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Modular music player concept uses RFID chips for a tactile listening experience

If you lived before the advent of music streaming, you’re probably still amazed at how easily accessible music is now. Back in “those days”, you had to either buy the cassette tape/CD/album, wait for the song to play on the radio and record it, or make a “mixed tape” if you wanted to own a piece of music and play it whenever you wanted. Now you just have to open your phone or connect it to your bluteooth speaker and play any music you want from your streaming service of choice. However, there are some things like the tactile joy of listening to music that has been lost somehow. Some product designers are actually trying to come up with concepts to bring back a different music listening experience.

Spotify Aurora (I don’t know if that name would pass though if it becomes an actual product) is one such example of a concept that wants to blend the nostalgic charm of having a physical representation of music with the more modern technology that we have now. It wants to give life to this idea: what if listening to music felt like a ritual again? Drawing inspiration from the tangible pleasure of vinyl records and cassette tapes, Aurora uses RFID-enabled album chips—small, collectible tokens that hold specific albums or playlists. Instead of searching through endless menus, users simply tap an album chip onto the device, instantly queuing up music in a way that feels almost magical.

Designer: Vedant Gugale

Think of the RFID chips as like the cassette/CD/vinyl albums that we used to buy, use, and share around. They are more than just a functional component where you store the music. It can be shared with other music lovers, sent as gifts, and become collectible items for those that still love to collect albums. Like modern mixtapes, they turn digital content into physical mementos. It’s music you can touch, trade, and treasure. Spotify Aurora isn’t just about sound. It’s about experience. The way the components snap together with a satisfying click, the glow of lights that pulse with the beat, the social thrill of handing a friend an album chip—it all transforms listening into a physical, social, and emotional event.

Its modular system also makes it a bit more personal. If you want to add some lighting to enhance your music listening mood, you can slide in a lighting module. You can also add extra speakers if the built-in one is not enough for your listening party. And if you just prefer the stripped down version for your solo listening pleasure, then you can just use the device itself. This flexibility empowers users to build their own unique listening station. Whether you’re curating a cozy solo vibe or turning your living room into a communal soundscape, Aurora adapts to you. Its clean, approachable design encourages experimentation, making music playback feel more like assembling art than operating a gadget.

While still a concept, Spotify Aurora captures a powerful vision: a future where music technology doesn’t isolate us behind screens, but brings us together in moments of shared wonder. It’s a reminder that the magic of music lies not just in what we hear—but in how we feel, share, and engage with it.

The post Modular music player concept uses RFID chips for a tactile listening experience first appeared on Yanko Design.

REDMAGIC 10S Pro Smartphone Review: When Powerful Gaming Meets Sophisticated Design

Gaming smartphones have long carried the burden of looking like alien artifacts from some distant cyberpunk future. Bold angles, aggressive lighting, and garish aesthetics dominated this niche, creating devices that screamed their purpose from across any room. Yet something curious has been happening recently, a quiet revolution where raw performance begins meeting sophisticated design sensibilities in ways nobody quite expected.

The REDMAGIC 10S Pro represents this fascinating evolution, challenging preconceived notions about what gaming-focused hardware should actually look like. Gone are the days when choosing superior mobile gaming performance meant sacrificing elegance or accepting awkward compromises. But has this device truly cracked the code of balancing technical prowess with mainstream appeal? Let’s dive deeper to discover whether the REDMAGIC 10S Pro delivers on its ambitious promises.

Designer: REDMAGIC

Aesthetics

You can immediately tell at first glance that the REDMAGIC 10S Pro is not like any other smartphone, be it the “regular” premium kind or gaming-focused models. At the same time, it draws from elements that are often found in both. It manages to strike a beautiful balance between these two extremes, delivering a design that can, to some extent, satisfy even non-gamers who are looking for unparalleled power that only this type of device can bring.

You still have telltale signs of gaming culture, with RGB lights that you can enable or disable at your discretion. Depending on the variant in your hand, you still have geometric patterns often attributed to gamer aesthetics, which is the case for our white Moonlight review unit. On the other hand, the REDMAGIC 10S Pro has one thing that very few if not no other smartphone has: a completely flat back.

With smartphone cameras getting more powerful and, consequently, larger, there has been a trend of slapping large structures that extrude from the back of the phone, sometimes like a large wart on an otherwise slim frame. None of that here on the REDMAGIC 10S Pro, where not even the lenses themselves jut out of their protective glass. What’s even more impressive is how the phone remains relatively thin at 8.9mm.

Complemented by an equally all-flat display and modern flat edges, the REDMAGIC 10S Pro cuts a striking figure reminiscent of the sharp-looking Sony Xperias of old. With the all-black Nightfall colorway, you wouldn’t even recognize that it’s a gaming smartphone unless you turn the RGB lights on. Who’d have thought that one of the sleekest and most handsome smartphones this year would come from a market that’s stereotyped for frivolity and playfulness?

