Skip to content

Uncovered an iPad mini solution for Android enthusiasts, boasting significantly improved performance

Affordable and compact tablet, Red Magic Astra, challenges the iPad mini's dominance with a surprising amount of features, priced at an impressive $499.

Discovered a solution for Android enthusiasts to enjoy an iPad mini-like experience, and it...
Discovered a solution for Android enthusiasts to enjoy an iPad mini-like experience, and it surpasses expectations

Uncovered an iPad mini solution for Android enthusiasts, boasting significantly improved performance

In the world of tablets, the Red Magic Astra, released in 2025 by Red Magic, has made a significant impact as a competitor to the iPad Mini. This compact tablet boasts impressive performance and cooling capabilities that set it apart from most Android tablets with a metallic shell.

The Red Magic Astra has excelled in various benchmark tests, particularly in ray-traced simulated environments of the 3DMark Steel Nomad Light stress test and the 3DMark Wild Life Extreme test. In these tests, the Red Magic Astra outperformed the iPad Mini with Apple's A17 Pro silicon and the M4 iPad Pro, respectively.

One of the key factors contributing to the Red Magic Astra's performance is its deep performance tuning controls. Users can adjust fan speed, CPU, and GPU clock speeds, with Red Magic's performance tuning mode, Diablo Mode, offering a boost of around 7% in multi-core performance and nearly 11% in graphics output in synthetic benchmarks.

The Red Magic Astra's cooling system is another standout feature. It features a physical fan fitted inside, along with 13 dedicated cooling components, including multiple layers of graphene and copper foil, a dual-layer vapor chamber, and liquid metal. This design, similar to high-end gaming laptops like the Asus ROG Strix Scar 18, helps the Red Magic Astra maintain a cool temperature, reducing it by up to eight degrees Celsius.

The Red Magic Astra's performance isn't the only impressive aspect. It also boasts a 9-inch OLED panel with a 165Hz refresh rate, a dual-cell 8,200 mAh battery with a charging speed of 80W, and an IP54 clearance for dust and water resistance.

Priced starting at $499 for the variant with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of onboard storage, the Red Magic Astra offers better hardware-level goodness compared to the iPad Mini. It's a gaming-centric tablet with a unique design, featuring dual X-axis linear motors for haptics and a Game Space launcher that transforms into a desktop gaming center when connected to a larger screen.

However, it's worth noting that the Red Magic Nova tablet, while offering good performance, falls short in terms of top-tier performance and heat management compared to the Red Magic Astra. The battery life of the Red Magic Astra also varies dramatically depending on the game and performance preset, with non-gaming usage lasting around 8-10 hours and intense gaming sessions roughly 6-7 hours.

The Red Magic Astra supports emulated titles for legacy consoles, including Nintendo and PSP titles, and some emulated PC games. With its impressive performance, robust cooling system, and gaming-focused features, the Red Magic Astra is a strong contender in the tablet market.

Read also: