The first quarter of any business year is the perfect time for any OEM serious with getting more customers, increasing sales and impact to reveal it’s first device/product. Xiaomi recently unveiled the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 and Redmi Note 5 Pro as its first smartphone duo for the year 2018 and the latest addition to its Redmi series.
Both devices are mid-range phones, with the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 being the lesser of the pair – as regards specs, features, and price. The Redmi Note 5 and the caliber of features it comes with goes a long way to show that Xiaomi is really upping the mid-range smartphone game. Below are some of the major specifications of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5:
Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Specs
Here is a summary of what the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 brings to the table:
- 5.99-inch LCD display.
- FHD+ (1080 x 2160) pixel resolution.
- ∼402ppi pixel density.
- Weight – 180g.
- Dimensions – 75.5 mm x 158.5 mm x 8.0 mm.
- Octa-core 2.0GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 CPU.
- Mali-T720 GPU.
- 4GB RAM.
- 32GB internal storage, expandable up to 128GB (dedicated).
- 13-megapixels rear camera with dual LED flash.
- 5-megapixels front camera with LED flash.
- Non-removable 4,000mAh battery.
- Android 7.0 Nougat OS.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 In-depth Specifications
Display & Design
The Redmi Note 5 will be the first device in the Redmi Note series to come with the bezel-less 18:9 aspect ratio body form and structure. The extended length and narrow width of the device easily separate the Note 5 from other members of this series as it features identical design and placement of components (like camera, fingerprint sensor, LED light etc) as its predecessor, the Redmi Note 5.
Due to her introduction of the 18:9 ratio design, the soft navigation keys usual embedded below the display of Redmi Note phones have been modified as on-screen keys on the Redmi Note 5. This move aims to make more space available for the screen while cutting down on bezel size.
The volume adjustment keys and power/lock button are on the device’s right-hand side, micro USB port and speaker grill at the bottom, IR blaster & 3.5mm headphone jack at the top, and hybrid SIM & micro SD card slot on the left-hand side. At 8.0mm, the Redmi Note 5 is admirably slim and sleek, but the choice of USB port is sickening. A USB Type-C port would have done more tricks to the appearance and worth of this device.
The Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 is available in Gray, Gold, Black, Blue, Rose-Gold colour options, with all variants having full aluminum alloy metal body.
Unlike past Redmi Note models, the display of the Redmi Note 5 has been refined to feature rounded edges. Still, on the screen, the size and quality have, likewise, been beefed up. The Redmi Note 5 has a 5.99-inch screen size and a Full HD+ (1080 x 2160 pixels) resolution.
Performance, Storage & Memory
The Redmi Note 4 had a MediaTek-powered Helio processor. This device, the Redmi Note 5 comes with a Snapdragon 625 SoC – a mid-range processor with 8 ARM Cortex-A53 cores running at a max frequency of 2.0GHz. Though an old chip, the Snapdragon 625 SoC has been proven to handle average and heavy smartphone usage fluently without lag, while simultaneously possessing a strong knack for battery conservation.
Multitasking needs on this device are catered for by the 3GB RAM while the 32GB of built-in memory can be expanded up to 128GB by substituting the SIM 2 card slot as the micro SD slot. There is a costlier variant of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 with a 4GB RAM and 64GB storage combination.
Camera
A large 12-megapixels lens —which is about the same size as the fingerprint scanner below it— is the primary shooter and comes with a small f/2.2 aperture which would perform poorly in conditions of low lights.
On the front, there is a single 5-megapixel lens with a much wider f/2.0 aperture and 1.25μm lens size. The wide lens size and aperture of the selfie camera will enable it give the best image quality under any light conditions.
Battery, Connectivity & Software
The Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 comes out of the box running the Android v7.0 Nougat operating system – an OS that’s becoming obsolete given the number of mid-range device launching with the Oreo OS and the Android P OS in preview. One of the major reasons why I lauded the recently launched Infinix Hot S3 was because it featured the Android 8 out of the factory.
It’s really demeaning seeing a device from a giant like Xiaomi sporting the Nougat OS in 2018.
As a compensation —maybe— the Redmi Note 5 has a colossal battery backup. The Redmi Note 4’s battery received quite a number of positive reviews. The Redmi Note 5 has a 4,000mAh Lithium-Ion battery, 100mAh lesser than its predecessor, but should do well enough to equal its battery landmark, or better yet, surpass it.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Price and Availability
The 3GB/32GB variant of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 has a $150 – $199 price range while the 4GB/64GB variant of the device is costlier and can be purchased for $229.
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