Before diving into the Redmi Note 14 Pro and Pro Plus, it's worth recapping who Redmi is: it’s a sub-brand of Leica's partner, Xiaomi, and Xiaomi has three phone brands: Xiaomi, Poco, and Redmi. The Xiaomi brand is the most premium – think the Leica co-engineered Xiaomi 14 Ultra – while Poco is typically aimed at value-focused gamers. Finally, Redmi targets value-focused imaging enthusiasts, at least with its Note series. Long-time readers may remember the excellent Note 10 Pro, a breakthrough device, but the line has started to feel a bit less exciting in recent years.

For 2025, the Redmi Note 14 Pro and 14 Pro Plus launched with identical camera systems and just a handful of hardware differences, so it makes sense to cover both together in one combined review. After all, both pack the same 200MP primary camera, complete with a large 1/1.4” sensor and a fast f/1.65 aperture.

Looking at competing camera phones, and the Redmi Note 14 Pro and Pro Plus’s primary camera could actually be best in class, not counting the Redmi 13 Pro Plus which had the same impressive main sensor. Looking at the competition, the Nothing Phone (2a) and (2a) Plus have inferior main camera specs but better secondary cameras, while the Pixel 8a, Honor Magic 7 Lite, and Xiaomi’s new Poco X7 Pro all feature inferior camera setups on paper.

But there’s more to a phone than its primary camera, so let’s see whether the new Redmi Note 14 Pro and 14 Pro Plus can hold their own across the board.

Redmi Note 14 Pro and 14 Pro Plus design

The Redmi Note 14 Pro and Pro Plus look virtually identical. Both have curved backs and fronts for an ergonomic, soft in-hand feel. Each is available in a vegan leather or glass-backed option, and both feature shiny plastic frames that look like metal.

Around the back of the phones is a triple camera system with a stepped design within a squircle camera surround. Echoing last year’s Honor Magic 6 Pro, visually, this is where the main difference between the Redmi 14 Pro and Pro Plus's design lies.

The Note 14 Pro Plus levels the cameras under a single sheet of glass, while the 14 Pro frames each camera with a colour-matched element. Despite the fact the Redmi 14 Pro Plus looks more classical and feels more premium, the vanilla 14 Pro is actually more eye-catching, especially in this two-tone lavender version we’re testing.

Speaking of colours, the Redmi Note 14 Pro is available in Midnight Black, Coral Green and Lavender Purple, while the Pro Plus can be had in Frost Blue, Midnight Black and Lavender Purple.

While the Redmi 14 Pro Plus is slightly heavier, likely owing to the extra glass in the camera surround, both phones are relatively comfortable in-hand, with the weight and size offset by the curved shape.

It’s great to see IP68 water and dust resistance on both phones, an assurance seldom seen at the price, and Xiaomi also claims extreme drop-resistance across both. If you’re picking up a glass-backed phone, it will also feature Gorilla Glass 7i for a little extra scratch and shatter protection, while both pack Gorilla Glass Victus 2-protected screens, very impressive for a midrange phone.

So while both phones may look like slightly chunky 2022/23 flagships, if you dig the look and feel, Redmi’s 14 Pro and Pro Plus have a lot going for them, and that extends to the displays too.

Redmi Note 14 Pro and 14 Pro Plus screen

With 6.67-inch curved OLED screens, the Redmi Note 14 Pro and Pro Plus both have comfortable screens, big enough for immersive watching and easy-to-read browsing, but not so big they’re unwieldy.

While curved displays have fallen out of fashion for gamers, as we’ll come onto, you probably won’t be gaming much on these phones, and the tapered sides actually add a bit of flair when set alongside all the flat displays flooding the market at the moment, especially in the mid-range space.

The quality is also impressive, with a 120Hz refresh rate for smooth scrolling, crisp 446PPI detail, and ample brightness for comfortable outdoor viewing. Xiaomi also loads up plenty of display options in the settings, so you can change the color balance and activate one of our favorite reading modes on any phone, with support for monochrome visuals and a paper-like texture overlay that makes reading text on a white background feel less intense.

So while some might not love the fact the Redmi Note 14 Pro and Pro Plus sport curved screens, if that isn’t an issue for you, both displays look and feel great.

Redmi Note 14 Pro and 14 Pro Plus camera specs

Despite the triple camera setups, there really is only one camera we’d recommend using on the Redmi Note 14 Pro and Pro Plus, possibly two in a pinch when you really need an ultra-wide field-of-view. The 2MP macro camera is terrible and should never be used unless you’re going for a low-fi, noise-heavy aesthetic.

The primary camera is that 200MP 1/1.4-inch sensor, f/1.7 aperture lens with OIS and a 23mm equivalent focal length. It has a nearest focus distance of about 8.5cm which can pull up striking background blur, so as far as main cameras go, at the price, the Note 14 Pro and Pro Plus are very impressive.

The 8MP ultra-wide is not quite as underwhelming as the 2MP macro camera, though It’s 1/4-inch sensor is tiny. Nevertheless, its 15mm equivalent focal length can be handy, and when capturing in bright environments, its photos are usable.

Both phones are also loaded up with plenty of shooting modes, with highlights including a 200MP mode for ultra-croppable shots, a Pro mode with RAW capture, or 200MP JPG capture, and Pro video as well.

On the subject of video, both phones cap out at 4K 30fps from the primary camera and 1080p from the ultra-wide and selfie camera.

Redmi Note 14 Pro and 14 Pro Plus camera review

As predicted, the Redmi Note 14 Pro and Pro Plus’s primary cameras are the ones to use 99% of the time. The primary camera is relatively versatile; it captures strong detail in brightly lit environments and appears to carry forward some of that classic, Leica-esque, contrast-rich photo processing we see on Xiaomi’s more premium phones, especially on the Redmi Note 14 Pro Plus.

Despite the identical hardware on paper, we noticed differences between the Note 14 Pro and Pro Plus pictures, with the lower-cost Pro more susceptible to purple fringing. AI-like sharpening also helped the Pro in more situations, especially when zooming.

That said, we also experienced more consistent focus from the Redmi Note 14 Pro than the Pro Plus, and the 14 Pro tended to expose brighter than the 14 Pro Plus when night mode was active, however, detail on the Pro Plus was superior in our tests.

The other main key difference between both is how they process reds, with the Pro+ able to pull out deeper tones, while the Pro veered towards brighter, more magenta hues. It’s unclear how much these differences are down to the two different ISPs (one uses a MediaTek ISP, the other a Qualcomm ISP), and how much is down to different algorithms, but they’re definitely noticeable.

As with higher-end Xiaomi phones, the Redmi Note 14 series isn’t afraid of a bit of clipping, limiting the HDR effect in shots when compared to some other smartphones. Exposure is typically consistent and reliable, and while at the 23mm lens focal length there is some distortion, crop into 1.2-1.5x for quality distortion-free results on either phone.

The larger sensor also means that in lowlight scenes and indoor lighting, photos captured on either device look respectable, and with auto night mode firing up, they are great for stationary subjects, though as the lights drop, as with most midrangers, the Redmi Note 14 Pro and Pro Plus struggle with moving subjects as well as focus.

Close-up subjects, in particular, look rich thanks to the Redmi Note 14 Pro and 14 Pro Plus’s primary sensor size, with clear depth separation, and this extends to video too, which can pull up some great-looking content at up to 4K resolution 30fps. As the lights drop, so too does video quality, but primary camera footage is still competitive.

On one hand, it makes sense for Redmi to focus so much on the primary camera spec – it’s the camera people use the most – and thanks to in-sensor cropping, a good primary camera can translate to good telephoto shots. We do, nevertheless, wish that the 8MP ultra-wide and 2MP macro cameras weren’t quite so mediocre across photos and videos.

As for the selfie camera, the photos it captures look respectable, though under artificial lighting, occasionally left us with a depressingly pale, slightly lifeless complexion.

As for selfie video, we wish it captured at 4K to appease vloggers, however even at 1080p, the EIS that holds everything super-steady creates a bit of a ghost-like effect, so unless the phone’s on a tripod, we wouldn’t recommend it for serious vlogging.

Redmi Note 14 Pro and 14 Pro Plus performance and battery

The main difference in spec between the Redmi Note 14 Pro and Pro Plus are the chipsets, with the 14 Pro running with a MediaTek Dimensity 7300 Ultra, and the Pro Plus debuting the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 3, which has ramped-up AI performance over its predecessor.

Performance is similar across both with neither being adept at playing back top-tier games, however, the 14 Pro grinds to a halt with demanding games like Wuthering Waves, while the 14 Pro Plus makes a slightly more valiant effort. However, in day-to-day swiping, camera use and browsing we didn’t notice a significant difference between either, so for non-gamers, we’d suggest saving a bit of cash and going for the Redmi Note 14 Pro.

The interface experience is also identical across both phones. For some reason, Redmi’s launching the 14 Pro series with Android 14, not Android 15 like current-gen Xiaomi and Poco phones, and as a result, it runs the older version of HyperOS too. This isn’t a deal-breaker out of the box; however, it potentially impacts future-proofing.

HyperOS is bloated, especially in Poco and Redmi phones, with plenty of pre-installed apps, adverts in your global search screen that you can’t get rid of unless you disable the global search feature, and aggressive themes and magazine-style Lock Screen features that detract from the finesse of the experience.

So while HyperOS and, in turn, both Redmi phones are highly customizable, it takes a fair bit of tinkering to feel like you’re driving the ship and not the other way around.

One welcome feature for the new phones are AI photo editing tools, with Enhance, Expand, Erase, and Sky all added within the photo editing menu. You can also transcribe voice recordings which worked accurately in our tests and summarise them too, which is great to see on a relatively budget series.

Both phones also offer plenty of memory, with each starting at 256GB with 8GB RAM, and capping out at 512GB with 12GB RAM.

A final point of differentiation between both Redmi phones is charging speed. While both phones feature competitive 5110mAh batteries, the Note 14 Pro charges at a max 45W speed, while the 14 Pro Plus soars at 120W. The catch is you need to use the supplied charger to hit those kinds of speeds, but if you do and value ultra-nippy top-ups, that’s a big win for the Redmi 14 Pro Plus.

Unfortunately, neither phone packs wireless charging, however, at the price this isn’t a dealbreaker.

Redmi Note 14 Pro and 14 Pro Plus verdict

The Redmi Note 14 Pro and Pro Plus cater to casual smartphone users and photography enthusiasts on a budget. They offer plenty of storage, good looks, quality displays, great durability credentials, and sleek styling.

The cheaper Redmi Note 14 Pro is a winning option if you want a best-in-class main camera and don’t need a smidgen of extra power and faster power-ups. The Pro Plus, meanwhile, is more future-proofed owing to the more specced out processor, but there really isn’t a huge amount in it.

We definitely wouldn’t call either phone a no-brainer given the relatively punchy prices on launch, Xiaomi’s bloated HyperOS, and the weak secondary cameras on board. Nevertheless, at the right price and with Xiaomi’s habit of heavily discounting Redmi phones almost immediately after launch, either phone could be a great buy.

