Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Review: Xiaomi Kenya officially launched the Redmi Note 11 series in Kenya a few weeks ago, continuing its popular line of budget-friendly handsets that have been doing pretty well in the local market.
The series comprises three models – the Redmi Note 11 Pro, Redmi Note 11S and Redmi Note 11. All three models as we have mentioned in our previous articles come with full-HD+ AMOLED displays and have up to 128GB of onboard storage and come with MIUI 13.
A review unit of the Redmi Note 11 was sent to us about a week ago and it’s what we will be sharing our quick thoughts on in this article.
We already did the unboxing video so in case you missed it you can subscribe to our Youtube channel and watch it below.
First thing first I need to mention the Redmi Note series from Xiaomi has always been my favourite. Xiaomi has always managed to fit in some good specs on these phones at a very affordable price. The company is for example selling the Redmi Note 11 at Ksh. 19,999 for the 4+64GB variant, Ksh.22,499 for the 4+128GB variant while the 6+128GB is selling at Ksh. 23,999/. At this price, you’re getting an AMOLED Dot Display and up to 90Hz refresh rate, an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 680 SoC and some pretty good cameras.
The specs might not be that impressive and that’s expected but during the entire period we have spent with this phone, we never experienced any major slowdowns or bugs.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Design and Display
The Redmi Note 11 is a pretty looking device for a budget phone. The colour option that was sent to us is what Xiaomi is calling Start Blue with some smooth rounded edges, a hole-punch camera located at the centre of the end of the phone. The phone also comes in two other colour variants, including Graphite Gray, Twilight Blue and Star Blue.
The Redmi Note 11 features a 6.43-inch display, the overall dimensions are 159.9 mm x 73.9 mm x 8.1 mm and it weighs in at 179 grams. We are also getting a resolution of 1080 x 2400 pixels, 1000 nits peak brightness and a 90Hz refresh rate, which is quite good for browsing the web and watching all your favourite videos and movies online. There is no support for HDR, but do you really need it?
The display also gives you a number of options to play around with. This includes choosing from light to dark mode, changing the colour scheme among other options.
On top of the phone, there’s a 3.5 mm headphone jack while at the bottom is where you have a USB-C slot for charging the phone or transferring data to another device.
The volume buttons and power buttons are all located on the right. The fingerprint sensor built into the power button is also located here just below the buttons.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Specs performance and battery life
As we had mentioned earlier, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 specs might not be that impressive but they fit that price. Under the hood we’re getting a Qualcomm Snapdragon 680 processor, 4GB or 6GB of RAM, and 64GB or 128GB of internal storage. Remember. The review unit that was sent to us was the 4GB/128GB variant.
Basic features if you ask me, the experience is quite smooth. No glitches or lags and switching between apps and screens is not really bad. Of course, don’t expect this experience to be as slick as what we are getting as a flagship. I mean you’re paying Ksh.20,000 for this phone and that price tag gives you exactly what any other phone in that price range will offer you.
For the software, the phone comes with Xiaomi’s MIUI 13 software running on top of Android 11. Nothing to really complain about here. Disappointed though that the phone did not come with Android 12. The Redmi Note 11 doesn’t also come with 5G, which is understandable considering the price tag. But again, with 5G almost being made commercially available in Kenya, I would like to see most of these smartphone companies making affordable 5G devices available in the market.
Back to MIUI 13, as I said there’s nothing really to complain about here. We are getting some unique personalization tools and the usual MIUI interface that looks polished.
When it comes to battery life, the Redmi Note 11 is packed with a 5000 mAh battery with 33W fast charging. A full charge takes over an hour and should be able to last you for more than a day on normal usage. This just involves social media, WhatsApp messages, clicking photos and some little internet browsing, etc.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Cameras
When it comes to the cameras, the Redmi Note 11 on the rear packs a quad camera setup featuring a 50-megapixel (f/1.8) primary camera; an 8-megapixel (f/2.2) camera; a 2-megapixel (f/2.4) camera, and a 2-megapixel (f/2.4) camera. There is a single front camera setup for selfies, featuring a 13-megapixel sensor with an f/2.4 aperture.
The selfie camera does a pretty good job producing some decent selfies and videos.
The main camera on the other hand is also okay. Shots taken in decent lighting are pretty good, especially for your social media use. We are also getting a number of camera modes including portrait, slow motion, night mode, panorama among others. There is a Pro mode option that allows you to freely control the ISO, shutter speed, lens type and more. The night mode is not really the best.
The cameras also support video at up to 1080p at 30fps, which is really good for those of us who love taking some quick videos for Instagram or Facebook reels.
Should you buy the Redmi Note 11?
I have so many reasons why I would actually buy this phone despite the few weak points we have highlighted in this review. First, it’s the cheap pricing. Xiaomi is selling the Redmi Note 11 at Ksh. 19,999 for the 4+64GB variant, Ksh.22,499 for the 4+128GB variant while the 6+128GB is selling at Ksh. 23,999/. This pricing offers you a 90Hz AMOLED display, great battery life and security features like its fingerprint sensor.
The phone is indeed a good budget phone to consider. So, if you don’t want to spend so much money on a smartphone, looking for a phone with good battery life, then buy this phone.
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