Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 is a beautiful upgrade over previous Redmi Note 4 which was the best selling Xiaomi smartphone of 2017. The Redmi Note 5 has not much difference. In fact, it is a successful upgrade but with average specs. The highlight of device is 18:9 aspect ratio screen and Redmi Note 5 is the first budget phone of its kind to get new design with trendy thin bezels. Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 is also known as Redmi 5 Plus. The handset has a bigger 5.99-inch display and slightly upgraded Android OS v7.1.2 (Nougat). Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 comes with Snapdragon 625 chipset, 3GB RAM, 32GB Memory, 12MP rear camera, 5MP selfie shooter and a 4000mAh battery with Fast Charging support.
Pros:
1 – Beautiful look and 18:9 Display
2 – Bigger 6 inch screen
3 – Improved Photography
4 – Fast Charging Support
Cons:
1 – Android 7.1.2 instead 8.0
2 – Still MIUI 9 interface
3 – 4000mAh battery (downgraded)
Design and Display
Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 is a perfect match for your hand. It has a trendy new design. Its body is fabricated with aluminium and plastic. The textured edges help you to keep strong your grip on smartphone whenever you hold device. It is 158.5 mm tall, 75.5 wide and 8.1 mm thick. The device weighs in at 180 grams which shows that Note 5 is heavier than predecessor. Look wise, it is similar to Note 4. The major enhancement over Redmi Note 4 is 18:9 aspect ratio touchscreen of Redmi Note 5. The minimal bezels feel good. This time, Selfie camera is equipped with dedicated LED flash. MicroUSB port and audio jack are available on bottom. Power Key and Volume rockers are embedded on right side. On the back, a camera lens is set with LED flash at the top-center of device. Fingerprint Sensor is present on rear so it is easier to access.
The Display of Redmi Note 5 performs good job. The 5.99-inch bezel less screen offers you a better watching experience. You can play games and surf browsing easily on big size display. Its 1080 x 2160 pixels resolution provides accurate colors and brightness. It provides sharper and vivid images. There is a trivial issue with display that it reflects rays under the direct sunlight which makes it slight difficult to see pictures and details. Color saturation and Contrast are also fine. The 2.5D curved glass is coated with Gorilla Glass3 which protects your mobile display.
Performance and Camera
When we come to performance, we feel we are getting the same previous one. Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 chipset, 2.0GHz Octa core processor and even Adreno 506 GPU is also same. Like its sibling, the Note 5 offers in two variants, 3GB RAM + 32GB Storage and 4GB RAM + 64GB Storage. In our whole experience with Redmi Note 5, we have found no issue in performance. The device runs steadily even during multi-tasking. Graphics are also fair. With the 4GB RAM variant, you can enjoy better and faster gaming experience.
Coming toward optics, The Redmi Note 4 had 13MP primary Camera Shooter while the Redmi Note 5 has 12MP Optics lens of f/2.2 aperture. Interesting fact is Xiaomi reduced camera pixels but boosts shooting capability of 12MP lens. The previous 13MP can record only FHD videos while latest 12MP of Note 5 can shoot QHD movies as well as FHD. Photography performance of Note 5 is superb in this budget. Images are crisp and clear, and you can enjoy HDR and Panorama as well.
There is a 5MP Selfie Camera with its own employed LED flash. Though it is only 5 mega pixels but it captures sharp and bright selfies in presence of 1080 pixels resolution. You can take good-looking images at night as well as in daylight. Video Calling quality is also fine.
OS and Battery
So far as software is concerned, Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 is upgraded to Android 7.1.2 while the Redmi Note 4 was running on Android 7.0 (Nougat). Though Android Nougat performs very well but you will be lost new features of latest Android 8.0 (Oreo). In this innovative time, Xiaomi is still trying to win its consumers with previous launched OS technology. If we talk about performance, Android 7.1.2 runs smoothly and ensures that you won’t be let down.
One thing which annoys us that Xiaomi has downgraded the battery of Redmi Note 5. The Note 4 endowed with 4100mAh battery whereas the Note 5 packs in 4000mAh battery which means your handset will be shut down a bit sooner as compared to previous. A good improvement is Fast Charging Option which was not available in previous handset. Lets you refill battery power immediately. The Redmi Note 5 Price is $160.
Conclusion
Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 is a nice budget smartphone for bezel less screen lovers but it is not a big upgrade for those who already owned Redmi Note 4. If you really want to boost your experience then you should go for Redmi Note 5 Pro which comes with Dual Rear Cameras but for this device you also need to pay some more.