CSI: Xiaomi. Snappy Redmi Note 9 Pro shows every fingerprint, but at least you get bang for your buck
- Reference: 1592990107
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2020/06/24/xiaomi_redmi_note/
- Source link:
First, there's the price: at £249, it sits in that competitive sweet spot between the bottom and middle tiers of the smartphone market. And yet, it manages to deliver pretty much everything you'd want from a phone in 2020: including a quad-camera setup, long-lasting battery life, fast charging, and a contemporary design.
The phone packs a 6.7-inch borderless display, with the front-facing 16MP selfie camera nestled within a discrete hole at the top of the screen. It's decently bright, with good readability in bright outside conditions. As you'd expect given the price, the refresh rate is 60Hz.
As the name implies, the Redmi Note 9 Pro is big, with that extra screen real estate lending itself favourably to consuming emails and watching the odd bit of Netflix. It ever so slightly pips the Huawei P40 Pro in terms of width and height. Despite that, it doesn't feel oppressively huge, and that extra size doesn't come at the expense of ergonomics.
It is slightly thicker than you'd perhaps expect. Few, I doubt, will mind that, as the Redmi Note 9 Pro packs extras seldom seen in 2020, including an IR blaster (allowing you to use your phone as a remote control) and a 3.5mm headphone jack.
And, [1]like the Huawei P40 Pro , the Redmi Note 9 Pro houses its four-camera array in a bulbous little box that protrudes awkwardly from the device. Again, this is forgivable, considering the shots produced, which easily surpass anything you'd expect from a device within the same price point. Detail abounds during daylight shots, while colour fidelity is strong, producing images that look rich without the excessive saturation found on cheaper phones.
On the software front, the Redmi Note 9 Pro uses the latest-and-greatest Android 10, although this is heavily skinned with Xiaomi's divisive MIUI 11 environment. To give credit where it's due, MIUI has evolved since its awkward early days, and while some may prefer a cleaner "stock" environment, this hack is a big fan of the advanced battery conservation settings and more granular system controls on offer. And it doesn't feel nearly as intrusive as the [2]environment used on TCL's inaugural crop of phones .
The Redmi Note 9 Pro comes with Google Mobile Services (GMS), and thus, the Google Play Store. In what's obviously a dig to Huawei, its troubled rival, Xiaomi points this out on the box. Twice.
Subtle? Never been there.
Still, it manages to cope sterlingly with whatever you'll throw at it, thanks to its Snapdragon 720G platform, paired with an acceptable helping of RAM (6GB or 8GB, depending on the model bought).
While I know most Reg readers are serious IT pros with scant time for games, we still "tested" the device with Call of Duty: Mobile, where it proved capable of keeping up with the frags. Elsewhere, it handled multitasking and media-rich websites without much perceptible lag.
On the storage front, punters get a choice between 64GB and 128GB of UFS 2.1 flash. We regard 128GB as the absolute minimum, particularly for those accustomed to accumulating pictures and apps. With 64GB, it's likely you'll end up coming face-to-face with your phone's limits in short order. Fortunately, there's room for a MicroSD card.
Xiaomi wins serious points for its generous 5,020mAh battery, which supports 30W fast charging, and comfortably lasts 36 hours between charges (and potentially much longer, if you're conservative with your usage and avail yourself of MIUI's battery settings). The full specs are [3]here .
On the colour front, punters get a choice between "Tropical Green," "Glacier White," and "Interstellar Grey." Regardless of what hue you opt for, the phone's reflective rear manages to collect fingerprints like an extra in CSI: Miami.
The Redmi Note 9 Pro arrives at an awkward moment in the phone sector. On one hand, competition has never been tighter, with Realme and TCL both entering the UK market within the past year. Compounding that, there's also a southward push from Apple. For just £150 more than the Redmi Note 9 Pro, you can get the iPhone SE 2020, which includes the same processor as the latest iPhone 11.