Ergonomics

Despite its slightly thicker frame and the extra-large battery it packs inside, the REDMAGIC 10S Pro manages to weigh in at only 229g (0.5 lbs). It’s not heavy enough to cause fatigue while using it for long periods of time, though it’s still a good idea to give your hands (and your eyes) some rest after hours of game time. The flat edges, a design trend among contemporary smartphones, add a bit of grip by nestling safely in your hand while in use.

The lack of a camera bump can be both a blessing and a curse. It makes holding the smartphone sideways more comfortable, with no structure to get in the way of your fingers. Holding it upright normally, however, might feel a bit weird if you’re used to resting your index finger under a raised edge for support. Regardless of how you hold it, the phone will lie completely flat on tables, removing that awkward wobble when you tap on it while it’s lying down.

The REDMAGIC 10S Pro has a rather minimalist streak, devoid of extraneous details and parts that stick out from any side. The customizable Shoulder Triggers lie flushed against the flat edge of the phone and positioned where gamers would naturally expect controller shoulder buttons to be, removing the need to retrain muscle memory. The Magic Key slide switch is also positioned at a perfect height to give you quick access to REDMAGIC’s GameSpace experience or any other function you assign to it.

Performance

One of the key upgrades that the REDMAGIC 10S Pro brings is the Snapdragon 8 Elite Leading Version processor, delivering exceptional raw power with a slightly over-clocked 4.47GHz throughput compared to the standard version’s 4.32GHz. Paired with LPDDR5T memory and UFS 4.1 Pro storage, multitasking feels effortless whether you’re running demanding games or switching between intensive applications. The custom RedCore R3 Pro AI gaming chip works alongside the main processor, optimizing performance specifically for mobile gaming scenarios that would otherwise strain conventional smartphones.

What truly sets this device apart is the enhanced ICE-X cooling system featuring repositioned Liquid Metal 2.0 technology. Unlike the previous model where liquid metal was applied to the vent pipe, it now sits directly on the CPU, reducing temperatures by up to 5°C. The 23,000 RPM internal fan operates surprisingly quietly at just 4dB, while the 12,000mm² vapor chamber ensures sustained performance during extended gaming sessions without thermal throttling.

The 6.85-inch AMOLED display showcases vibrant colors and razor-sharp detail at 1.5K resolution. Gaming feels incredibly responsive thanks to the 144Hz refresh rate and 2,500Hz instant touch sampling, virtually eliminating input lag. Peak brightness reaches 2,000 nits, making outdoor visibility excellent even in direct sunlight. The 95.3% screen-to-body ratio creates an immersive experience that makes other phones feel cramped by comparison, especially since you won’t even be able to see the 16MP Under-Display Camera unless it’s in use.

Audio quality impresses with dual 1115K speakers that deliver surprisingly rich, three-dimensional sound. DTS:X Ultra processing creates genuine spatial audio that helps locate enemies in competitive games. The inclusion of a 3.5mm headphone jack feels refreshing when most manufacturers have abandoned this feature. You get to enjoy using your favorite wired gaming headphones or hook the phone up to loud speakers at a party without having to worry about Bluetooth connections dropping off.

Photography capabilities center around dual 50MP cameras, with the main sensor featuring optical image stabilization and the ultra-wide offering impressive distortion correction. The 2MP depth sensor assists with portrait effects, though results can feel inconsistent. However, the absence of a dedicated telephoto lens means distant subjects require digital zoom, which quickly degrades image quality.

Still, the output is quite decent for most shots and you won’t be embarrassed by the photos you take, regardless of the weather or time of day. Just don’t go zooming in too far, because you’ll start to see a sharp drop in quality after 3x magnification. For a gaming-focused phone, the camera system performs adequately but won’t satisfy photography enthusiasts.

Battery endurance stands out as exceptional, with the massive 7,050mAh capacity easily lasting two full days of regular use. The included 80W charger refills the battery remarkably quickly, reaching 50% in just 15 minutes. The charge separation technology is a nice safety measure that allows gaming while plugged in without heating the battery, extending its lifespan considerably. Unfortunately, wireless charging isn’t supported, which feels like an oversight in this day and age, especially considering this is no cheap mid-range phone.

RGB lighting customization reaches almost ridiculous levels, letting you personalize the REDMAGIC logo, internal fan, and shoulder trigger illumination. Seven colors and multiple patterns sync with notifications, charging status, and game events. While some might consider this excessive, the lighting effects genuinely enhance the gaming atmosphere. You can easily disable everything for professional settings, but the visual flair adds personality that generic smartphones simply can’t match.

