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The 5 Best Gaming Phones of 2025
Get your game on, but also, grab your wallet. The post The 5 Best Gaming Phones of 2025 appeared first on Phandroid.
While smartphones are great and handy tools for getting work done, checking emails and browsing the web and socials, one of their biggest appeals for a lot of consumers is their ability to serve as portable entertainment hubs, and this includes everything from music, movies, and of course, games. Newer smartphones can run pretty much anything from full-on console ports to more casual mobile titles, and if you’re looking for some recommendations, then you’ve come to the right place.
We’ve listed some of the best options for gaming on the go from some of the biggest brands in the industry—if you’re after a powerful phone that can handle your gaming needs, then be sure to check these out. Let’s get started!
The 5 Best Gaming Phones of 2025
Editor’s Choice: RedMagic 10 Pro
Display: 6.86-inch AMOLED, 2000 nits, 144Hz, 1080 x 2400 pixels | Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite | Memory and Storage: 12-24GB RAM + up to 1TB storage | Battery: 7,050 mAh + 100W wired charging | Special Features: ICE-X cooling system with built-in fan; capacitive button controls
While you could argue that it’s not the most “premium” brand in this lineup, the Nubia RedMagic 10 Pro excels where it needs to, as far as this list is concerned. Powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, the phone comes with up to 24GB of RAM (not even most laptops have that), a massive 7,050 mAh battery that rivals those found in small tablets, and a design that while not discreet, certainly helps it stand out from a see of phablet slabs.
More importantly, the RedMagic 10 Pro comes with gaming-centric features, such as a built-in cooling system that includes a fan—something that other dedicated gaming phones lack—and cleverly-placed capacitive button controls that add some much-needed versatility during gaming. It’s also a bit cheaper compared to rivals like the ASUS ROG Phone 9, which hovers around the thousand-dollar price point.
One downside however is that the phone will only receive one year of major Android upgrades, in addition to two years of software patches from Nubia. It’s a true gaming device as far as the term is concerned though, and comes with all the right essentials to give users the performance that they need.
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Best Runner-up: ASUS ROG Phone 9 Pro
Display: 6.78 inches, AMOLED, 2500 nits, 1080 x 2400 pixels | Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite | Memory and Storage: Up to 24GB RAM + 1TB storage | Battery: 5,800 mAh + 65W wired charging | Special Features: “GameCool 9” cooling system, support for external accessories, customizable LED lighting
The arrival of the first ROG-series phone certainly allowed ASUS to somewhat regain its standing within the smartphone market, after the lacklustre performance of its Zenfone line of phones. Several generations later, and the ROG Phone 9 Pro packs some big changes over its predecessors such as a full-screen panel, a more toned-down design, and more powerful internals such as Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite chip.
It’s not perfect of course, and factors such as its higher price, smaller battery capacity and slower charging, and the more modest cooling system (at least when compared to the RedMagic 10 Pro) do take a few points off its overall score. All in all though, its dedicated gaming software features, first-party accessories, powerful performance and unique design earn it a spot in our list.
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Best All-Around Device: Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra
Display: 6.9-inch AMOLED, 2000 nits, 120Hz, 1440 x 3120 pixels | Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite | Memory and Storage: Up to 16GB RAM + 1TB internal storage | Battery: 5000 mAh + 45W wired charging | Special Features: S Pen input, powerful camera system
It would be remiss of us not to include the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra in a list that includes some of the most powerful smartphones on the market right now. While it’s not a dedicated smartphone, the S25 Ultra still packs considerable power thanks to the Snapdragon 8 Elite, and also works as a great all-around device thanks to built-in productivity features, the S Pen, and a powerful camera setup. It also comes with up to seven years of software support, making it an ideal choice in the long run.
There are of course some considerations—the S25 Ultra comes with a rather small 5,000 mAh battery with slower 45W charging speeds, and lacks the more complex cooling solutions found on its contemporaries, meaning that while it will have no trouble with your games, you might be reaching for that charger a bit earlier than usual. As far as raw performance is concerned though, it’s undeniably solid.
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Best Affordable Option: POCO F7 Pro
Display: 6.67-inch AMOLED, 3000 nits, 120Hz, 3200 x 1440 pixels | Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 | Memory and Storage: 12GB RAM + up to 512GB internal storage | Battery: 6,000 mAh + 90W wired charging | Special Features: Improved cooling system
We know what you’re thinking—why opt for the POCO F7 Pro when the F7 Ultra comes with a much more capable Snapdragon 8 Elite chip and a more versatile camera setup? Well, the key differentiating factor between the F7 Pro and Ultra boils down to price. For less than 400 bucks, you still get top-notch performance with the Pro, as well as a larger battery with decent fast-charging speeds.
Sure, you’re also limited to 12GB of RAM and slower 90W charging, but at the end of the day the price to performance ratio that the POCO F7 Pro offers is hard to ignore, especially for people who are after a capable gaming device for not much cash.
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Best for Exclusive Titles: iPhone 16 Pro
Display: 6.9-inch AMOLED, 2000 nits, 120Hz, 1206 x 2622 pixels | Chipset: Apple A18 Pro | Memory and Storage: 8GB RAM + up to 1TB storage | Battery: 4685 mAh + 25W wired charging | Special Features: Camera control button, Action button
Yes, yes, we know—the iPhone 16 Pro Max is not an Android device, but as far as gaming goes it does have an ideal feature-set. You’re getting the impressive A18 Pro chipset inside, a vibrant display, and some pretty awesome exclusive console titles which Apple managed to secure, such as Death Stranding, Resident Evil Village (to name a couple), which aren’t available on Android, at least at the moment. If you really want to lean into a “console” experience on-the-go, the 16 Pro is one way to go about things.
It’s not perfect though, no matter how hard Apple might try to sell things, at least from a purely technical standpoint. You’re getting a battery that’s fairly small with extremely slow 25W charging speeds, and it’s a lot more expensive than the other options on this list. If you’re after exclusive titles on your phone however, then this is the one you’ll probably like the most.
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The post The 5 Best Gaming Phones of 2025 appeared first on Phandroid.
