The Redmi Note line of phones has always been synchronized with surprising quality phones and pricing, and the new Redmi Note 9S is not surprising, announced by the end of March on China's march.
This phone for less than € 200 features a stunning 5,020 mAh battery that promises a deadly life of up to two days of hard work, as well as a respectable hardware and good use of its camera sensors that put it in the middle range.
After Redmi Note 7 and Redmi Note 8T, leaders in their segment, the Note 8S is another competitor who will rise from the top of our the cheapest mobiles of the year, despite the fact that the competition is tough with Realme 6, among others.
Design
Each new Redmi phone comes with a more familiar design within the Xiaomi product, though something has changed on the Note 9S by being more refined in its set of cameras. And that ultimately, we move away from the notch in the front mirror.
This includes a small cut at the top of the screen to support the camera. selfie, which now becomes a drilled hole in the center, leaving us with more screen space.
At 6.67 centimeters it's clear that Xiaomi is referring to this phone as a Redmi Note model. Despite its large size, it will not be difficult to manage day to day.
Its body-count ratio is 91% with a maximum ratio of 20: 9, which allows our names to feel like a free phone to hold in one hand, even though it's difficult for you to reach with your thumb.
It is also a 209-gram mobile phone, partly created by its generous internal battery. This does not prevent its chassis from being 8.8mm smaller and the rounded edges at the back.
The large body, combined with the smooth surface, can create unexpected drops, where Xiaomi has chosen to provide the Note 9S with Gorilla Glass 5 protection.
Also included in the purchase box is a silicone sleeve that will serve as the first protection. The colors on the finish are bright, away from the premium wires that soften the tones. The one we tried is Aurora Blue, and you will find it in a white and pale blue.
The screen is very bright or in bright sunlight, at 450 nits according to the data sheet. The colors shown make sense, as well as the viewing angles, the result of being able to solve FullHD + resolution.
However, we recall the darker black OLED panels we saw in the other Xiaomi phone series, in comparison to this IPS-based signal and it's slightly different.
Keep in mind that this is a 60 Hz panel, compared to the Real 6, which can handle an efficient 90 90s refresh rate. This makes it interesting and close to 120 Hz given current flags. .
Physically, you will continue to find exciting features on this Remi Note 9S such as the mini-jack headphone jack located at the bottom, as well as the IR infrared sensor located at the top.
The SIM card tray is located on the left side and not only supports dual SIMs, but you can also receive a Micro SD card to increase the storage capacity to 512 GB. One detail is that both SIM Slots support 4G.
In this case, the Redmi Note 9S is not compatible with 5G networks, as can be seen at this input range, but all other means of communication exist. Note here that one of the biggest shortcomings is the abandonment of NFC to enable mobile payments.
Its fingerprint sensor, on this Note 9S, is transferred to the power button and screen function on the right side, instead of attaching it to the screen itself, where it's natural and efficient.
Although there may be fans and opponents of this area, it should be noted that we did not like it, because it is almost natural to pick up the phone and press the power button to activate the screen without knowing that you have turned it on. Everything is easy.
Battery
The most relevant point of this entry-price port is probably its battery location. Among other indicators, as high as Xiaomi does, autonomy can be one of the points of the Note 9S.
Our standard autonomous tests helped us verify the efficiency of the cell phone by using it in the Geben 4 battery test time of 15 hours and 3 minutes. Great value if we transfer it to the real world.
Obviously it's a budget phone, so it's not priced for wireless charging and vice versa. It also has no immediate fee for other premium types. While the Realme 6 is not charged at 30 W, this Redmi sits at 18 W.
For your purchase, at the box you get a pretty cool 22,5W power adapter, but you'll actually get more out of it if you have another device that can accept this amperage input.
With this charger, we found that within half an hour the phone reached its 36% battery capacity, which is very important considering the total battery capacity.
Working
Besides the fact that the price of the Redmi Note 9S is on the entry list, its performance also shows us that it can compete well with mid-range models, being faster than even the Pixel 3a or Galaxy A70.
Its paper specification tells us that it can be placed somewhere between Realme 6 and Realme 6 Pro, with the same memory allocation of 4 GB as the standard model (you can get it with 6 GB), and the Snapdragon processor 720G.
In the graph we show below, it is possible to see how it surpasses the previously mentioned Realme in various tests, but with only 10 values, which is not a significant addition to real life.
Thanks to the ease of use and navigation with the Note 9S as Xiaomi updated the haptic (vibration) machine of the new backlight motor, making it very responsive to handling.
Tests with GFBench drawings revealed that all three calls were in line, as can be seen in the performance graph. It will allow you to play regular games but not expect big fps effects.
Cameras and photos
Xiaomi accepts the idea that customers are influenced by both the number of cameras and the number of megapixels it offers. This budget phone has a 16 MP selfie camera and Quad camera mounted on the back.
The key is its 48MP main lens, though we will see, not all sensors are highly rated. There is also an 8 MP wide-angle lens, a 5 MP macro camera, and 2 MP depth.
So, it's basically the same camera you'll find on the Redmi Note 8T, but with an upgraded Macro lens. Next, the feature that features the camera view is familiar to Xiaomi.
Like most high-end megapixel phones, Xiaomi uses pixel assembly to combine data from four pixels a person into a single puzzle, so the resulting shot is actually 12 MP.
Unless you plan to use your photos with a large mosaic or poster, this will suffice. If you really want high-quality images, there's a 48 MP shooting mode, but expect low-quality results and they'll get more memory.