Redmi Note 14 Pro and 14 Pro Plus alternatives

Gamers looking for a winning alternative, the Poco X7 Pro is a better phone with a worse camera. It packs a fresher version of Android, a huge battery, storage, and a lower price, and it’s also the best gaming phone around at its price even if the 50MP camera can’t best the Redmi 14 Pro or Pro Plus.

Nothing’s Phone (2a) and Phone (2a) Plus are other great options. Sporting a bit less power but more standout style, the (2a) Plus, in particular, shines with its 4K selfie video and superior ultra-wide camera.

If you don’t mind spending a bit more but getting a much more complete experience, the excellent Honor 200 Pro piles on digital zoom and much more power, while carrying forward that curved-screen-style of the Redmi 14 Pro and Pro Plus, only with even more panache.

Xiaomi has officially launched the Redmi Note 14 Series aiming to provide high-end cameras at affordable prices. The series, comprising five models – the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ 5G, Redmi Note 14 Pro 5G, Redmi Note 14 Pro, Redmi Note 14 5G and Redmi Note 14 – offers a mix of cameras and features to suit every type of smartphone photographer.

At the top of the tree is the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ 5G, which boasts a 200MP AI-powered camera system with optical image stabilization (OIS). This flagship model is designed for those who want the best images possible, but have a limited budget. The Pro+ 5G and Pro 5G model’s camera supports 2x and 4x optical zoom, while it can also go all the way up to 30x digital zoom – which is enhanced with AI. Both Pro models are equipped with creative features like Dual Video, allowing users to record simultaneously with the front and rear cameras, and Dynamic Shots, which bring subtle motion to still images.

The Redmi Note 14 Pro shares much of the Pro+ 5G’s camera tech, including the 200MP AI camera system with OIS and optical zoom options, but is limited to a more conservative 20x digital zoom. Even the base Redmi Note 14 model still features a high-resolution 108MP AI-assisted camera.

The front-facing cameras across the series have also been upgraded, with resolutions starting at 20MP on the Note 14. The Redmi Note 14 Pro takes it a step further with a 32MP front camera and a 0.8x wide-angle zoom, perfect for group selfies.

The Redmi Note 14 Series is going all in on AI, not just with AI assisting in the cameras, the phones are also introducing a suite of AI editing tools. Features such as AI Image Expansion and AI Erase Pro allow users to edit their photos seamlessly, extending backgrounds or removing unwanted elements. Dynamic shots also allow motion to be captured alongside still images, think Apple Live Photos. Dual video recording also allows simultaneous video to be captured from the front and rear cameras.

Beyond photography, the Pro+ 5G packs a Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 processor, and a decent 5110mAh battery with 120W HyperCharge which should provide all-day power, but will recharge in a flash should you run low. The Pro 5G model is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 7300-Ultra chipset.

The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ 5G is available in three colors; Midnight Black, Lavender Purple, and Frost Blue, and has two storage variants – 8GB + 256GB with a price of £399, or 12GB + 512GB for £449.

The Redmi Note 14 Pro 5G is offered in Midnight Black, Lavender Purple, and Coral Green, with a single storage option of 8GB + 256GB, priced at £299. The Redmi Note 14 Pro comes in Midnight Black, Aurora Purple, and Ocean Blue, also featuring an 8GB + 256GB set at an RRP of £249. Lastly, the Redmi Note 14 is available in four colors: Midnight Black, Mist Purple, Ocean Blue, and Lime Green. It comes in two storage variants: 6GB + 128GB at an RRP of £179, and 8GB + 256GB for £229.

The entire Redmi Note 14 Series will be available starting from 15 January.

Battery charging: not usually an exciting subject, but here's some charging news that could get the juices flowing(!). Realme has just debuted its new SuperSonic Charge, which at a mind-boggling 320 Watts is capable of fully charging (1-100%) a 4,420mAh phone battery in just 4 minutes 30 seconds. Charging to 50% takes less than two minutes, while a 26% charge can be achieved in just one minute.

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The best GaN chargers

Phone manufacturers have been steadily ramping up charging speed for several years now. Realme itself has progressed from 65W fast charging in 2021 with the X7 Pro, through 150W and 240W charging in 2022 and 2023, respectively. You'd think that would be fast enough, but with arch-rival Xiaomi boasting 300W charging speed for its Redmi brand, Realme couldn't surrender the competition.

Increasing charging speed isn't just a matter of turning up the wattage in the charger and hoping for the best. To achieve such incredible charge rates, Realme has engineered a special battery design containing multiple cells which can be charged simultaneously, thus reducing charge time. In order to pack multiple cells into a super-slim overall profile required for a svelte smartphone, Realme apparently took inspiration from the folded solar panels used on satellites, folding four super-thin cells into a stack to form the overall battery module.

The design is said to offer a 10% higher capacity for its physical size than conventional form factors. Realme's SuperSonic Charge charger is also special. Dubbed "Pocket Cannon", it has a high power density of 3.3 watts per cubic centimetre (up from 2.34 watts per cubic centimetre in Realme's previous 240W charger) and is advertised as 93% efficient during charging. The charger is compatible with multiple fast-charging standards and can be used to charge two USB-C devices simultaneously.

Of course, with ever-increasing charge speeds comes the usual question about exacerbating long-term battery degradation. Conventional wisdom suggests that slow charging is kinder to a battery than rapid charging, while regularly rapid charging a battery from near fully discharged to completely full is also said to place added strain on lithium batteries. However, I get the impression that for most consumers, any consideration for long-term battery life will likely come a distant second to the convenience of rapid charging. And should a phone's battery capacity take a noticeable hit after a year or two as a result of frequent fast charging, then it's simply time to ditch the phone and upgrade.

See our guides to the best GaN chargers, the best smartphone power banks,  and the best solar chargers

OnePlus has impressed us with its flagships – the OnePlus 12 and OnePlus Open have class-leading cameras in their respective categories – but how are lower-cost OnePlus phones like the Nord 4? 

Going up against the Google Pixel 8a and Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro Plus, the Nord 4 has its work cut out for it, and a quick glance at the phone’s camera spec doesn’t blow us away either. But after four weeks with the phone, it’s definitely greater than the sum of its parts and a smart choice for anyone looking to hold onto their phone for a while.

So what's the Nord 4 all about? Because it isn't a flagship line, the Nord series misses out on OnePlus's partnership with Hasselblad, so the camera is less of a focal point here. The phone does, however, sport a respectable Sony LYT600 primary sensor with an f/1.8 lens and OIS.

More standout than the camera is the Nord 4's unibody design, quality screen, best-in-class battery size and charging speeds, and relatively nippy performance. Moreover, OnePlus promises years of support, which isn't something typically seen outside the Apple, Google and Samsung camps.

OnePlus Nord 4 Design and Screen

The OnePlus Nord 4's unibody design is standout, particularly in the color we tested – Mercurial Silver – with its striped metal back that looks textured, but feels smooth to the touch. For a more subdued alternative, you could go for Obsidian Midnight, which has a matte black finish, or Jade Green, which looks minty fresh by contrast.

Whichever color Nord 4 you pick up, it's skinny 8mm frame slips into a pocket, which the body nuzzles comfortably into a hand. The fact the sides and back are made from one piece of metal and smoothed to perfection make sure the whole phone feels cohesive. 

The two cameras around the back of the Nord 4 are encased within a glass panel, the left side sports a notification slider with three settings – sound on; vibrate; silent – and the right side houses the power and volume buttons. At the base of the phone is a USB-C port, a loudspeaker and a dual-SIM slot.

The OnePlus Nord 4 is IP65 dust and water-resistant and can be used when the screen's wet thanks to OnePlus's AquaTouch technology. There's no case or charger in the box, but there is a pre-fitted screen protector, a charging cable, and a SIM eject tool.

From the front, the Nord 4 is all-screen, with its 6.74-inch AMOLED screen and its 93.5 percent screen-to-bezel ratio. The 2772 × 1240 resolution gives it a crisp 450 PPI pixel density, and the screen's smooth too, gliding at up to 120Hz (though the default refresh rate is capped at 90Hz in the settings). The Nord 4 also shines at up to 2,150 nits when playing back HDR content and 1,100 nits in high brightness mode.

OnePlus also includes multiple display modes in the settings to help you eke out a little extra from its screen. Standard options like Vivid and Natural are available, and there's also Cinematic, which uses the P3 color gamut, and Brilliant for extra vibrancy.

The Nord 4's display is excellent for a midrange phone, with solid viewing angles, a punchy picture, and deep blacks. The lack of bezel helps it edge ahead of its key competition in the West, the Nothing Phone 2a Plus. Having tested it in 40ºC China and 35ºC Milan, outdoor viewing also impressed, proving it to be one of the best-looking screens around at the price.

OnePlus Nord 4 Camera Specs

While OnePlus has typically impressed with its cameras in the past, the Nord 4 is on the back foot out of the gate thanks to small camera sensors. The primary camera is a 50MP LYTIA 600 sensor with a 1/1.95-inch size, and the ultra-wide camera with its tiny 1/4-inch sensor size and 8MP resolution is even less promising.

What saves the Nord 4's photos, however, is OnePlus's flagship RAW domain photo processing, so while there's no Hasselblad here, it does look like the Nord 4 benefits from OnePlus and Oppo's HyperTone image engine, or at least aspects of it.

Breaking down all the camera specs, the Nord 4 has two around the back and one on the front:

Wide: 50MP, 1/1.95-inch sensor; f/1.8 26mm lens with OIS and autofocus.

Ultra-wide: 8MP, 1/4-inch sensor; f/2.2 16mm fixed-focus lens.

Front: 16MP, 1/3-inch sensor; f/2.4 24mm lens with autofocus.

While the Nord 4 does have a Pro Mode for manual control, it doesn't support RAW photo capture natively, though you can overlay a histogram, activate focus peaking, an on-screen level, and there's a high-resolution 50MP mode.

The Nord 4's primary camera captures 4K video at up to 60fps, while the ultra-wide and selfie cameras cap out at 1080p. It's also worth noting, only the primary camera can access Pro Mode capture, creating a slightly jarring experience across the camera mix.

OnePlus Nord 4 Camera Review

We've tested a lot of phones and can usually get the measure of one after seeing its specs, but the Nord 4 surprised us. The photos across all its cameras are relatively balanced in bright environments, and the auto-night mode saves the day when the lights drop, though there are some caveats.

The first thing to note is that the Nord 4 doesn't ramp up sharpness and saturation to the degree some other midrange smartphones do. Colors have punch, but they still tend to look natural.

Photos taken on the main camera are nice and sharp and can be cropped into comfortably. There's also a 50MP mode to unlock full-resolution images, however, the ultra-wide camera's 8MP resolution's shots don't hold up so well when cropped.

The Nord 4 applies a moderate HDR effect to photos, but it tends to be respectful of shadows, so they aren't brighter than any highlights, which is something we see in more heavy-handed HDR processing. When the lighting is right, the result is a versatile, typically reliable camera experience.

When the lights drop, the ultra-wide camera struggles even more, typically producing muddier-looking photos noticeably lower in detail. Both cameras handle mixed lighting relatively well, but in typically dark scenes, the primary camera should be any Nord owner's go-to. Even the primary camera struggles in low light with moving subjects, relying heavily on OnePlus's computational photography to pull the scene together.

