The Redmi Note series has always been a staple in the entry-level to mid-range segments thanks to Xiaomi’s knack for delivering a high-performance phone at a reasonable price.
This year’s edition of the Note 9s is no exception to this trend. It’s a big, heavy smartphone packed with features to justify its weight.
Camera
The Xiaomi Redmi Note 9s has a 48MP primary camera with f/1.8, 0.8um sensor. A secondary 8MP ultra-wide, a 5MP macro, and a 2MP depth sensor lens support its rear camera.
The front selfie camera has a 16MP sensor, also f/2.0, with a punch-hole notch design. It supports the usual Beauty and Portrait modes but has a new feature: slow-mo video recording at 1080p.
The Snapdragon 720G chipset powered the phone, with 4/6GB RAM and 64/128GB internal storage expandable via microSD card. It runs Android 10 out of the box, with MIUI 11 on top.
Battery
One of the highlights of the Note 9s is its battery. The oh-so-impressive 5k mAh is the largest battery we’ve ever seen on a Redmi and is enough to last you an entire day of heavy usage. It’s paired with a nifty 18W charging hub that lets the juices flow quickly.
The Redmi Note 9s is not without its faults, however. A few significant hiccups include poor connectivity and lackluster battery performance. Aside from a few major niggles, the Note 9s is a capable device that will satisfy any discerning mobile user. The best part is that a little TLC won’t break the bank. The next time your smartphone tells you to change the battery, drop by your local Repco store and see if we can fix you.
Performance
The Xiaomi Redmi Note 9s offers plenty of performance for a budget price. Its Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G processor and Adreno 618 GPU can handle day-to-day tasks, and MIUI is well-mated to the hardware for a smooth, slick experience.
In our Geekbench 4 battery test, the Redmi Note 9s clocked an incredible 15 hours and 3 minutes. That’s the most extended score we’ve ever seen from a device in this category, so it’s an impressive feat.
Gaming performance is also a big plus point for this device. We didn’t get a lot of lag or stutter on the graphics side, which means the Redmi Note 9s can deliver smooth gameplay even when playing PUBG Mobile.
Design
The Xiaomi Redmi Note 9s is the latest in a long line of Xiaomi phones with a high-end glass sandwich design. The device’s rear features a Gorilla Glass 5 finish covering the quad-camera hump and the main camera lens island.
The camera bump does protrude quite a bit from the body of the phone and is easily one of the most noticeable on any recent smartphone we’ve seen. This does help the camera to remain aligned without letting your thumb or fingers get in the way while taking photos.
Other than this, the back of the phone houses the IR blaster and microphone on top, while the left side houses the tray, microSD card slot, USB Type-C port, and loudspeaker. The bottom-firing speaker is pretty average and doesn’t do a great job of delivering sound.
Value
The Xiaomi Redmi Note 9s is a great mid-range device that delivers much value for the money. It’s got a punchy battery, enough performance to get you through a COD Mobile match, and some cool extra features that make it a real standout.
It also has a decent screen, a quad-camera setup, and a fingerprint reader on the side that unlocks instantly without any annoying lag.
The phone is not waterproof, and wireless charging will be a while yet, but it’s one of the best mid-range phones you can buy in this price range right now. It won’t take on Realme, but it’s a solid competitor worth checking out if you want a new phone.
