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Xiaomi releases the Redmi Note 7: a budget smartphone with few compromises
These days you often hear how budget smartphones are becoming better and better, making it even harder to justify paying the high prices of flagship phones. But how good can a budget phone be? Well, as it turns out, quite good.
Few companies make cheap phones as well as Xiaomi and their latest release is no exception. Coming in as the first model since Redmi’s official separation as a standalone brand is the Redmi Note 7.
Probably the most exciting feature of the Redmi Note 7 is its dual-camera setup. It consists of an impressive 48MP sensor from Samsung coupled with a 5MP secondary camera. The resolution of the main sensor allows for the phone to make use of pixel-binding, a feature that combines four pixels into one for high-quality night shots.
The front camera is not too shabby either, with its 13MP sensor and AI capabilities it has all the bells and whistles, including bokeh and face unlock. The selfie camera is tucked in the small waterdrop notch at the top of the 6.3-inch display that has a 2340x1080 resolution.
Under the hood of the Redmi Note 7, you’ll find Qualcomm’s midrange system-on-a-chip, the Snapdragon 660. The base version comes with a 3GB/32GB RAM/Storage combo, but there are two other options if you want more of both. The battery of this device is a generous 4000mAh and it supports Quick Charge 4 thanks to the USB Type-C port that’s finally making an appearance on a Redmi phone. This puts another check on the list of things people wanted on cheaper devices.
We keep mentioning the affordability of this device, but exactly how cheap is it? Well, the base version will sell in China for the equivalent of $147, with a 4GB/64GB version priced at around $177 and the top specced 6GB/64GB Redmi Note 7 close to $206. The trio will hit the Chinese market on January 15.
Whenever international versions of the Redmi Note 7 reach retailers in the States, we can expect the prices to be a bit higher, but still plenty cheap for what you get.
Oh, we almost forgot. The Redmi Note 7 also keeps its headphone jack and it even has an infrared blaster for some remote-control shenanigans (or just plain practicality). Meanwhile, the fingerprint sensor on the back is now a given.
If that still doesn’t satisfy you, Xiaomi announced that there will be a Pro version of the Note 7 that will have the appropriate bump in specs (and price), for example, a Sony’s IMX586 camera sensor.
Now, obviously, performance-wise the Redmi Note 7 can’t compete with the Snapdragon 855 flagships that are coming soon, but besides that, there’s very little you’re missing by paying a fifth of the price of a premium phone. It’s almost unbelievable how good affordable smartphones are now.