While the OnePlus Nord 4 doesn't have an optical zoom, the in-sensor zoom lets you comfortably punch in at around 4x for casual snaps in bright environments, and up to 2x if you need a quality picture.

The Nord 4's selfie camera takes flattering selfies. While they're a touch low on detail, OnePlus's processing helps balance faces and backgrounds, with the adjustable beauty mode and portrait features likely able to get the type of shot you're looking for.

The Nord 4's primary camera captures great-looking 4K video at up to 60fps, while the ultra-wide's footage is comparatively weak, capping out at 1080p resolution. The selfie camera also caps out at 1080p, putting it in the same camp as the ultra-wide, though it's passable for a front camera.

Provided you're happy sticking with the primary camera, the Nord 4 will do a great job for the money, with its video looking smooth and crisp for the most part. At night, it does struggle, but you need top-tier flagships like the Xiaomi 14 Ultra to get remotely usable nighttime footage when the lights drop. For any vloggers who want 4K selfie capture or ultra-wide, high-impact footage, the Nothing Phone (2a) Plus edges ahead of OnePlus.

OnePlus Nord 4 Additional Features

OnePlus's six-year fluency promise is a big sell for the Nord 4, but what does that actually mean? The phone launches with Android 14, and OnePlus will push four major OS updates, taking it all the way up to Android 18. You can get buy with an out-of-date version of Android, though, especially if you have the latest security patches, so OnePlus promises six years of security updates. The final piece to the fluency puzzle is certification from a third-party that after six years of simulated typical use, the Nord 4 still runs smoothly.

An addendum to OnePlus's promise: the Nord 4 has the biggest battery of any of its main competitors, which should also reduce the noticeable effects of battery degradation. This adds another string to the phone's six-year fluency promise.

This is an excellent start for a phone at the Nord 4's price, and the fact the core experience is smooth builds on this. OnePlus does load up some handy 'AI' features on the Nord 4, so it's able to read webpages out loud and summarise them, or transcribe and summarise voice recordings. All these features worked well.

Performance from the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 chipset was reliably competitive, playing back demanding games at medium graphics settings relatively well, and the phone's 256GB or 512GB storage gives you plenty of room for content. There is no microSD card or eSIM, though the dual-SIM slot does support two physical SIM cards.

Thanks to a large 5,500mAh battery, the OnePlus Nord 4 comfortably lasts a full day of heavy use and two days of light use. There's no wireless charging, but we wouldn't expect it at the phone's price. Fast 100W charging powers up the phone in around 30 minutes, making it very convenient to quickly top up in a pinch.

OnePlus Nord 4 Verdict

The OnePlus Nord 4 is a very balanced phone. Everything about it is good to great, including the camera experience, despite it missing out on a quality ultra-wide and 4K-recording selfie camera.

What makes the Nord 4 such a smart buy is how geared it is to last for a long time. Anyone who hates updating their smartphone and doesn't need the very best camera could pick this up and – if OnePlus's promise holds-up – hang onto it for six years.

So while it isn't the best camera phone of 2024, the Nord 4 could be the most sensible option on the market. It won't break the bank, has plenty of storage, power, interesting styling, a great screen, and fantastic battery life.

For anyone who needs 4K video across all front and rear cameras, the Nothing Phone (2a) Plus is a smart choice. Gamers who want more grunt, the Poco F6 and F6 Pro are powerful alternatives. And if you want to spend a bit more on a more robust camera system, the Pixel 8a could edge ahead while also bundling in wireless charging, though it will force you to take a big hit on storage, and its primary camera's video is actually weaker than that of the Nord 4.

The 108MP camera phone may now be old news, being initially popularized by the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G back in 2020. But since then we've seen 108MP primary cameras trickle down to ever-cheaper handsets, and now Xiaomi has included a 108MP snapper in its latest budget offering, the Redmi 13 - a sub-$200 phone.

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The exact sensor is Samsung's ISOCELL HM6. At 1/1.67" in size, it's significantly smaller than some of the 108MP chips in high-end handsets, though it's still capable of 3x on-sensor lossless zoom and uses 9-in-1 pixel binning in its default shooting mode.

The primary camera is flanked by a 2MP macro camera, but being a budget phone, there's no ultrawide module and video is capped at 1080p. The Redmi 13 does get a selfie camera upgrade though: a 13MP front-facing module replaces the 8MP chip in last year's Redmi 12.

The selfie camera sits within a large 6.79" IPS LCD display running at 1080x2460 resolution, giving a pixel density of 396ppi. The 90Hz screen is protected by Gorilla Glass and is capable of up to 550-nit brightness.

The Redmi 13 is powered by a 5030mAh battery and is capable of 33W fast charging - another upgrade over the 18W charging speed offered by the Redmi 12. The phone runs a Mediatek Helio G91 Ultra 8-core chipset and is available in storage/RAM configurations of 128GB/6GB, 128GB/8GB and 256GB/8GB. Storage can be expanded using the onboard microSD slot, compatible with cards up to 1TB. There's also a 3.5mm headphone jack, and the Redmi 13 has IP53-rated dust and water protection.

Four color options are available: Midnight Black, Sandy Gold, Pearl Pink and Ocean Blue, with prices starting from $180/€200.

Motorola has announced its Edge 50 Fusion, Edge 50 Pro, and Edge 50 Ultra, three sleek smartphones with curved screens, striking style, and the freshest Moto cameras around. In addition to the phones, the company's partnership with Pantone across both screen and camera colour calibration is also noteworthy, and the Edge 50 Pro and Ultra also offer Google's auto-enhance photo processing in-camera for automatically pumped-up shots.

Motorola has long been a reliable choice for anyone looking for excellent value, especially when it comes to design, display, and performance. However, its smartphone cameras have struggled to compete above the $/£350 mark with stiff competition from the likes of Nothing, OnePlus and Redmi.

Having spent some time with the Edge 50 Pro, it looks like Moto's photo processing has taken a step in the right direction and embraced computational photography with a degree of finesse. Our Motorola Edge 50 Pro review is in the works, so check back for that in the coming days, but for now, let's deep-dive into the Edge 50 Series in a bit more detail...

Motorola Edge 50 Ultra

Whichever Motorola Edge 50 you pick up, in the display settings is a color mode that's Pantone Validated, and it's aptly called Natural. If you do opt for the Ultra, its display is a 6.7-inch 1220p panel with a crisp 446 pixel-per-inch pixel density, making it relatively large and as sharp as it needs to be.

With its silky 144Hz refresh rate, the Edge 50 Ultra's screen is smoother than any mainstream flagship while also competing with 10-bit and 100% P3 color and a peak brightness of 2,500 nits.

Flip the phone around, and if you pick up the Peach Fuzz or Nordic Wood options, you're in for some standout styling, and it's also available in a more traditional Forest Grey color. All three color options are IP68 water and dust resistant.

Also around the back is the Edge 50 Ultra's triple camera system, with a 50MP main camera, a 50MP ultra-wide camera, and a 64MP periscope telephoto camera. 

The main camera's spec is most impressive with its 1/1.3-inch sensor size and f/1.6 aperture, while the ultra-wide camera's party trick is autofocus, so it can capture macro shots. As for the telephoto camera, its 3x zoom reach and f/2.4 aperture should combine to make it well-suited to portraits and product shots.

Motorola's also got high-resolution selfies covered with the front camera's 50MP sensor matched with an f/1.9 aperture, and whichever camera you use, turning on Google's auto-enhance feature will give your pictures extra polish.

Powered by the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 3, running Android 14 and with either 512GB or 1TB storage, while the Edge 50 Ultra isn't a shoo-in for best camera phone of 2024 based on its specs, it still looks competitive and packs plenty of highlights, not least of all that optional wood finish.

Motorola Edge 50 Pro

The Edge 50 Pro dials back the spec and price without downgrading the 50 Ultra's display, packing the same 6.7-inch, 144Hz 1220p screen, it looks standout at the phone's price.

The main areas the Edge 50 Pro pares things back are the cameras and performance, with the phone's 50MP main sensor sporting a smaller 1/1.55-inch sensor size matched with a very fast f/1.4 aperture and OIS. 

The Pro's ultra-wide camera has a 13MP resolution but still focuses up close to an object for macro snaps, and the 10MP telephoto camera isn't a periscope lens, but still captures with a 3x optical zoom and has OIS.

The Motorola Edge 50 Pro is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 from Qualcomm, matched with 12GB RAM and a generous 512GB storage. At its price, while it isn't too hard to find more power for less, you'll be hard-pressed to get 512GB storage in a package that looks as good as the Edge 50 Pro.

The Edge 50 Pro and Ultra both charge at up to 125W, come with high-speed chargers in the box, and also support up to 50W wireless charging.

Motorola Edge 50 Series prices and availability

The Motorola Edge 50 Ultra will be available in the UK and other European countries from mid-May for £849, approximately $1,055 / AU$1,650. The Edge 50 Pro is available right now for £599, approximately $750 / AU$1,165. 

Alongside the Edge 50 Ultra and Pro, Motorola also announced a lower-cost, dual-camera Edge 50 Fusion, set to launch in mid-May for £349, approximately $435/AU$680.

With Huawei and Xiaomi achieving huge success after partnering with Leica, OnePlus and OPPO's cameras becoming amongst the best around following their partnership with Hasselblad, and Vivo's Zeiss partnership producing one of the best camera phones of 2024 – the X100 Pro – Motorola's Pantone partnership could mark a turning point for its photography cred.

Check back in the coming week for our full review of the Motorola Edge 50 Pro, with our Edge 50 Ultra review to follow in May.

You’ve probably heard Samsung shouting about its new 200MP camera phone. Maybe I’m stuck in the dark ages – after all, a phone that’s five years old is a bit of a dinosaur – but I still do not see a need to upgrade from my humble iPhone 11. While 200MP camera phones sound impressive, I’m still not convinced that that many pixels are necessary – and as it turns out, you don’t get full use of them anyway.

Several camera phones of today boast sensors with megapixels well into the hundreds. Some of the best camera phones even have more megapixels than the highest resolution cameras, such as the Fujifilm GFX 100S, but that doesn’t mean you can take similar quality images. One of the biggest problems with 200MP camera phones such as the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra or the Redmi Note 13 Pro+ is that, while they boast these super-high megapixel sensors, the sensors are really small and you can’t actually produce 200MP photos unless you manage to find and turn on the setting. 

Once upon a time it seemed like megapixels were the only thing that could improve a sensor and the general census was, the more the better. That doesn’t seem to be the case these days, as Apple has proved time and time again. Despite fitting the iPhone 14 Pro and the iPhone 15 models with a 48MP sensor, most of the time you are still shooting at around 12MP – you have to enable a setting to shoot in 48MP resolution and, it turns out, it’s not all that special. 

If your ears pricked up when news first broke that Samsung was launching a 200MP camera phone, you’re not alone – but there are a few major things to consider. While a 200MP photo might sound like the best thing ever, in fact it limits your versatility. You can’t shoot in wide-angle, 3x or 10x telephoto modes, it takes up a lot more storage (a standard 12MP photo is max 5MB, whereas a 200MP photo can be as much as 50MB) and you don’t get to use any of the AI features which, arguably, will ensure a better final result. 

