When it comes to the best hardware for its price, we all know that Xiaomi is the best brand for that. Most of their fans also praise the Redmi Note series as these are the smartphones that are powerful enough for a mid-range smartphone but it also features a price that can really compete against the market. Today, we will review the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5, one of the most popular midrange smartphone of the Chinese company.

Hardware and Design

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 has a solid build. It’s a little bit bulky to the hands but it really has a solid feel and thanks to the metal build quality of the smartphone, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 does feel premium to the hand.

The volume rocker and the power button of the smartphone are placed on the right side while the hybrid sim card tray is placed on the opposite side. The smartphone still features a micro USB port instead of USB-C and then there’s the 3.5mm headphone jack beside it along with the speaker grill.

One of the best things about the smartphone is its battery because the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 features a large 4000mAh of battery which is why the smartphone is a bit bulky compared to other smartphones despite having an 18:9 display aspect ratio.

The smartphone also features a fingerprint scanner at the back and I really had no problem using It as it was really fast even when the screen is off however, the disappointing part here is that the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 doesn’t have a face unlock which is more convenient for most people.

Display

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 packs a decent 5.99-inch Full HD+ display with 18:9 display aspect ratio as expected, the smartphone doesn’t have a thick bezel and we do have a rounded corners that adds an eyecandy to the smartphone.

When it comes to display quality, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 does have a nice display with a pretty good colors and the viewing angles are really good. The display of the smartphone is actually great especially for its price.

Battery Life

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 has a pretty good battery for a mid-range smartphone. It has a 4000mAh battery inside which more than most mid-range smartphone at its price range. Most of the time, the smartphone lasts up to a day of use or more than a day of usage.

In our PC Mark test, we were actually pretty happy with the results that I got as we got a score of 11 hours 14 minutes which is pretty good not only for its segment but also for its price.

Software and Perfomance

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 features Android 8.1 on MIUI 9. What I like about it is despite having a heavy skinning on the smartphone, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 still managed to have a fast and silky smooth navigation on the smartphone. When it comes to user interface, the smartphone is pretty user friendly and you won’t have any problems navigating through it even when you’re coming from an iPhone or other Android smartphones.

When it comes to performance, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 really shines as the smartphone packs a Snapdragon 636 processor inside and in our review unit, we got a 32GB of internal storage and also a 3GB of RAM. In our test, we were really happy that we got a score of 115114 in Antutu.

When it comes to gaming, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 does fare well as the smartphone can run NBA 2k18 at high settings and also PUBG Mobile at balanced settings with high framerate. The smartphone can really handle most gaming stuff and yeah, then Snapadragon 636 processor inside the smartphone is definitely one of the best mid-range processor out there.

Camera

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 got a 12MP+5MP dual lens rear camera and also a 13-megapixel front camera. The smartphone is also boasting AI which lets you have a better beautification and shots on the smartphone. My take? The Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 does have a decent camera especially for its price. Check out the shots that I took using the smartphone.

Verdict

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 is definitely one of the best if not the best mid-range smartphone out there. It has a decent processor inside, the build quality of the smartphone is great, the camera was fine and most importantly, the battery of the smartphone was really good.

But of course, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 got some competition in its price range including the ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M1 but if you’re fine with its battery then the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 will be just fine for you.