When you’re on a budget, it’s obvious that you’ll have to give compromises in certain areas. When it comes to 5G phones, you may expect to see corners made somewhere else to make the numbers add up if the price is cheap, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G smartphone, which is one of the cheapest 5G phones on the market at £199/US$199. However, unlike the standard Note 10, which features a beautiful AMOLED display, the 5G variant only has an IPS display, less RAM, and no waterproofing.
Note 10 is a phone that isn’t available in the UK, therefore it’s a pointless comparison. However, it is included to show the point.
The attraction of today’s cheap Android phones is that they’re difficult to identify from flagship devices. Only when you dig deeper do you notice the differences: basic camera setups, lack of water resistance, and wireless charging, among other things.
The Redmi Note 10 5G, on the other hand, is a convincing option if you must have 5G as top importance in a phone and don’t want to raise your price. The majority of phones at this pricing point are still 4G-only.
You won’t go far wrong with the Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G as your next cheap phone, but if you’re willing to forego 5G data speeds for another smartphone cycle, you can get a more complete option.
What we will see here?
Price and availability
On March 4, 2021, Xiaomi launched the Redmi Note 10 5G, which went on sale in the UK on April 13 for £199 for the 64GB option. A 128GB variant is also available for $250 / £209 (about AU$380).
The phone is accessible in the United States. However, retailers are more difficult to come by than in the United Kingdom. We couldn’t find the 64GB model on sale in the United States at the time of writing. So it appears that 128GB is the only option.
However, the Redmi Note 10 5G is a fairly similar concept to the Realme 8 5G and the Oppo A54 5G, which were both released around the same time and offered a 5G connection at roughly $250/£200.
Performance
Because it’s made primarily for low-cost 5G phones, this is the case. It has a 5G modem, enough power to handle 90Hz screens, up to 64Mp cameras, and UFS 2.2 storage capabilities.
Manufacturers aren’t required to use all of its features. The Redmi Note 10 5G stands out for using the latter, which allows for speedier storage than usual. There are two storage versions to pick from one with 64GB and one with 128GB. Both feature a total of 4GB of RAM.
In reality, performance is more than acceptable at this price, save from the rare glitch. Apps and games are quick to load and run.
Xiaomi’s software, however, prevents GFXbench and 3DMark from working. As a result, benchmark graphics ratings cannot be compared to those of competitors. However, if all you want to do is play games casually, the Redmi Note 10 5G will be more than happy to comply. When you’re playing a game, Game Turbo improves performance and adjusts settings to keep your phone from overheating.
Performance was quite smooth for a phone at this budget when playing Formula 9 and Pokémon GO, however, minor slowdowns and jumpiness acted as reminders that this isn’t a premium. Despite this, games load as rapidly as you’d expect from more costly phones thanks to the fast UFS 2.2 storage.
Cameras
You may be fooled into believing the Redmi Note 10 5G is a more costly phone by looking at the back camera module. However, there is just one camera with a 48-megapixel sensor and an f/1.8 lens. Some other two are a 2MP macro camera that you’ll nearly never use and a 2MP depth sensor that you’ll need when using portrait mode to get realistic-looking blurry backgrounds.
Video is limited to 1080p at 30fps, and there is no optical image stabilization, indicating a lack of overall performance (OIS). You can capture slo-mo video at 120 frames per second, but only at 720p.
By default, photos are captured at 12Mp rather than 48Mp. That’s because it employs a sensor method used by many high-resolution cameras. This results in better-looking input images than if you shot at 48Mp all of the time, which you can do if you’re willing to go the additional mile and tap on More and then 48M. For storage concerns, there is no option to set the primary Photo mode 48Mp.
The selfie camera isn’t bad, even if it is just 8Mp. The photos are often crisp, with natural-looking colors. The skin smoothing is very attractive. It will even attempt a selfie photo, but subject isolation isn’t ideal, with hair blurring when it shouldn’t.
Battery life of Xiaomi Redmi Note-10 5G
A 5,000mAh battery powers the Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G. My current smartphone standards, are that’s a large cell, but it’s also the same size as the battery featured in the Oppo A54 5G and the Realme 8 5G.
It’s easy to understand why this is the case by looking at the similar naming of these three phones. 5G routers are among the most energy-intensive parts of any consumer device. Anyway Moreover, most of us aren’t using 5G networks on a regular basis. Having such a massive battery means the Redmi Note 10 5G lasts for a long time on a single charge.
We found that the phone lost less than 50% of its charge during a run of 3 hours and 40 minutes of screen time. This would reflect a day of expected in terms for most individuals. This implies that assuming you’re not a heavy user, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G smartphone may last you two days.
The 18W charger provided isn’t the most generous available. In the packaging, the Poco X3 NFC comes with a 33W charger. However, it matches the Realme 8 5G’s battery capacity and outperforms the 10W Oppo A54 5G charger.
Software
MIUI 12 might be annoying at times, but it’s not a bad Android 11 overlay. That isn’t a negative thing. You have complete access to the Play Store because all Google applications are available and correct.
By default, the notification shade displays 12 shortcuts, which you may change. It is, however, equally capable as a gaming device. That is to say, it will play demanding 3D games like PUBG Mobile and Genshin Impact. Though you won’t want to turn up the graphics settings too much.
Conclusion
The Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G is a stylish budget smartphone with 5G connectivity. It has long battery life at an amazing price. To get those 5G benefits, you’ll have to make some sacrifices in terms of display and camera quality, and it’s not the fastest performer for the money. The Redmi Note 10S’s plastic body and IP53 dash and dust resistance rating should give it a good chance of surviving some relatively poor treatment.