When looking at two images side-by-side, one shot at 12MP and one at 200MP on the same phone, there isn’t much difference between them. The 12MP looks like it has a bit more clarity and the 200MP presents more accurate colors, but there isn't much in it. Only as you zoom in and enlarge the shot do you start to appreciate the added quality of the 200MP image. But unless you’re printing photos bigger than a standard 6x4-inch print, you’re probably never going to benefit from all those extra megapixels. 

Camera phones have advanced massively over the last few years, and it isn’t enough to just increase the number of megapixels of a sensor to make it sellable. What impresses people now is smooth stabilization, AI-powered tools for removing objects, swapping faces and fixing blur, or having a camera that starts taking a photo before you’ve even pressed the shutter. 

Advertising a 200MP camera phone might sound good, but I’m not fooled. If I can still take perfectly good photos with my iPhone 11’s 12MP camera, I certainly feel no need to upgrade anytime soon – especially after finding out that the 48MP mode on the latest models isn’t even that good. I take hundreds of photos and already pay out for the 2TB storage plan on Google Photos – literally the last thing I need is to take photos that’ll take up even more space. 

Check out the best iPhones for photography and see how they compare to the best Android phone for photography – which, of course, includes some of the best Samsung phones.

Xiaomi has launched its next generation of Redmi phones, the Redmi Note 13 series. Historically, Redmi Note phones have been some of the best budget camera phones, offering respectable image quality in a keenly-priced handset. In recent years, as with many other things, prices have gradually increased with successive generations, but the new Redmi Note 13 phones are still designed to offer serious bang per buck.

Five different handsets make up the Redmi 13 line-up, with three being 'Pro' models. This trio shares the same 200MP, 1/1.4" primary rear-facing camera, equipped with a large f/1.65 aperture and OIS, while also being capable of up to 4x lossless zoom. Though not explicitly named, it's likely this sensor is the Samsung ISOCELL HP2 chip, due to its pixel count, and also Xiaomi's mention of Tetra2 pixel binning - a Samsung technology implemented in the ISOCELL HP2.

The Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G, Redmi Note 13 Pro 5G and Redmi Note 13 Pro also share the same 8MP ultrawide camera and 2MP macro camera, as well as a 16MP front-facing selfie cam.

Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G

The top-of-the-range Note 13 Pro+ 5G gets a 6.67" CrystalRes AMOLED display boasting a dynamic 120Hz refresh rate, 1800-nit peak brightness, 1.5K (2712 x 1220) resolution and Corning Gorilla Glass Victus scratch protection. Processing power comes from a MediaTek Dimensity 7200-Ultra SoC, powered by a 5,000mAh battery that supports 120W fast charging (a 120W charger is supplied with the phone). The Note 13 Pro+ 5G also features IP68 ingress protection and stereo speakers, but no headphone jack. The phone will be available in 8GB+256GB or 12GB+512GB RAM/storage configurations.

Redmi Note 13 Pro 5G

The Note 13 Pro 5G sits directly below the flagship Note 13 Pro+ in the range. It gets the same camera and screen specs, but only IP54 ingress protection. It is however slightly lighter, at 187g. The Note 13 Pro is powered by the slightly slower Snapdragon® 7s Gen 2 SoC, and has slower 67W wired charging (a 67W charger is supplied). Dual speakers are present, this time with a 3.5mm headphone jack. Like its flagship sibling, the Note 13 Pro 5G comes in 8GB+256GB or 12GB+512GB RAM+storage options.

Redmi Note 13 Pro

The 'standard' Note 13 Pro also shares the same camera set-up as its more premium stablemates, as well as the same sized (6.67") 120Hz display. However this runs at a lower 2400 x 1080 resolution, and has a lower 1300-nit peak brightness. The Note 13 Pro uses a MediaTek Helio G99-Ultra Soc, though again, it's also available in 8GB+256GB or 12GB+512GB configurations. Like the Note 13 Pro 5G, wired charging operates at a healthy 67W, a 67W charger is included with the phone, and you get a 3.5mm headphone jack.

Redmi Note 13 5G & Redmi Note 13

The base (non-Pro) models in the new Note 13 range - the Redmi Note 13 5G, and Redmi Note 13 - both use a 108MP primary camera, flanked by an 8MP ultra-wide module and a 2MP macro camera. Like the Redmi Note 13 Pro, both base-model phones feature a large 6.67" AMOLED display, also with a 120Hz variable refresh rate and a 2400 x 1080 resolution. Both phones use a 5000mAh battery supporting 33W wired charging, and both are supplied with a 33W wall charger.

Pricing and availability

The Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G comes in Midnight Black, Moonlight White, and Aurora Purple. The top-tier 12GB/512GB version will be priced at £449 / 499 EUR. If purchased on mi.com between January 18th-31st, buyers will also receive a free Redmi Watch 4 and Redmi Buds 5 as a gift with purchase.

The Redmi Note 13 Pro 5G is offered in Midnight Black, Ocean Teal, and Aurora Purple. The base 8GB/256GB version will be priced at £339 / 399 EUR, with availability on mi.com from January 18th.

Redmi Note 13 Pro comes in Midnight Black, Lavender Purple, and Forest Green, with two storage variants. Expect to pay £279 / 299 EUR for the 8GB/256GB version, though exact availability has yet to be confirmed.

Redmi Note 13 5G comes in Graphite Black, with two storage variants. The 8GB/256GB version will start from £279 / 200 EUR.

Redmi Note 13 comes in Midnight Black, Mint Green, and Ice Blue with three storage variants. The 6GB/128GB version is priced at £199 / 199 EUR, and goes on sale on January 18th.

We await details of US and Australian pricing.

It seems there's no limit to the number of different phone brands out there, and I've just discovered yet another: Red Magic. No, not Redmi, the Xiaomi sub-brand, and neither is this connected to Honor and its line of Magic phones. Nor is this some sort of offshoot from Red cinema cameras. In fact, Red Magic is a sub brand of Chinese phone manufacturer Nubia, itself an offshoot of Shenzhen tech giant ZTE. Red Magic - stylized as REDMAGIC - was devised in 2018 as a gaming phone sub brand, competing with the likes of Asus ROG phones.

Anyway, enough with the obscure phone history. Red Magic is about to reveal its latest gamer-centric phone, the Red Magic 9 Pro, set to launch on November 23rd. As yet little is known about the device specs, but a teaser image does reveal something moderately interesting: the phone has no camera bump. This 'feature' is rare amongst current high-end camera phones, as the drive towards ever-larger camera sensors necessitates physically bigger lenses to cover the increased sensor size. This then has the knock-on effect of bulging the camera out beyond the back of the phone. In most cases such a bulge/bump is fairly minimal, and rarely impacts the ergonomics or handling of the phone.

As for how Nubia has eliminated the camera bump from the 9 Pro; one answer could come from serial leak site Digital Chat Station. The phone is using a Samsung GN5 sensor, which is 1/1.57” in size - though far from 'small', this is also not a particularly large sensor, so is potentially easier to conceal completely within the thickness of the phone body. That said, the preceding Red Magic 8 Pro uses the same sized sensor, yet its trio of rear-facing cameras do protrude slightly from the phone's back panel. Either Nubia has managed to better conceal the cameras in the Magic 9 Pro, or it has simply increased the thickness of the whole phone so the bumps no longer stick out. Elsewhere, the Red Magic 9 Pro is rumored to incorporate the Samsung JN1 sensor in its ultrawide module - a 50 MP sensor with a 0.64um pixel size - and the phone could be powered by a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 SoC.

Story credit: GSMArena

Xiaomi has just unveiled the latest addition to its Redmi lineup of phones – the Redmi 12. Redmi is Xiaomi's sub-brand (one of many sub-brands) that recycles previous innovations from Xiaomi's flagship devices into more affordable models.

And affordable is the key word here, with the Redmi 12 costing just $149, which is quite frankly silly when you look at its specs sheet, which while won't blow you away, are impressive for a whole that costs less than twenty percent of an iPhone. There is a lot of competition for the best budget camera phone, and the Redmi 12 is staking its claim.

The Redmi 12 design follows other models in the range with a glass back and measures just 8.17mm thick. Somehow Xiaomi has still managed to fit three cameras into this cost-effective model, offering a large 50-megapixel main camera, as well as an 8-megapixel ultrawide camera, and a 2-megapixel macro camera, the latter of which is an interesting choice over a telephoto lens, which we assume is a cost-based decision.

The phone also has a few more premium design features including an IP53 rating to resist dust and splashes. The screen is also the largest on a Redmi phone, with a 6.79” FHD+ DotDisplay screen with a 2460x1080 resolution and a fast 90Hz Adaptive Sync refresh rate. The phone also has a 5000mAh battery, backed up with 18W fast charging, which Xioami claims can provide 23 days of standby, or 16 hours of watching videos.

Finally, the phone runs on a MediaTek Helio G88 processor, which isn't the fastest chip around, but should run day-to-day tasks smoothly. The phone can be purchased in Midnight Black, Sky Blue, and Polar Silver colorways, with either 4GB or 8GB of RAM, and 128GB or 256GB of storage space, although this can be expanded with the microSD card slot.

The Redmi 12 should be launching worldwide, and for once, this does actually include North America. The phone will be available for purchase starting on July 9 and will cost $149, which is roughly £120 or AU$220, although official pricing was not available at the time of writing.

Find out more about the best budget camera phones, or the best burner phones in our guides. Or if you are curious about what else is out there in the world of Android, check out your guide to the best Android phones.

The Galaxy A54 5G is Samsung's lower-cost alternative to the flagship Samsung Galaxy S23 series. Starting at $499 / £449 / AUS $699, the A54 isn’t quite half the S23’s price, but it isn’t far off. 

So what do you compromise when you opt for Samsung’s affordable series? The design is less premium for starters – there’s a plastic frame instead of a metal one on the S23. The Galaxy A54 5G also misses out on wireless charging and a flagship processor, and its entire camera system is stripped back too.

Samsung isn’t a total buzzkill, though, loading up the A54 with some serious highlights for the price. It’s water and dust resistant, has a great-looking screen, and its main camera packs OIS – hardly a given for a midrange phone.

Alternatives include the excellent Pixel 6a (and the rumored Pixel 7a when it drops, expected in May), the Nothing Phone (1), and past-gen devices like the iPhone 11 (128GB) and Oppo Find X2 Pro, which can be picked up for around the same price.

So while the Galaxy A54 5G may be a value-tastic Samsung phone, how does it fair against the best budget camera phones?

Samsung Galaxy A54 5G Design

When it comes to design, if the S23 was Lego, the A54 5G would be Duplo. It clearly speaks the same design language, but its styling is clunkier.

Weighing 202g and measuring 8.2mm thin, it’s far from the chunkiest phone in the shop, but its plastic frame and very simple styling slightly miss out on the maturity of alternatives like the Redmi Note 12 Pro or Pro Plus, or the Vivo V27.

