 GHz. If that number rings a bell, it should, because it is the same overclocked chip Samsung uses inside the Galaxy S26 Ultra in its benchmark runs.The headline specs
- 6.85-inch BOE X10 AMOLED, 1.5K resolution, 144 Hz refresh rate
- 50 MP main, 50 MP ultra-wide, 2 MP macro, plus a 16 MP under-display selfie camera
- RedMagic OS 11.5 based on Android 16
- 520 Hz shoulder triggers, 3,000 Hz touch sampling
- Wi-Fi 7, NFC, and yes, a 3.5 mm headphone jack
The Pro+ in China bumps things to 24 GB of RAM, 1 TB of storage, a 7,500 mAh battery, and 120W wired charging with 80W wireless. Pricing starts at 5,499 RMB (about $763 via direct conversion).
Where do you stand on gaming phones in 2026?
Why this matters outside of China
We expect the global model to mirror the Chinese Pro+ on battery and charging (7,500 mAh, 80W wired and wireless), with international details set to drop on May 27. So no, the 8,000 mAh monster is not coming west, but a 7,500 mAh phone with 80W wireless charging most likely is.
Some of the most notable specifications of the RedMagic 11S Pro. | Images by RedMagic
My honest reaction
A gaming phone is not the right call for most people, and our six-month deep look at living with the RedMagic 11 Pro made the camera trade-offs pretty clear. The under-display selfie module is still rough, and you should expect that to carry over here.But the 11S Pro is doing something I respect, which is refusing to chase mainstream taste. While Asus is reportedly pausing ROG Phone launches in 2026, RedMagic is shipping a transparent, RGB-lit, fan-cooled beast with the same overclocked silicon as the Galaxy S26 Ultra.
If you have been gaming on a regular flagship and watching it thermal throttle into oblivion, the global 11S Pro is going to be hard to ignore.
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