REDMAGIC Astra Review

REDMAGIC Astra Design, Build, and Controls

REDMAGIC Astra is not just another tablet - it's the ultimate weapon in the hands of those who play to win, blending bleeding-edge hardware with a design so sleek, it garners as many envious glances as your high-score leaderboard dominance. The thin and light body with thoughtful ergonomics and premium materials results in a device as bold in appearance as it is in capability, equally at home on a coffee table or a competitive gaming desk. REDMAGIC Astra uses aviation-grade aluminum alloy for its unibody design, Corning Gorilla Glass for the display, and a strong tempered protective glass for the rear strip that houses the camera and RGB Lights. It feels quite solid in the hand, with the metal and glass combo making it quite cool to the touch. The slate is available in Eclipse (entirely black) and Starfrost (silver) colors. The first is available with the top RAM+storage combo - 16GB and 1TB, while the Starfrost variant is available in two versions - 12GB+256GB and 16GB+512GB. We are reviewing a 16GB Starfrost unit. REDMAGIC Astra is impressively compact and lightweight, and can be held comfortably with one hand. It is the thinnest, shortest, narrowest, and lightest among the 9-inch tablets we're aware of. Not to mention that beneath its slim frame lies a massive battery and a cutting-edge cooling system with a physical turbofan. The model is only 6.9 mm thin and weighs 370 grams. It is also 207 mm wide (landscape view) and 134.2 mm high. The unconventionally sized display takes up the entire front of the device, wrapped in 4.9 mm bezels - the thinnest in this class. In landscape position, the top bezel houses the selfie camera positioned in its middle, and the light sensor is placed to the left of the camera. The uniglass surface is gently surrounded by the slightly protruding aluminum body. On-screen navigation gestures are activated by default, and you can opt for virtual navigation buttons instead. The rear shell is completely flat with the REDMAGIC logo embossed in dark glass in the middle. When held in landscape position, the top part of the rear shell is graced by a thick strip covered with glass. Its left end displays the REDMAGIC sign, which is part of the RGB Atmosphere Lights system. The far right end comprises the rear camera, the LED flash, and the round RGB Atmosphere Lights module. The rest of this strip is transparent for additional futuristic effect and contains references to the top hardware of the tablet - the Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, the Liquid Metal 2.0 cooling system with Vapor Chambers, etc. When held in landscape position, the top frame of the tablet houses the Volume rocker, one of the microphones, and the Magic Key slider in red. By default, the Magic Key launches GameSpace, but you can customize it to your liking and use it as a physical camera shutter, for example. The left frame is the home of one of the stereo speakers and the Power button with an embedded fingerprint sensor, while the right frame is where you can see the second microphone, the second stereo speaker, and the USB 3.2 Gen 2 port. The Astra uses dual 1620 stereo speakers with DTS: X Ultra certification for 3D stereo effect, and the two microphones offer stereo sound recording. The bottom frame is bare.