Thanks to a Gorilla Glass 5 front and back, while there’s a clunkiness to the A54 5G, it’s still sandwiched in glass, so feels solid. And with IP67 water and dust resistance, it’s also one of the best-protected phones at its price.

Available in Lime, Graphite, Violet, and White, the A54 has a charm about it, even if its style and chunky plastic frame didn’t wow us.

Samsung Galaxy A54 5G Screen

With a 6.4-inch screen, Samsung keeps things conservative, making the A54’s display an easy-to-handle size that sits somewhere between the iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max.

It’s nice and sharp with a wide Full HD resolution (1080 x 2340), and thanks to its Super AMOLED technology and a high max brightness of 1000 nits, whether you’re watching content or swiping through photos, the screen beams brilliantly.

On the subject of content, the A54 5G supports HDR10+, so has a rich tonal range when playing back compatible content, and with a 120Hz refresh rate, feeds, and web pages also glide with buttery smoothness.

Samsung Galaxy A54 5G Camera Specs

With a triple camera system, the Galaxy A54 combines a well-specced 50MP main camera with a 12MP ultra-wide camera and a 5MP macro camera.

Going into a bit more detail, the 50MP main camera has an f/1.8 lens, phase-detection autofocus, and its sensor is a large 1/1.56”. While this won’t sound big compared to flagship phones, for the price, it’s respectable, so should deliver decent lowlight performance and even a shallow depth when subjects are less than a meter away.

The ultra-wide camera is 12MP, and the lens has an f/2.2 aperture and a 123˚ field of view. Finally, for the rear camera mix, there’s a 5MP, f/2.4 fixed-focus macro camera.

Selfies are taken on a 32MP camera which is nested in the top centre of the screen. It has an f/2.2 aperture lens with a 26mm field of view, and the sensor measures 1/2.8" – not too bad for a front camera.

As far as shooting modes go, there are all the usual suspects: Photo, Video, Portrait, Fun, Night, Pro, Pro Video, Single Take, Food, Panorama, Slow-mo, and Hyperlapse.

Unfortunately, Samsung’s A54 5G doesn’t support RAW shooting, whether in the Pro mode or third-party apps like Lightroom. This is especially frustrating for photographers as the phone has a habit of over-processing photos.

Samsung Galaxy A54 5G Camera Review

Samsung heavily processes photos. Its phones have stylized punchy saturation, boosted contrast and sharpening, and generally high exposure.

The look is more measured than Motorola’s photos, but the A54 5G definitely isn’t the most nuanced of camera phones, even at its price.

Don’t get us wrong, there’s plenty of good stuff here. The A54’s OIS and auto night mode really help its main camera when it comes to nighttime photography.

The large sensor does indeed deliver a beautifully shallow depth of field, and photos from the camera look Instagram-ready when captured in well-lit environments.

The main camera also has impressive dynamic range when you give it a steady hand. The phone seems to hold the shutter open a little longer to pull out details from highlights and shadows.

On a sunny day, the macro and ultra-wide cameras do an admirable job of capturing landscapes or high-impact close-up shots, though the macro camera isn't usable when the lights go down.

We also really like the A54 5G’s video. Super Steady Mode caps out at 1080p and does indeed capture super steady video – great for kids and specifically usable when there’s loads of light. At night, it pulls up extra noise, so will want to be avoided.

Standard Full HD 30fps video is more usable in darker environments and is still held together nicely with OIS and EIS – a great balance.

Unless you’ve got the phone on a tripod, you’ll want to avoid 4K 30fps and Full HD 60fps video due to limited to no stabilization at play.

Samsung Galaxy A54 Additional Specs

Just like the Galaxy S23 series, the A54 5G runs Android 13 with One UI 5.1. This isn’t a carbon copy of a flagship Galaxy experience – there’s no DeX, for example, Samsung’s desktop interface that projects from the phone.

Despite some compromises, though, the A54 5G has great Windows integration so you can see your access messages and us phone apps on a big screen, amongst other smart features.

While last year’s A53 was crippled by its terrible performance, this year, the Exynos 1380 powering the A54 does a good job of keeping things flowing for the most part.

The A54 5G's performance isn’t best-in-class – for not much more money than the 256GB A54 5G, you can pick up a RedMagic 8 Pro – a fantastic gaming phone. But at the very least, processor speeds don’t hold the phone back from being good enough, which was the case on last year's Galaxy A53 5G.

The phone’s available with 8GB RAM, and either 128GB or 256GB storage. It also has microSD card support, so you can easily bump that up, giving you plenty of room for apps on the phone, and photos and videos on a memory card.

To securely get into your phone, there’s an in-display fingerprint scanner which works well, and face recognition too, which uses the front camera.

With a huge 5000mAh battery and modest power and screen demands, it’s no wonder that the Galaxy A54 5G can easily last a day, possibly even two with light use.

The phone also has fast(ish) charging at 25W, so powers up fully in just under 90 minutes. Thankfully for anyone who needs a quick top-up, the first 50 percent can be had in a little under 30 minutes. As with iPhones, there’s no charging brick in the box, just the phone and a USB-C cable.

Unlike the S23 series, the A54 also misses out on wireless charging which isn’t unheard of at the price – the lower-cost Nothing Phone (1) has it, for example.

Samsung Galaxy A54 5G Verdict

Samsung’s A54 5G isn’t best Android phone around when it comes to style or power, and its camera system’s held back by some heavy processing. But if you can handle Samsung’s saturated, high-impact look, then it could be the best camera phone at the price for you.

The fact it combines optical image stabilization with a large primary sensor means shots and videos look well held together, even at night. 

For anyone who wants a Galaxy S23-style UI, the A54 is also a great way of paying a little less but getting much of the same look and feel Samsung’s flagships offer.

The type of user who might feel frustrated with the A54 5G, however, is the slightly geeky photography fan who will want to either shoot in RAW, or have more pared-back, natural-looking processing in automatic mode to edit. If that's you, then you might fare well with a Redmi Note 12 Pro+ phone, for example. In fact, we'd go so far as to say, Samsung would do well to take a leaf out of Apple or Xiaomi’s book, and upon launching the camera app, ask users if they want more vivid or natural processing.

All said and done, though, the A54 5G is still a solid smartphone across the board, especially when you factor in that gorgeous display and its IP67 dust and water resistance.

Read More: Find out more about the latest and greatest Samsung phones in our guide to the best Samsung phone. Or for the rest of the smartphone world, read our guides to the best camera phone, the best Android phone for photography.

The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G may have one of the most longwinded names around, but its styling and price are easier to stomach as the phone hits shelves costing £299 (roughly $370 / AUS $540), despite packing 108MP resolution imaging, 5G data speeds, and nippy fast charging.

Don't get us wrong, there are some telltales off the bat that OnePlus's latest entrant is a budget phone. It misses out on the OLED screen tech of some similarly priced competition like the Poco X4 Pro, and its specs echo those of 2022 phones like the Redmi Note 11 Pro.

The Nord CE 3 Lite also misses out on an ultra-wide camera, a staple, even at its price. So with its dated specs and pared-back camera, should OnePlus's latest Nord blip your radar, or is it dead on arrival?

OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G: design and Screen

If you like big phones and modest prices, then the CE 3 Lite checks those boxes. The big screen measures 6.72 inches, and the phone has a flat frame that adds heft in the hand.

While the back's plastic, it looks like glass from a distance, with a curve that rounds off into the matte frame, which is also plastic. We prefer its styling to competing phones like the Poco X5 Pro 5G, especially in its green color option, which looks striking.

The fact the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite includes a headphone jack is handy, and there's also a USB-C port at the base alongside one of two speakers for expansive sound from such an affordable phone.

On the right of the phone is a responsive fingerprint scanner which doubles up as a power button, and on the left is a SIM tray complete with a microSD card slot, and volume buttons.

Flip the phone around and OnePlus's dual-ring camera design looks confident set against the light-colored back panel, with the top ring housing the primary 108MP camera, and the macro camera and depth sensor in the lower ring.

Despite its hefty size, the Nord CE 3 Lite 5G isn't too heavy, weighing 195g. With its 20:9 aspect ratio and relatively chunky bezels above and below the screen, it is tall, though, so anyone who doesn't fancy stretching to reach the top of their phone screen might want to look elsewhere.

On paper, the worst thing about the Nord CE 3 Lite 5G could be the fact OnePlus opts for an LCD screen rather than an AMOLED panel found on much of the competition. Even at its budget price, handsets like the Redmi Note 12 which cost less pack AMOLED display tech, so it isn't easy to argue away. 

Practically speaking, an LCD screen's blacks are less deep, and colors less vibrant. They are less likely to sport HDR credentials because their contrast ratio and brightness tend to fall short, especially at the budget end of the market. 

While the Nord CE 3 Lite's expansive screen does look good, therefore, with its smooth, adaptive 120Hz refresh rate, and its crisp 2400 x 1080 resolution, it falls short of being best-in-class by some margin.

With a peak brightness of 680 nits, in most environments, you should be able to see what's on-screen easily, and in our testing in London (UK), even when the sun was out we didn't run into any viewability issues. Still, if you live somewhere exceptionally sunny, competing Redmi and Poco phones offer higher peak brightness and should be easier to see outdoors.

OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G: camera specs

The 108MP sensor powering the Nord CE 3 Lite's main camera is a Samsung HM6, clocking in at 1/1.67" in size, and by default, capturing 12MP images with nine-in-one pixel combining (also known as pixel binning). 

There's no OIS, which is unsurprising at the phone's price point, though OnePlus does highlight that EIS is present, and the phone also offers a 3x lossless zoom. This bypasses pixel binning to achieve this, making it lossless at 12MP, not 108MP. 

The phone also packs a dedicated 2MP macro camera, which is fun for creative shots, especially on a sunny day when you can experiment with lens flare – see below. If you want quality results, though, it will let you down, especially when the lights drop.

Video is captured at up to Full HD resolution across both the front and rear cameras,  which is lower than we'd expect at the price. In our tests, though, footage from the camera looks competitive, and you can get some striking shallow depth when filming close-up objects.

OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G: camera samples

OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G: additional features

Powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G chipset, the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite should run with similarly mediocre performance to the Poco X4 Pro, which packs the same internals. But we actually found the phone to be seriously smooth in our time with it. 

Whether playing back Marvel Snap, powering through Twitter, or even playing Genshin Impact on low graphics settings, OnePlus has done great work optimizing the interface to eke out smooth results from the modest processor.

Running Android 13 with OnePlus's OxygenOS 13.1, the interface is clean and app support is great. There's also 8GB RAM inside, and up to 8GB virtual RAM (borrowed from the internal storage), and with up to 256GB storage and SD card support, you likely won't miss it.

The final piece to the confusing puzzle that is the CE 3 Lite is a large 5000mAh battery. It lasts for ages, charges quickly at 67W, and you get a fast charger in the box, so can hit the ground running without needing to buy any additional accessories.

OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G early verdict

After four days of using the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite, it just shouldn't be as fun to use as it is. We know there are better value options elsewhere packing superior camera mixes and AMOLED screens with more punch and brightness.

OnePlus's pared-back photo processing and its software optimization really are the CE 3 Lite's saving graces, as is its fun, zingy styling in green. 

