RedMagic 12 aims for a cleaner gaming display with ninth-generation under-display camera technology
RedMagic is preparing to push gaming phone design forward again with the upcoming RedMagic 12, which is expected to introduce the company’s ninth-generation under-display camera technology. The focus is clear: deliver a full-screen mobile gaming experience without a notch, punch-hole, or visible camera cutout interrupting the display.
The timing is interesting, as Apple recently entered similar territory with the iPhone Duo, using a camera hidden beneath the inner foldable screen. That design removes the traditional cutout from the display area, although the hidden camera zone can still produce a visible screen-door effect during use. RedMagic is now presenting its next under-display camera system as a more refined solution for users who want a truly uninterrupted screen.
According to RedMagic executive Jiang Chao, the RedMagic 12 will be the world’s first smartphone equipped with ninth-generation under-display camera technology. The company has reportedly spent around five years developing and improving this feature across eight earlier generations, with each version aiming to better balance display clarity, camera performance, and camera concealment.
Under-display camera technology has become a key part of RedMagic’s gaming phone identity. The brand has been using hidden front cameras since the Red Magic 8 series, making it more than just a one-time design experiment. Instead, it has become a major feature of the company’s approach to immersive smartphone gaming.
That history continued with the RedMagic 11 Pro series, which launched in China in October 2025. The RedMagic 11 Pro and RedMagic 11 Pro+ featured a 16MP front camera hidden beneath the display, along with powerful hardware designed for serious mobile gaming. Both models came with a 6.85-inch 1.5K BOE X10 AMOLED display, a 144Hz refresh rate, and the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset. The Pro+ model also offered configurations with up to 24GB of RAM and 1TB of internal storage.
The previous generation also included large batteries, fast wired charging, Wi-Fi 7 support, and a 3.5mm headphone jack, making it one of the more feature-packed gaming phone lineups on the market. With the RedMagic 12, however, the biggest upgrade may once again be the display.
For gamers, an under-display camera can make a real difference. A punch-hole camera may seem small during everyday use, but it can become distracting during games, movies, or full-screen streaming. By moving the selfie camera beneath the OLED panel, RedMagic can offer a cleaner viewing area that feels more immersive, especially in fast-paced games where every part of the screen matters.
The challenge is that hiding a camera under an active display is technically difficult. The screen must allow enough light to reach the camera sensor while still looking uniform to the user. If the display area above the camera is too transparent, it may become noticeable. If it is too dense, image quality can suffer. RedMagic says its ongoing work on under-display camera technology is focused on improving this balance.
The RedMagic 12 is expected to continue the brand’s push toward a true full-screen gaming phone, but many important specifications remain unknown. RedMagic has not yet confirmed the phone’s display resolution, refresh rate, chipset, rear camera setup, battery size, charging speed, or global availability.
An official launch date for the RedMagic 12 series has also not been announced. Still, based on the company’s claims, the device could become one of the most important gaming smartphones to watch, especially for users who want flagship performance paired with a display free from notches and camera cutouts.