As you can see in the pictures, photos in full sunlight still look great (sometimes overflowing), but only if you do. zoom Straighten up you will know that the pictures are painted and are no longer clear on the edges.
The camera app is generally easy to use, and you can switch between standard & # 39; Photo & # 39 ;, & # 39; 48 MP & # 39;, & # 39; Portrait & # 39 ;, & # 39; Night & # 39 ;, & # 39; Panorama & # 39; & # 39; Pro & # 39 ;. It's a camera with some IAI, so the general idea is to aim and shoot.
In the video section, the camera can record 4K videos at 30 fps with the encouragement that it supports image stabilization. There are slower and shorter ways to shoot video than automatic video mode.
Software
For many, the MIUI interface is so familiar that you won't even notice its difference compared to standard Android. The truth is that MIUI is Android, but it has a very personal interface. Redmi Note 9S works with MIUI 11 on Android 10.
It's true to say that these two have come very close in recent years, but one of the first things you'll notice at MIUI is that there is no app type, with all the shortcuts displayed on the home screen.
The latest version of MIUI 11 is said to include an app drawer option, but was not available in this review sample, which uses MIUI 11.0.6.
Most Android domain networking sites seem to take this approach, and if you've ever used an iPhone, you can choose it. The configuration causes you to lose a little bit between how many apps you have installed on your phone.
There are also differences in the settings menu settings (the search bar makes it easy to find what you need), but in fact the main difference lies in the pre-installed programs and additional functionality provided by MIUI.
You will find Xiaomi's own programs on topics such as Safety, cleaner, music, my video, notes, weather, my store, my community and more. This is not bloatware, but you may decide that it is not yours.
If it turns out you don't use them every day, you can put them all in one folder so they don't fit in your way. You don't have to really worry about the storage space you use, with 64GB as standard and 128GB as you like.
MIUI Global ROM is compatible with Google's full-service services, including Google Play ready to use, making it easy to install any app. We had no problems with compatibility, and found MIUI to be easy to use for licensing applications.
MIUI is different when it comes to the functionality of two apps and Secondary Space, allowing you to use two different stages of which application is installed on the phone (useful when using two SIMs).
You can also hide the navigation buttons on the screen to get viewing space, and thus find your way through the operating system using touch only, such as how the Android One version solves it.
The Redmi Note 9S also benefits from the wider Mode Mode under MIUI 11, and you can work faster responses. One thing that's missing from this low budget mode is the regular screen display mode, something the processor isn't ready for.
Is it the best budget phone of the year?
The phone is not perfect, but for a small fee, Xiaomi has accumulated a smaller-sized phone, premium design, greater power for everyday tasks, and decent cameras.
To this end it has been added to a durable battery and, therefore, has a number of features that would rank it as the best entry phone for less than € 200.
Now, it's hard to ignore what you get when buying a Realme signal. You also get screens with a 90 Hz quick refresh rate at an unbeatable price range.
You also get a faster 30W charging and a much better design compatible with the Redmi Note 8T. The only point at which the Note 9S will seduce you is that its battery supply is undoubtedly surprising.
Price and availability
Current model price Note for Redmi 9S by far the most basic configuration (4 GB + 64 GB) is available for € 229 according to the Xiaomi online store. While you can find out Offers to suit a mother's day and you can buy it for € 199.
The same thing happens with the 6 GB and 128 GB storage version, its regular price of € 269 and you can buy it from time to time to give at € 249 when you buy it on May 4. Also at Amazon You will find offers like 6 GB and 128 GB for just € 225.97.
Both memory and storage configuration are available in Interstellar Gray, Ice White, and Aurora Blue Finish. To make it easy, see here the best Xiaomi phones of the year.
The final decision
The Redmi Note 9S seat, also known as the Redmi Note 9 Pro, may have been stolen by Realme 6, but as we've seen in the review, it continues to be one of the best budget phones we've seen so far.
Realme is preparing the news these days, with the advent of new models, but until then, the Redmi ones tested here have recorded the longest running battery life test with the Geekbench 4.
We are not fans of the rear camera module, though we did like the collections of sensors that were made. The lack of support for NFC's mobile payment technology doesn't seem right to us either.
But if you're willing to do without these features, you'll find that in some respects, the Redmi Note 9S is a great phone that will make it difficult for its main competitors, many on this entry list.
We will see if the new arrival of Realme terminals, in addition to other products, has made it difficult for the major competitor in the price range we find ourselves.
Genres
- 6.67-inch Full HD + screen and IPS panel
- 2400 x 1080 pixel resolution and 20: 9 aspect ratio
- Excellent 450 nits with Gorilla Glass 5 protection
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G 2.3GHz (8nm) processor
- GPU Graphics Adreno 618
- 4GB / 6GB RAM
- 64GB / 128GB storage with MicroSD
- Dual-band 802.11a / b / g / n / ac-Wi-Fi with 2×2 MIMO
- dano-4G Nano-SIM
- Bluetooth 5.0, GPS
- AI four-lens camera: 48 MP (f / 1.79, 1.6um Super Pixel 4-in-1) + 8 MP ultra wide-angle (f / 2.2, 1.12um) + 5 MP Macro ( AF 2-10cm) + sensor depth 2Mp (1.75 mm), 4K video at 30 fps
- SelfMp camera
- 3.5mm headphone jack with IR Blaster
- Fingerprint sensor on the side
- USB-C
- 5020 mAh battery
- 18Web charging (fast 22.5W charger in box)
- Android 10 with MIUI 11.0.6
- Dimensions 165.8 x 76.7 x 8.8 mm
- Weight 209 grams
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