Nubia is expanding its Red Magic 6 line of gaming phones with a new model that’s a little smaller and a little cheaper, but still a high-performance phone that offers a lot of bang for the buck.
The new Red Magic 6R is launching first in China, where it sells for ¥2,999 ($470) and up, but the phone should be available globally starting June 24 with prices starting at $499/€499/£429.
For that price, you get a phone with a 144 Hz AMOLED display, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 processor, and quad cameras. Designed for gaming, the phone also has capacitive shoulder “air trigger” buttons, and the company says the display has a touch sampling rate of 360 Hz.
Those specs don’t quite match those of the Red Magic 6 and Red Magic 6 Pro that launched earlier this year, but they come pretty close without a price tag that will break the bank.
Nubia’s $499 (or €499/£429) starting price for the phone will get you a model with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, but folks who want more of each can pay $599 (€599/£519) for a 12GB/256GB version.
The newest member of the Red Magic 6 family also has a higher-res selfie camera and one more rear camera than the other models, a slightly smaller (thus more pixel-dense) display, and… a smaller battery, slower charging, and no headphone jack that I can see.
It also seems like the Red Magic 6R may be missing one of the most unusual features found in other recent Red Magic phones. This model does not have an active cooling fan, which means it should run silently, but may not offer quite the same level of sustained performance during mobile gaming sessions.
Here are key specs for the complete Red Magic 6 family:
Red Magic 6R | Red Magic 6 | Red Magic 6 Pro | |
Display | 6.67 inch 2400 x 1080 AMOLED 144 Hz refresh rate 360 Hz touch sampling rate | 6.8 inch 2400 x 1080 AMOLED 165 Hz refresh rate Up to 500 Mhz touch sampling rate Up to 360 Hz multi-finger touch sampling | 6.8 inch 2400 x 1080 AMOLED 165 Hz refresh rate Up to 500 Mhz touch sampling rate Up to 360 Hz multi-finger touch sampling |
Processor | Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 |
RAM | 8GB or 12GBÂ LPDDR5 | 8GB or 12GB LPDDR5 | 12GB or 16GB LPDDR5 |
Storage | 128GB or 256GB UFS 3.1 | 128GB or 256GB UFS 3.1 | 128GB or 256GB UFS 3.1 |
Cameras | 64MP primary (IMX682) 8MP ultra-wide 5MP macro 2MP depth 16MP selfie | 64MP primary 8MP ultra-wide 2MP Macro 8MP selfie | 64MP primary 8MP ultra-wide 2MP Macro 8MP selfie |
Battery | 4,200 mAh | 5,050 mAh | 4,500 mAh |
Charging | 30W fast charging (55W for Chinese models) | 66W (wired) | 120W (wired) |
Ports | USB-C | USB-C 3.5mm audio | USB-C 3.5mm audio |
Audio | Stereo speakers | Stereo speakers 3 microphones Headphone jack | Stereo speakers 3 microphones Headphone jack |
Wireless | 5G NR WiFi 6 Bluetooth 5.2 | 5G NR WiFi 6 Bluetooth 5.1 | 5G NR WiFi 6 Bluetooth 5.1 |
Security | Under-display fingerprint reader | Under-display fingerprint reader | Under-display fingerprint reader |
Other | 400 Hz shoulder triggers Vapor chamber and liquid cooling | Capacitive air trigger buttons Active cooling fan | Capacitive air trigger buttons Active cooling fan |
Software | Android 11 with RedMagic OS 4.0 | Android 11 with RedMagic OS 4.0 | Android 11 with RedMagic OS 4.0 |
Dimensions | 7.8mm | 169 x 77.1 x 9.7mm | 169 x 77.1 x 9.7mm |
Weight | 186 grams | 220 grams | 220 grams |
Starting Price | ¥2,999/$499/€499/£429 | ¥3,799/$599/€599/£509 | ¥4,399/$699/€699/£599 |
This article was originally published May 27, 2021 and last updated June 7, 2021 with global pricing and availability details.