Redmi Note 9 Review: Hotshot Performance for Hotshot Price?
Redmi has always been a very successful sub brand for Xiaomi. Now Redmi phones have become so good and popular that it has a separate identity for it. Xiaomi have always been known to produce great smartphones at lower price range compared to other popular brands but Redmi has been positioned as a mid-range brand that offers good value for money devices.
The Note series to be particular is Redmi’s most popular. It focusses on delivering good performance at affordable rates. Today we will be looking at their latest Redmi Note 9 and what makes it unique from other entry level mid-range phones.
Key Highlights
Available in 2 variants — 3GB RAM / 64GB for AED 749 and the 4GB RAM / 128GB for AED 799.
3 Color Options — Forest Green, Midnight Grey, and Polar White
Its dimensions are 162.3 x 77.2 x 8.9mm and weighs at 199g
6.53-inch LCD panel with Corning Gorilla Glass 5
48MP AI Quad Camera setup with 13MP Selfie camera
Powered by the MediaTek Helio G85 and runs on MIUI based Android 10
5,020 mAh battery with 18W fast charge support
Release Date, Price and Color Options
The Redmi Note 9 series was launched on Monday 1st June at 4PM in UAE. The Redmi Note 9 is available in 2 variants — The 3GB RAM / 64GB storage option for AED 749 and the 4GB RAM / 128GB storage option for AED 799.
The box comes with the charger, cable, a silicone case and the reader manuals. The Xiaomi Redmi Note 9 is available in different colors like Forest Green, Midnight Grey, and Polar White.
Design and Display
The Redmi Note 9 has a very premium design. It has the same design approach as to the Redmi Note 9S and the 9 Pro. The colorful and glossy design at the back gives a styling look. The glossy back is however prone to fingerprints.
Its dimensions are 162.3 x 77.2 x 8.9mm and weighs at 199g. It is a large device. The front has a punch-hole cutout for the selfie camera with very less bezels to the side.
The main attracting design is towards its rear. It comes with a glossy finish and quad camera setup. Below the camera setup is the fingerprint scanner. The left side contains the dual sim tray and the right side has the power and volume control buttons. The down part has the Type-C port, headphone jack and the speakers.
As mentioned earlier, the Redmi Note 9 is a big device and has a large display. It comes with a 6.53-inch LCD panel with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 and with 450nits of peak brightness. It has Full HD+ detail which makes the display much sharper.
Camera Setup
This has to be the highlight feature for the phone at this price segment. The Redmi Note 9 comes with a quad camera setup.
The Primary camera has a 48MP (f/1.79) lens which takes some decent shots in good lighting. There is a separate 48MP mode to take high quality shots whereas by default the camera takes 12MP shots. It does not have optical zoom feature.
The other cameras are the 8MP (f/2.2) Ultra-wide lens, 2MP Macro lens and the 2MP Depth sensor. Its good to have these options for an entry level device.
The front has a left cut out for the selfie camera. It has a 13MP (f/2.25) front facing camera. Regarding other camera features and modes, it has all the features found in the Redmi Note 9S / 9 Pro. It offers video playback to upto 1080p only.
The amazing quad camera setup at this price range is always an added advantage and it takes some decent shots but it is not close to other higher end mid-range devices.
Performance and Software
Regarding performance, all flagship devices mostly have similar specs but for mid-range segment, there are many variants available which offers competitive pricing. As we know that Xiaomi has used Qualcomm’s chipset for both the Redmi Note 9S and the 9 Pro but for the Redmi Note 9, it moves over to MediaTek for its hardware.
The Redmi Note 9 is powered by the MediaTek Helio G85 (Which in comparision is better than Helio P22 or Snapdragon 600 series). Gaming performance is also very nice with all the heavy games like PUBG and Call Of Duty running smoothly. It comes in 3 and 4 GB RAM options.
Regarding the software, it runs on MIUI 11 based on Android 10 and comes with a lot of custom features and has an interesting UI design. Unwanted ads and apps is a issue though but there are some interesting features such as Quickball and Mi Share which can come handy.
Battery Life and Other Features
The battery life of the Redmi Note 9 is another stand out feature. It has a 5,020 mAh battery that chargers over USB-C at up to 18W and also reverse 9W charging through a cable. There is also a 22 .5W charger in the box for fast charging. It can easily last throughout the day.
As its an entry level phone, it does not have IP certification or 5G connectivity. But some of its interesting features is NFC support, Fingerprint scanner and the headphone jack.
My Verdict
Overall, the Redmi Note 9 is a great device with a premium design, quad camera and a long lasting battery. These all features are a tick off for a great buy at this price segment. Yes the Mediatek chipset could have been better but it offers decent performance and it cannot be argued more as it’s an entry level device.
It faces competition from Motorola and Realme for this price segment, but the Redmi Note 9 is well equipped with a good hardware and features and is certainly a contender for this hotshot price.
