Yesterday, Xiaomi Malaysia revealed that their upcoming mid-range smartphone — the Redmi Note 6 Pro — would be launching locally this weekend. Today, the company finally revealed the most important thing about this phone on their Facebook page: The price.
Yup, the good news is that this smartphone is still below RM1,000. The bad news is that the base model is a little more expensive than its predecessor at launch. To refresh your memory, at launch, the Redmi Note 5 retailed for RM799 for the base model with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage, while the top-spec variant with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage had a price tag of RM999.
With the successor, the Redmi Note 6 Pro bumps the base model price up so now you have to pay RM849 for 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage. Luckily, that also means that the jump between the base model and the top-spec variant with 4GB RAM and 64GB storage isn’t as big as that particular model retains its predecessor’s RRP of RM999. Users who purchase this smartphone at the launch event on the 20th of October 2018 will receive a selfie stick and Mi Band 2 for free. Keep in mind that the freebies are only valid for purchases made at Authorised Mi Stores in 1 Utama, Queensbay Mall and KSL City.
For that money, you’re going to be getting a slightly larger (and taller) 6.26-inch Full HD+ IPS display up front, but you’ll also have to deal with the fact that it now has a notch. Inside, the Redmi Note 6 Pro is still powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 636 processor, so we don’t see an upgrade there. Thankfully, battery capacity remains the same too, so its still packing that large 4,000 mAh cell.
In the camera department, the dual camera at the back remains a 12MP + 5MP unit, but the selfie shooter gets an upgrade. Now, there are two sensors up front that comprises a main 20MP shooter and a 2MP secondary sensor for depth information. The main sensor is also capable of 4-in-1 pixel binning that can combine four adjacent pixels into one large 1.8-micron pixel for better low light performance. Of course, since it’s 2018, you also get AI beautification and portrait mode features.
The fact that this smartphone doesn’t look like that big of an upgrade over its predecessor isn’t actually entirely a bad thing. First, it puts people who have just picked up the Redmi Note 5 at ease, but it also means that you have more options even within Xiaomi’s ecosystem.
I mean, if all you’re looking for is a no-nonsense budget smartphone, the Redmi Note 5 is still a solid option and you can pick up the top-spec variant for just RM899 online. Factor in coupons and periodic discounts and that can be yours for even lower.
I’d say it’s a pretty good time to be a budget smartphone shopper because at this point you’re pretty much spoilt for choice. In fact, if you’re the kind that wants to spend way more for roughly the same choice, there’s another manufacturer with exactly that phone for you too!
What do you guys think of the Redmi Note 6 Pro? Let me know in the comments below.