We're not far off wrapping up our tests and turning this into a full review, so check back in the coming week to see if OnePlus's latest low-cost handset ends up being one of the best budget camera phones of 2023.

Xiaomi has just launched no less than four new Redmi phones: the 200MP Note 12 Pro Plus, the 50MP Note 12 Pro, the 48MP Note 12 5G and the 50MP Note 12. All are relatively affordable when compared to top-end handsets like the Apple iPhone 14 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, but they pack competitive imaging hardware – especially the top two Note 12s – the 12 Pro Plus and 12 Pro.

Starting with the Note 12 Pro Plus, this £449 (roughly $550 / AU$820) phone is the lowest-cost handset to ship with a 200MP camera sensor to date. This may be the same resolution as Xiaomi’s 200MP 12T Pro, or Motorola’s Edge 30 Ultra, but the new Redmi phone doesn’t sport the exact same camera sensor. Instead of the large 1/1.22-inch 200MP sensor we’ve seen in the past, the more affordable Note 12 Pro Plus introduces a smaller 1/1.4-inch sensor, resulting in 0.56-micron pixels. Still respectable for the price, especially considering the lens features optical image stabilization (OIS), it will be interesting to see how this fresh sensor stacks up.

Other highlights of the phone that are missing in the non-plus Redmi Note 12 Pro are the glass back panel, and its super-fast 120W charging, powering up the phone in around 20 minutes.

Onto the Note 12 Pro, and its main camera is a 50MP resolution module powered by the tried and tested IMX766 – the same camera sensor featured in the Oppo Find X5 Pro. Measuring 1/1.56-inch, while not the largest sensor around, the Note 12 Pro’s main camera does pack OIS – great for the price, and at £339 / roughly $420 / AU $625, it should be one of, if not the best budget camera phones on the market.

Both phones feature identical secondary cameras. Their ultra-wide modules feature 8MP sensors and f/2.2 aperture lenses as well as 2MP fixed-focus macro cameras. There’s also a 16MP punch-hole selfie camera on both too, sporting an f/2.45 aperture. 

More than just their cameras, the Pro and Pro Plus pack large 6.67-inch screens with AMOLED display tech and support for Dolby Vision, as well as IP53 splash-resistant bodies and Gorilla Glass protection on the front.

MediaTek Dimensity 1080 power means a significant bump up in performance versus last year’s Redmi Note 11 Pro and its Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G, and with ample 5000mAh batteries, we’re definitely impressed by everything Xiaomi’s packed into its latest Redmi phones.

We’ve got both devices in for review, so check back to see how those punchy cameras stack up, and whether these budget bangers can take the fight to some of the best camera phones on the scene right now.

Read more:
• Best Xiaomi phones
• Best Android phones
• Best budget camera phones

The mid-range camera phone market just got an upgrade with the unveiling of the Xiaomi 12T series, which boasts the covetable combination of middling prices and some top-end specs. The star of the show is the Xiaomi 12T Pro which has a whopping 200MP main camera and 120W charging. Meanwhile the standard 12T also looks very good and shares most specs, albeit comes with a 108MP main camera and different chip. 

Xiaomi 12T Pro

The headline specification on the Xiaomi 12T Pro is undoubtedly its 200MP primary camera, only matched by the Moto X30 Pro / Motorola Edge 30 Ultra – so many megapixels for a smartphone. Surprisingly, the huge main sensor is joined by just a paltry 8MP ultra-wide and a 2MP macro. 

Xiaomi promises a pro grade photography experience with “high clarity, strong night photography, and quick focusing” – we can’t wait to get it on test. Lastly, there’s a very respectable 20MP front-facing selfie snapper. 

A top-end Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 chipset powers the Xiaomi 12T Pro and there is a 6.67-inch 1220 x 2712 AMOLED screen, with a 120Hz refresh rate – great specs for a mid-ranger! There’s also a large 5,000mAh battery with the other highlight; 120W charging which gives a full charge in just 19 minutes! 

Xiaomi 12T

The standard Xiaomi 12T isn’t vastly different from its Pro sibling, but you will have to make to with a (still huge) 108MP main camera. The chipset has also been downgraded to the MediaTek Dimensity 8100 Ultra, but again that’s still very decent. Other than that the only other notable spec difference is that the sound isn’t sound tuned by Harman Kardon, as it is on the Pro model – other differences are negligible. 

Price and availability 

Both the Xiaomi 12T and 12T Pro come in a choice of black, silver or blue colorways and will be available in the UK from October 20. The 12T series won’t be officially launched in the US and there’s currently no word on if they’ll launch in Australia either. 

The Xiaomi 12T 8+128G variant has an RRP of £499 and the 8+256G variant has an RRP of £549. If you buy one between October 20 – 24, you can take advantage of Xiaomi’s early bird pricing of £399 and £499 respectively. 

Moving on to the flagship 12T Pro, the RRP is £699, and Xiaomi is also running an early bird offer on this model between October 20-24 where you can get one for £599 and also receive a new Redmi Pad gift. 

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After the success of the excellent value Redmi Note 10 Pro, Xiaomi hopes its successor, the Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G will build on the line's success. With stiff competition from the Realme 9 series, which includes the budget camera phone champion of the moment – the Realme 9 Pro Plus, it's a tight race for the title of best budget camera phones of 2022.  

The appeal of the Note 11 Pro 5G goes beyond its 108MP camera. The phone sports an impressively specced screen, a good-looking design with a glass back, and charges incredibly quickly for a low-cost phone, with 67W charging. Setting you back £319 (around $400) though, it's more expensive than the Note 10 Pro was when it launched, and the identically specced Poco X4 Pro 5G costs a bit less too.

So should you even be considering the outclassed-at-launch Realme 11 Pro 5G when other phones, including the mighty Poco F3 offer more power and a lower price? Or does the Note 11 Pro strike that sweet spot of affordability, premium design and a good enough feature set?

Also see: Best budget camera phone of 2022

Redmi Note 11 Pro: Design and screen

A mixture of glass and plastic, the Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G adds a frosted finish and more premium materials to the line. It also makes it a touch less elegant than the Note 10 Pro, swapping out a curved back for a flat sheet.

While the Poco X4 Pro 5G is glossy, so loves clinging onto fingerprints, the Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G's matte back doesn't get as smudged. There's also a case in the box, a pre-fitted screen protector on the front and IP53 certification, so while not waterproof, the phone can handle a splash.

Bringing back the 3.5mm headphone port, Xiaomi's Note 11 Pro 5G is a good choice for wired headphone lovers, and there's also an IR blaster, so it can control a TV or sound system using the pre-installed Mi Remote app. 

The phone's USB-C port is at the bottom alongside a dual-SIM slot, there's a volume rocker too, and the power button doubles up as a fingerprint scanner.

Despite being made of more premium materials than last year's Redmi Note 10 Pro, we prefer the 10 Pro over the 11 Pro 5G when it comes to design. It crams in just as big a battery and a killer screen while feeling more elegant in hand, and despite missing out on a frosted glass back, still looks and feels great. 

That's not to say we aren't fans of the Redmi 11 Pro 5G. It's rich to the touch, great for the price – significantly more refined than the Poco X4 Pro 5G. Xiaomi just set the bar very high with its excellent Note 10 Pro.

As for the screen – it's very good for the price, with its punchy AMOLED panel and smooth 120Hz refresh rate. It's big at 6.67 inches, and with wide Full-HD resolution, competitively sharp. Bright and vibrant too, the Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G is a perfect phone for watching on, so will be especially suited to folks who need a media player from their mobile.

Redmi Note 11 Pro: Camera specs

When the 108MP Note 10 Pro launched, it brought a massive (for a budget phone) 1/5.2 sensor to an affordable device for the first time. A year on and the Note 11 Pro 5G brings back this same sensor, which isn't a bad thing – but it isn't quite the same wow it once was. Matched with an f/1.9 lens, it captures 12MP stills by default. Most disappointing is the fact last year's Note 10 Pro shot 4K footage, but the Note 11 Pro caps out at 1080p. 

On the plus, this 108MP camera does feature a larger sensor than found in the Realme 9 – and without ruining the camera verdict, is unsurprisingly a better performer.

The 8 MP ultra-wide camera is powered by a decent Sony IMX 355 sensor and has an f/2.2 lens with a 118˚ field of view, and the 2MP fixed-focus macro camera uses a tiny GalaxyCore GC02M1 sensor (1/5"). Selfies are shot on a small 16MP OmniVision sensor with measuring 1/3.06", matched with an f/2.4 lens.

Shooting modes go beyond the standard Photo, Portrait, Video, Night and Pro modes to include 108MP, Short video, Panorama, Document, Slow motion, Time-lapse, Long exposure and Dual video modes.

Redmi Note 11 Pro: Camera performance

We liked the Redmi Note 10 Pro's camera a lot. Sure, it had no OIS but matched with a steady hand, it could get some stellar shots, and its RAW photo capture helped it really stand out for photography enthusiasts. 

You can imagine our disappointment to find out that the Note 11 Pro 5G misses out on RAW capture, unless you install a third-party app, like Manual Camera. Even with a third-party app, the phone captures 12MP RAW photos, rather than 108MP true RAW images.

The phone still takes good-looking photos, packed with detail, and also captures respectable dynamic range. Contrast is high, sharpening is aggressive, and with the 108MP camera producing 12MP photos, reverse engineering this processing is pretty destructive. 

GSM Arena mentions in its camera tests that shooting in 108MP mode gives enthusiasts more wiggle room when editing their photos, and we found this to be true. As you can see from the example below, we could extract a lot of shadow and color detail from a full-resolution photo. 

Even if you just want to shoot in auto mode, the Redmi Note 11 Pro will take a great photo outdoors. Portraits are realistic, with more Panasonic-like, cool characteristics than Canon's warmer take on skin tones. Detail is fair too. 

The camera sensors are capable of respectable levels of dynamic range, though Xiaomi's photo processing dials this back on first impression with its high contrast. White balance was accurate in our tests, and across the two sensors, color-matching was fair, artificial lighting and low light, in general, is where the wide and ultra-wide camera start showcasing different colors.

Whether you fire up night mode or not, the Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G outperforms cheaper competition like the Realme 9 and Realme 9 5G. Its noise handling is exceptional for the price, and while in automatic mode there's a natural darkness to photos, in night mode, you can grab some more exposed low-light photos that take advantage of computational photography. 

It's a real shame the Redmi Note 11 Pro's video caps out at 1080p 30fps, because its footage doesn't look bad, and we know its 108MP sensor is capable of 4K capture. 

Despite no OIS, the EIS does a fine job of holding a frame steady, and that extends to selfie video too, which holds up well in bright scenes – ultimately making the Redmi Note 11 Pro a good camera phone, but not an excellent one.

Redmi Note 11 Pro: Additional specs

With its Snapdragon 695 5G, the Redmi Note 11 Pro isn't the mightiest phone at its price, though with an ample 6GB RAM and 128GB storage, and a memory card slot, you still have some flagship-grade numbers in the mix.

