TL;DR
REDMAGIC has launched a 9-inch gaming tablet with a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, liquid cooling, RGB lights, and dual USB-C ports.
The tablet features a 185Hz OLED and natively supports PC emulation, along with Steam login support.
The tablet launches globally as REDMAGIC Astra 9 on July 17.
Even though the market for Android tablets has slightly more options than it did nearly half a decade ago, none of them are as snazzy as this one. The REDMAGIC Gaming Tablet 5 Pro is a liquid-cooled Android slate with Elite-tier performance. It launches officially today in China, with a promise to arrive globally in the coming months as the REDMAGIC Astra 2.
The ZTE Nubia-owned brand stocks the Gaming Tablet Pro with a 185Hz OLED backed by a dedicated chip for faster touch response than most flagship Androids. The display comes in a 9-inch format with a 2.4K resolution, unchanged from the previous Astra.
The liquid cooling system is a total flex
The inside houses a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, cooled by a “fluorinated liquid coolant” that is claimed to stabilize temperatures ranging between -60ºC and 125ºC (-76ºF and 257ºF). While the chipset is less likely to reach those temperatures, it could help mitigate performance changes caused by extreme temperatures outside the device, and might even prevent it from stalling. A similar solution has also been used on the company’s latest gaming phone.
REDMAGIC is so proud of it that the cooling mechanism shines through a transparent window on the glass back. Pushing it further toward “overkill,” the brand has put RGB LEDs under this system as well as under its logo. However, unlike previous generations and a host of REDMAGIC phones, the tablet doesn’t come with a cooling fan, yet the company calls it an “active” cooling system.
To make sure all this raw power doesn’t go underutilized, REDMAGIC has built a dedicated solution to emulate PC games directly on the tablet. But unlike some more prominent emulators that offer linking multiple stores, installation on the Gaming Tablet 5 Pro is limited to local EXE files and Steam. We could see broader compatibility around or after the global launch.
It also offers dual USB-C ports, like many now-discontinued gaming phones. One of those can be hooked up to a monitor or a TV and used as a tiny Xbox (remember “This is an Xbox“?) with a gaming controller. The other can be used to keep the tablet charged up and ready for draining emulation.
Tushar Mehta / Android Authority
Talking of charging, this REDMAGIC gaming tablet comes with 80W of fast charging for the 8,300mAh battery. We know it’s a dual-cell unit, but there’s no clarity on whether any silicon is being used here or not.
REDMAGIC Astra 2 to launch globally in July
These might change when it launches as the REDMAGIC Astra 2 on July 17. Meanwhile, the brand has revealed the pricing for China, and they are as follows:
12GB + 256GB: CNY 5,299 (~$780)
16GB + 512GB: CNY 5,999 (~$880)
16GB + 1TB: CNY 6,999 (~$1,030)
REDMAGIC tablets have traditionally been available in the US, so the Astra 2 is likely to arrive too. You can get updates about sales, prices, and delivery on this page, but in case you forget to, we’ll ensure it’s bumped up in your attention on July 17.
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