That notwithstanding, your Reg mobile correspondent wouldn't hesitate to recommend this device, which offers incredible value for money. The Redmi Note 9 Pro delivers strong performance, exceptional battery life, and a camera that easily surpasses its rivals in the same category. ®
Sponsored: [4]Google Security Whitepaper
[1] https://www.theregister.com/2020/05/18/review_huawei_p40_pro/
[2] https://www.theregister.com/2020/05/26/tcl_10l_review_tcls_debut/
[3] https://www.mi.com/in/redmi-note-9-pro/
[4] https://go.theregister.com/tl/1956/-8471/google-security-whitepaper?td=wptl1956
Re: Apple?
It's the cheap iPhone. Lots of people like iPhone. Although "only £150 more" on a £250 device is quite a large "only" propertionally
"can it play Call of Duty"
I fear not. CoD takes up around 200GB of disc. Unless that mobe has a 512GB sim card, it won't have the space for it.
"With 64GB, it’s likely you’ll end up coming face-to-face with your phone’s limits in short order"
Only if you use it to store media I would say, or take a lot of videos. 64Gb will hold a LOT of photos. I might be tempted to spend the extra cash on an SD card rather than the 64GB if budget were that tight?
Anyway this sounds like a seriously good bang for your buck. And an IR blaster... why is this not more common?! My TVs all claim to support mobile-link via WiFi but it is a waste of time whenever I tried.
NFC
The article doesn't mention it but according to GSMArena it has NFC, which is on my (at least) essential list. But no water resistance.
The economics are interesting. An important point re. Apple is that their products work well (battery replacement excepted) for about 4-5 years, which means a £1000 phone costs around £200-250 a year, in simplistic terms. The Xiaomi probably stays up to date for 2 years, or £125 a year. The SE2020 is in no way a competitor, any more than a Mazda MX5 is a competitor for a Dacia Duster. Different market sector.
Now consider that neither the iPhone 11 pro nor the Xiaomi have 5G, which means that in reality the iPhone may be a paperweight in 2-3 years, but with the Xiaomi you don't care.
So unless you really need or want certain performance aspects which the average buyer won't notice, even on a 2 year replacement cycle the Xiaomi is under half the real cost of the Apple (or Samsung) competition. It's quite a high price to pay for helping keep the US economy afloat.
Re: NFC - at least get the figures right
"The economics are interesting. An important point re. Apple is that their products work well (battery replacement excepted) for about 4-5 years, which means a £1000 phone costs around £200-250 a year, in simplistic terms. The Xiaomi probably stays up to date for 2 years, or £125 a year. The SE2020 is in no way a competitor, any more than a Mazda MX5 is a competitor for a Dacia Duster. Different market sector."
But the SE2020 costs £419 which, over 4 years, is £105 pa - beating the Xiaomi. And I have iPhones going back up to 7 years that are still in regular use by members of the family (even a 4S that I use as my backup). [And I've found that 64GB on an iPhone is plenty if you add 79p pcm for iCloud storage. Of course, I don't play a lot of games and photos, video, etc. I need to keep gets moved to desktop storage and backup.]
The Xiaomi looks good as a mid-range phone but it shouldn't be decided on initial purchase cost - it's only best if teh full package best suits your needs. I've recently bought £20 handsets for a befriending service during lockdown - they only need to make voice calls and are handed out to volunteers - when the service is no longer needed, they're disposable as far as I'm concerned. If one breaks, it's quick and cheap to replace. Anything more expensive would be overkill (and not be the best use of resources - especially as the service will be much reduced once lockdown eases).
Re: NFC - at least get the figures right
And a Fairphone costs £400,- which over 6 years is £67,- per year. And you can actually replace the battery on that one as well as use a Micro-SD. So That beats both by quite a big margin...
!!Stupid Question Alert!!
As both Xiaomi and Huawei are both Chinese how come the Xiaomi has Google Play services?
Apple?
I don't get the mention of the SE 2020?
https://www.gadgetsnow.com/compare-mobile-phones/Apple-iPhone-SE-2020-iPhone-SE-2-vs-Xiaomi-Redmi-Note-9-Pro