The high refresh rate helps the phone look and feel fast, with slowdown only occasionally creeping in. Xiaomi’s interface, MIUI, which sits on top of Android 11 is heavy, so fans of a more stock Android experience should look to phones from Motorola or Nokia.

As for gaming and processor-intensive tasks, image editing in Lightroom wasn't too painful, even when exporting large 108MP photos. Gaming is a bit more of a grind, especially when playing top-tier titles like Genshin Impact – minimum graphics settings only. 

Despite this, 2D titles, including the new Streets of Rage 4, which many would argue is the pinnacle of 2D mobile gaming played back great on the phone. 

Xiaomi includes a giant 5,000mAh battery in the Realme Note 11 Pro, and it performed exceptionally, lasting a full day with about 30-40 percent remaining. Conservative use could easily eke out two days from it, and with fast 65W charging, it also powers up in a little over 45 minutes. 

Redmi Note 11 Pro: verdict

The Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G is a disappointment when compared to its predecessor, but that doesn't make it a bad phone. Its design feels premium, its screen is exceptionally good. Video played back on it looks and sounds great, helped along by those stereo speakers, and its battery life is brilliant too.

The phone's camera is good, and it's even good for the price, but this isn't another five-star camera phone like last year's Redmi Note 10 Pro was. Instead, it's a confident four-star option that offers decent bang for buck in all areas, but loses out to the likes of Realme's 9 Pro Plus and the OnePlus Nord 2 when it comes to pure camera quality. 

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If it were later in the year, we might be thinking it was an April Fools’ Day joke, but alas Xiaomi really has silently launched the Xiaomi Redmi 10 2022 smartphone with no improvements over its predecessor. In fact, the 2022 model is actually a worse phone as it comes with less memory and lacks the triple card slot seen in the Redmi 10. 

Xiaomi Redmi 10 2022: Specifications 

As per the Xiaomi Redmi 10, the Xiaomi Redmi 10 2022 is powered by a MediaTek Helio G88 chipset, features a 6.5-inch LCD with 90Hz refresh rate and 5,000mAh battery with 18W charging. The phone(s) have a side-mounted fingerprint scanner, stereo speakers and come with a headphone jack.

Camera wise, the Xiaomi Redmi 10 2022, and indeed the Xiaomi Redmi 10, has a 50MP main camera on the rear, together with an 8MP ultrawide sensor and two 2MP modules for macro and depth. 

The new phone will ship with MIUI 12.5 based on Android 11, matching its predecessor and is available in the same colours as its predecessor: Carbon Gray, Pebble White and Sea White.

Xiaomi Redmi 10 2022 v Redmi 10

The Xiaomi Redmi 10 2022 comes in 4GB RAM/64GB storage and 4GB RAM/128GB storage, where as the original Redmi 10 has a 6GB RAM option. For a reason currently unfathomable to us, Xiaomi has removed the Dual SIM and dedicated microSD card slot for the Xiaomi Redmi 10 2022. Where these are the the original, this year’s model has a SIM card slot and a hybrid slot that supports nano SIMs and microSD cards instead. Everything else is identical. 

There's no word on pricing yet but Redmi currently has the Redmi 10 on sale at £129 (4GB + 64GB) / £149 (4GB + 128GB) so that gives us a good indication.

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Redmi has confirmed the K50 series launch date for 16 February, where it is expected that the company will launch four new smartphones, which will succeed the Redmi K40 series. Now, Redmi has now also shared a poster for the event on social media, which tips the design of the upcoming Redmi K50 Gaming Edition smartphone, which is tipped to feature Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 SoC and a powerful haptics engine.

Redmi K50 Gaming Edition

The Xiaomi sub-brand shared three promotional images, with one revealing the Redmi K50 Gaming Edition's design, on Chinese social media site, Weibo. From this we can see that the smartphone has retained the shoulder triggers and that next to the triple camera set-up there is a lightning bolt-shaped flash module. Additionally, we can see the island has the words "Freezing" and "Speediest" written on its sides. Translated from Chinese, Redmi is calling the K50 Gaming Edition a "cold-blooded flagship” but hasn’t given any details away. 

According to previous rumours, the Redmi K50 Gaming Edition may feature a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 SoC chip, which is as we’d expect. It’s also tipped to come with a powerful new ultra-wideband CyberEngine haptic engine. 

Turning our attention back to the K50 series in general, we expect the Redmi K50 to be powered by a Snapdragon 870 SoC, the Redmi K50 Pro by a MediaTek Dimensity 8000 and the Redmi K50 Pro+ by a MediaTek Dimensity 9000 SoCs, as this was listed on a certification website. 

To date, Redmi has not officially revealed any K50 series specifications, nor given any information on pricing. The Redmi K50 series launch, scheduled for February 16, will be held in China and begin at 7pm local time. As that’s still over a week away, Redmi may well share more teasers beforehand to build a buzz. 

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The Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 global launch happened today, following a slew of teasers and launches in China and India last year. The new budget phone line-up consists of four phones – the Redmi Note 11, Redmi Note 11S, Redmi Note 11 Pro, and Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G – and we are pleased to see some great camera specifications in the mix. 

Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G

At the top of Redmi’s new budget series is the Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G, which features a 6.67-inch FHD+ AMOLED display rated at 120Hz, Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 processor and 5,000mAh battery with 67W wired charging. 

The Note 11 Pro 5G’s camera set-up consists of a Samsung ISOCELL HM2 108MP main sensor, 8MP ultra-wide, and 2MP macro, with a 16MP selfie camera up front. It will come in 6/8GB RAM and 64/128GB internal storage versions, with microSD card support up to 1TB. It will come in Graphite, Gray, Polar White, and Star Blue colorways. 

Redmi Note 11 Pro

The Redmi Note 11 Pro shares a lot of the same specifications as the Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G, but there are differences besides the 5G connectivity. The Redmi Note 11 Pro has the same 6.67-inch FHD+ AMOLED display rated at 120Hz and same 5,000mAh battery with 67W wired charging, but comes with a MediaTek Helo G96 processor. 

The Redmi Note 11 Pro has a quad rear camera setup with the same 108MP main sensor, together with an 8MP ultra-wide, 2MP macro, and 2MP depth sensor. The same 6/8GB RAM and 64/128GB internal storage versions (with microSD card support up to 1TB) as the 5G model will be available and it will come in Graphite Gray, Polar White, and Atlantic Blue.

Redmi Note 11S

Sitting below the Redmi Note 11 Pro, and Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G, but above the Note 11 in the line-up is the Redmi Note 11S. This budget phone is powered by a MediaTek Helio G96 processor, has a 6.43-inch FHD+ 90Hz display and 5,000mAh battery with 33W fast charging. 

Camera set-up consists of a 108MP main sensor, 8MPl ultra-wide, 2MP macro, and 2mp depth sensor, with a 16MP selfie camera on the front. The Note 11S will come in 6/8GB RAM, and 64/128GB combinations, with internal storage with microSD card support up to 1TB. It will come in Graphite Gray, Twilight Blue, and Pearl White.

Redmi Note 11

The quartet of new phones is completed with the entry-level Note 11, which comes with a 6.43-inch FHD+ 90Hz display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 680 processor and 5,000mAh battery with 33W fast charging. The Redmi Note 11 has a 50MP main sensor, 8MP ultra-wide, 2MP macro, and MP depth sensor on the back and up front is a central punch-hole 13MP selfie camera. Security is via a fingerprint scanner and the phone will come as 4/6GB RAM and 64/128GB of storage variants, with microSD card support taking that up to 1TB. It's set to come in Graphite Gray, Twilight Blue, and Star Blue.

All four new budget phones will ship MIUI 13 on top of Android 11 – nothing has been mentioned about Android 12. 

Redmi Note 11 Series: Price and availability

The success of the Redmi Note 11 Series will depend largely on pricing and it’s looking good with prices set to start at $179/£132 for the Note 11, $249/£184 for the Note 11S, $299/£221 for the Note 11 Pro and finally $329/£243 for the Note 11 Pro 5G. 

We expect to see the phones in selected regional markets, including the UK but excluding the US, in the next few weeks. 

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Redmi India has confirmed, via a teaser on Twitter, that the Redmi Note 11S will launch on February 9. Xiaomi sub-brand, Redmi, has also teased that the new smartphone will have quad rear cameras and used the tagline “Join us as we gear up to #setthebar”. 

The official teaser shows the back of the Redmi Note 11S, which reveals its quad rear camera setup, that appears to have a 108-megapixel primary sensor. Interestingly, the new smartphone shows no 5G branding on its back, so we are unsure whether Redmi have decided to buck the trend for budget phones that come complete with 5G connectivity and stick with 4G instead. 

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Redmi Note 11S features 

Redmi hasn’t confirmed the Note 11S’s specifications, but the phone has been subject to the rumor mill for some time now. Past rumors suggest the camera set-up will consist of the 108MP Samsung ISOCELL HM2 primary sensor, along with an 8MP Sony IMX355 sensor with an ultra-wide lens, a 2MP Omnivision OV2A macro camera, and a 2MP depth sensor. It’s also tipped to come with an AMOLED display.

After Xiaomi started teasing the launch of the Redmi Note 11S in India earlier this month some alleged renders appeared. If these are to be believed, we can see that the phone may come with a centrally aligned hole-punch camera at the front.

The new camera phone, which recently appeared on certification listings including Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and Thailand's National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) is said to come in three configurations available: 6GB RAM/64GB storage, model alongside a 6GB RAM /128GB storage and an 8GB/128GB storage version. 

Xiaomi is set to host the Redmi Note 11 series global launch on 26 January, where we expect to see the new variants of the Redmi Note 11 4G, Redmi Note 11 5G and Redmi Note 11 Pro and Redmi Note 11 Pro+. It’s expected that these phones will vary from the Redmi Note 11 series launched in China last year.

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Xiaomi took to Twitter to announce the good news that the Redmi Note 11 Series is set to launch globally on 26 January, claiming the new phone is “ready to #RiseToTheChallenge!” The news comes after the Chinese company initially launched the budget smartphone for its home market on 11 on 28 October, when it was hoped a worldwide release would follow. 

Redmi Note 11 Specs 

Coming with a 6.6-inch LCD screen featuring 1080 x 2400 resolution and a 90Hz refresh rate, the Redmi Note 11 has quite low LCD tech and refresh rate, compared to other phones on the market – but let’s remember this is a budget buy. 

The Redmi Note 11 has two cameras on the back, a 50MP main camera joined by an 8MP ultra-wide and an16MP front-facing punch-hole camera for selfies. Battery wise it packs a whopping 5,000mAh power pack, which charges at 33W – a little slow compared to the best budget camera phones. 

Looking virtually the same as the two Pro models, the Redmi Note 11 features nice, curved edges. It’s IP53 rated against dust and moisture and has a side-mounted fingerprint scanner and comes in black, blue and green. Nothing is known on price at the moment, but we would expect it to be £250 or less, going by pricing for its predecessor. 

Two phone launch 

The teaser shows two phones, so it’ll be interesting to see which phone launches along with the Redmi Note 11. In China, Xiaomi launched three Redmi 11 models: the Note 11, Note 11 Pro and Note 11 Pro+. The main difference between the pro models is the Pro+ has 120W charging rather 67W, but on the flipside the Pro has a bigger battery.