Sustainability

Gaming smartphones are known for their performance prowess, not so much for the benefits they bring to the environment, especially when it comes to the materials they use. Sustainability is not a top priority for this niche market segment, and the REDMAGIC 10S Pro is no different. If gaming smartphones continue to thrive in the next few years, hopefully, that scenario will also change for the better.

The phone might not be known for its durability either. With only an IP54 certification, it barely meets the minimum expectations for dust and water resistance. Perhaps the tiny active cooling fan, which remains a completely unique feature of this phone series, is still to blame for this rather disappointing figure. It might be a trade-off mobile gamers are willing to make in exchange for keeping their hands from feeling the burn during an intense gaming session.

Value

Gaming smartphones take the already high-end hardware of premium flagships and kick it up a notch to deliver the raw power that gamers crave. They also throw in more elaborate cooling systems, larger batteries, and fancy lighting to complete the gaming experience on a small form factor. Given those features, you might think that such smartphones would cost an arm and a leg, and that’s often the case.

Not so for the REDMAGIC 10S Pro, which always manages to ask less for more. Costing roughly around $700 for the most basic configuration, depending on your market, the powerful piece of pocketable technology easily outplays not only its competition but also other top players in the wider smartphone market. Sure, it’s missing a few check marks on its boxes, but if your main use case for a smartphone is gaming, you can hardly go wrong with this 2025 iteration of a well-known mobile gaming brand.

Verdict

The gaming smartphone landscape has clearly matured beyond its early experimental phase, and the REDMAGIC 10S Pro stands as compelling evidence of this transformation. Rather than forcing users to choose between serious performance and sophisticated aesthetics, it demonstrates how thoughtful engineering can deliver both without compromise. The flat-back design, refined cooling solutions, and customizable lighting show that gaming phones can finally appeal to broader audiences.

What makes this device particularly noteworthy lies not just in its impressive specifications or competitive pricing, but in how it represents a new chapter for mobile gaming hardware. The REDMAGIC 10S Pro proves that gaming smartphones can shed their niche stereotypes while retaining everything that makes them special. This evolution benefits everyone, whether you’re a dedicated mobile gamer or simply someone who appreciates exceptional engineering wrapped in a surprisingly elegant design.

The post REDMAGIC 10S Pro Smartphone Review: When Powerful Gaming Meets Sophisticated Design first appeared on Yanko Design.

Anker Soundcore Boom 3i Floats on Water and Shakes Off Sand To Survive Accidents

Wireless speakers have quickly become must-have devices for anyone who loves music, podcasts, or even radio on the go. People are no longer tied to bulky stereo systems or the limited reach of wired speakers. With the rise of Bluetooth technology, it’s now possible to bring your favorite audio with you almost anywhere, whether you’re moving around the house or heading out for a special occasion with friends.

Outdoor gatherings and parties often demand more from a speaker than just good sound quality. Many wireless models are now built to survive drops, bumps, and messy environments, but their rugged looks often make them resemble small tanks. Anker’s Soundcore Boom 3i takes this trend to new heights by creating a portable Bluetooth speaker that doesn’t just handle accidents but seems almost ready to play right alongside whatever chaos is happening.

Designer: Anker

Anyone who’s ever had a waterproof device knows that most are still best kept away from water, as they usually only buy you a few seconds before disaster strikes. The Soundcore Boom 3i flips the script by letting you use it while it’s floating. Its clever design ensures that, even if tossed in the middle of a pool, the speaker will always keep the audio facing upward, making it perfect for pool parties or lake trips where the music never has to stop.

Saltwater is known to destroy electronics in a matter of minutes, making beach outings risky for most gadgets. Anker adds a protective layer to the Boom 3i that promises to keep saltwater at bay for up to two years. This gives you more freedom to enjoy your music by the ocean, though you’ll still want to keep an eye on that time limit once you get close to the two-year mark.

Bringing a speaker to the beach or the outdoors almost always means dealing with sand and dust that can settle into the speaker grille and muffle the sound. The Boom 3i offers an ingenious solution inspired by the Apple Watch: Buzz Clean. With the press of a button, the speaker vibrates powerfully, shaking out dirt and sand so your sound stays crisp without any tedious cleaning.

Aside from its impressive durability and cleaning tricks, the Soundcore Boom 3i has plenty of features to keep the party going. Its built-in LED lights pulse in sync with your music, adding a bit of flair to nighttime gatherings. For those who value safety, a loud emergency alarm can quickly grab attention if needed. With a battery life of up to sixteen hours, you can trust it to last through long afternoons and late-night fun without needing a recharge.

The Soundcore Boom 3i captures what it means to be a truly outdoor-ready wireless speaker. It doesn’t just survive the elements but adapts to them, offering practical features that keep your audio clear and your gatherings lively, whether you are by the pool, on the beach, or in your own backyard.

The post Anker Soundcore Boom 3i Floats on Water and Shakes Off Sand To Survive Accidents first appeared on Yanko Design.