Watch the launch live 

The launch will be live steamed at 7am (EST) / 12 midday (GMT) on 26 January, on the Xiaomi website and official Twitter and Facebook pages, meaning everyone can enjoy it as it unfolds – there’s even a reminder function, via the website. 

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Xiaomi has announced the Redmi Note 11 Pro Plus, where the standout feature is the 5G camera phone’s 120W fast charging, which shows the 4,500 mAh battery who is boss by charging to full capacity in about 15 minutes. At the launch event, Xiaomi demonstrated just how breathtakingly fast this is by having a performer on stage holding his breath for 15 minutes and 5 seconds, while a Redmi Note 11 Pro Plus was charging. 

Redmi Note 11 Pro Plus Camera 

The main 108MP camera on the Redmi Note 11 Pro Plus features a Samsung HM2 sensor is borrowed from the predecessor Redmi Note 10 Pro. An 8MP ultrawide camera with 120 degree field of view and a 2MP telemacro camera, complete the setup on the back. There’s also a front-facing camera with 16MP sensor, which shows itself with a very small selfie camera punch-hole on the front, measuring just 2.96mm in diameter.

The new phone has decent specs all round and is powered by a Dimensity 920 chipset and comes in 6/128GB, 8/128GB and 8/256GB memory versions. The front panel is a 6.67” AMOLED screen with 120Hz refresh rate and 360Hz touch sampling rate. The new phone has a 3.5mm audio jack, JBL-tuned stereo speakers and two 0.65 cubic mm audio chambers on sides, to enhance sound.

Redmi 11 Pro & Redmi Note 11

Alongside the Redmi Note 11 Pro Plus, Xiaomi also introduced the Redmi 11 Pro – which is identical aside from the Plus model offers the 120W fast charging, while the Pro has 67W charging and has a larger 5,160mAh battery – so still a very decent option. The more affordable Redmi Note 11 completed the manufacturer's trio of new phones released in China. 

Pricing and availability

The Redmi Note 11 Pro Plus will be available from November 5, in Black, Aurora Gradient, Violet and Forest Green colors, with prices starting from CNY1,699 ($265). The Redmi Note 11 Pro will launch on the same day in Black, Aurora Gradient, Violet, or Forest Green colors, with prices starting from CNY1,699 ($265). We are awaiting to see which phones are released in other markets and when.

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The Redmi Note 10 5G (made by Xiaomi) feels like a direct response to the Realme 8 5G, given the fact both phones carry forward the same ethos – low-cost 5G with just one usable camera. There’s a lot more to them than just secondary camera sacrifices and fast mobile data though. 

The Redmi Note 10 5G is a big-screened smartphone with a smooth, 90Hz refresh rate display and some fun quirks you don’t usually see at the price, including an IR blaster for changing TV channels. Launching alongside a slew of low-cost 5G phones, including the OPPO A54 5G as well as the Realme 8 5G, it’s got some tough competition out of the gate. 

With its huge 5000mAh battery and iPhone-matching 18W fast-charging, not to mention up to 128GB storage, as a budget phone, its specs look on the money. Hardly the best camera phone of the year though, with pared-back secondary cameras, is its main camera at least good enough to deliver quality photos for the price?

Redmi Note 10 5G: Design and screen

The Redmi Note 10 5G is the best looking of the three budget 5G phones out now, beating out the OPPO A54 5G and Realme 8 5G thanks to its more matte, diffused finish. They’re all basically the same size, but the Redmi is the only one to feature a centered punch-hole selfie camera at the top, as opposed to a top-left positioned selfie camera. 

Measuring 8.92mm thin, and weighing 190g, the phone’s bulk is distinctly middle of the road for Androids, but on the larger side if you’re coming from an iPhone. All-plastic, the back of the phone curves into matte sides. At the top of the phone is a 3.5mm headphone jack and an IR blaster, and at the base is a USB-C port. All the buttons are to the right – a power button (which doubles up as a fingerprint scanner), and a volume rocker. As for color choices, you can pick the Redmi Note 10 5G up in Aurora Green, Chrome Silver, Graphite Gray, and Nighttime Blue. 

Combining a 6.5-inch screen size and a 1080 x 2400 resolution, the phone has an ample 405 pixels in every inch of display, making it nice and sharp. It’s also protected by Gorilla Glass 3 and has a smooth, 90Hz refresh rate. With a typical brightness of around 400 nits, viewing it in sunny environments isn’t always the easiest, and viewing angles could definitely be better – the 5G-free Redmi Note 10 Pro, for example, packs a much better panel. That said, out of the 5G budget phones on the scene, the Note 10 5G still delivers a good enough display and impressive design. 

Redmi Note 10 5G: Cameras

The Redmi Note 10 5G’s main camera module features a half-inch 48MP main camera sensor. Matched with an f/1.79 aperture and a 26mm focal length. It’s the same primary camera found on other Xiaomi favorites (an IMX582), including the Poco F3 and Poco X3 Pro.

With a 2MP macro camera which is entirely pointless (the main camera captures better macro photos), and a 2MP depth sensor, the notable omission on the Redmi Note 10 5G is an ultra-wide camera, also missing from the Realme 8 5G. On the plus, at least Xiaomi hasn’t removed the selfie camera! The Redmi Note 10 5G sports a front camera resolution with 8MP resolution and an f/2.0 lens.

Xiaomi phones usually pack loads of shooting modes, even on budget bangers, but the Redmi Note 10 5G’s modes are surprisingly pared back. Annoyingly for camera enthusiasts, the main omission is Pro Mode, with available modes on our review device limited to (in order of position) Video, Photo, Portrait, Time-lapse, Short video, Night, Slow motion, and 48MP mode. 

Redmi Note 10 5G: Camera performance

Redmi Note 10 5G: Additional specs

Powered by a MediaTek Dimensity 700 processor paired with either 4GB or 6GB RAM, it won’t come as any surprise that the Redmi Note 10 5G isn’t a powerhouse. Indeed, if you want something that’s going to keep up with your maxed-out 3D gaming, you’d be better off picking up the Poco X3 Pro. That said, for day-to-day use and 2D and simple 3D games, it’s more than up to the job. 

Running Android 11 with Xiaomi’s custom interface over the top, the phone’s UI is highly customizable and app support is excellent. There are a few bugs when dark mode is fired up with buttons appearing as invisible in the notifications bar, and occasional adverts within the UI, though at the phone’s price, this is a given in Xiaomi’s lineup. 

You can pick up the Redmi Note 10 5G with either 64GB or 128GB storage. We’d recommend the larger capacity for app-hoarders or anyone with a large WhatsApp backup (these can’t be installed on external storage). Thanks to microSD card support though, file hoarders can get away with the 64GB option and a memory card.

Even less of a concern than storage is battery life. While 5G tears through the battery on most phones, with flagship devices like the Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra lasting a few hours with its 5G mobile hotspot fired up, the 5000mAh battery in the Redmi Note 10 5G easily makes it through a full day with around 40 percent left in the tank, even with moderate use. Thanks to 18W fast charging, it also powers up relatively quickly for the price, taking about two hours to go from zero to 100 percent. 

Dwelling on the 5G speeds for a second, one point to note – we got very fast download speeds on the phone; averaging 150Mbps indoors with a 5G signal. That said, upload speeds were slower than when using a flagship phone with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 chipset. Not a deal-breaker, just a point to note. 

Redmi Note 10 5G: Verdict

The Redmi Note 10 5G’s saving grace is a tried and tested, competent main camera and strong design. It still isn’t the best budget camera around – after all, it misses out on an ultra-wide angle of view and manual shooting modes. When it comes to photo quality, however, it’s at least competitive, matching all the other budget 5G phones head-on. Where the phone excels is battery life, day-to-day usability, and quirky extras, like that IR blaster. Its design is also our favorite when set against its main competition. 

If the Redmi Note 10 5G is a bit too basic for you, Xiaomi’s Poco F3 5G is a fantastic alternative that’s much more powerful, both in terms of performance and imaging. Alternatively, If you want something with power and are happy sacrificing on 5G, the Poco X3 Pro could be the one for you. 

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We don't often award a perfect 5-star score to product we review, but in the case of the new Redmi Note 10 Pro there was no hesitation. Not so long ago, buying a budget camera phone meant putting up with severely cut-down and compromised hardware and frustratingly laggy performance. However, the Note 10 Pro looks, feels and performs like a flagship handset – yet it costs a mere $279!

For this, you get a huge 6.67-inch 120Hz display with 1200-nit brightness, HDR10 support and Gorilla Glass 5 protection. Then there's the primary rear-facing camera featuring a 108MP Samsung Isocell HM2 sensor, fronted by an f/1.9 26mm lens – a high-end sensor usually reserved for the best camera phones, which we've yet to see on a camera at this price point. 

• Read more: Redmi Note 10 Pro review

This is flanked by an 8MP ultra-wide camera, a 5MP macro camera, and a depth sensor. There's even Raw support and 4K 30p video shooting. A telephoto camera would really have been the icing on the cake, and it's not unheard of in the budget sector – the Realme 6 Pro has a telephoto camera – so it's a little disappointing not to get one with the Redmi Note 10 Pro.

A downside is that currently the only way to get this phone in America or Europe is to buy the Redmi Note 10 Pro from Aliexpress. But we are told it will be also be available through Amazon UK from April. 

Unlike most current flagship phones, the Redmi Note 10 Pro packs a good old 3.5mm headphone port, as well as microSD storage expandability (supplementing the 64 or 128GB of built-in storage). Add to this the colossal 5020mAh battery and you've got battery life that can last a genuine full day, even with heavy use and lots of screen-on time. Thankfully, given the high battery capacity, a 33W fast charger is included in the box (take that, iPhone 12 Pro!).

The only significant drawback with the Redmi Note 10 Pro is it is currently quite hard to get hold of one. You can order it on Aliexpress right now, but a wider retail release is due in April. We've got no reason to doubt this, given the extensive availability of previous Redmi Note phones. What's more, despite being a Chinese phone, parent company Xiaomi hasn't been hit with the same Google restrictions as the likes of Huawei. As such, the Redmi Note 10 Pro runs the latest Android 11 with full Google Services support (Google Maps, Photos, etc).

If you're still hesitant about switching from a more established phone brand to a lesser-known Chinese manufacturer, you're not alone. It was a decision I faced when the time came to get a new phone last year, but I went ahead and replaced my Google Pixel 3 XL with a Redmi Note 9 Pro – the direct predecessor to the Note 10 Pro. Yup, purchased with my own money (no sponsorship deals or freebie review sample shenanigans here!) and I've been using it as my personal phone for the past nine months. 

In that time it's never missed a beat, with no glitches, slow-downs or crashes. Its 64MP primary camera is responsive, with totally reliable autofocus and exposure metering, and it delivers superb image quality - the 108MP primary snapper in the Note 10 Pro should perform even better. 

I do miss the optical image stabilization from the Pixel XL though - you'll need a very steady hand with the Redmi to get sharp shots in low light. However, the quad camera marketing is just that; the ultrawide camera is unlikely to see much use, and I've never once required the macro snapper. 

The big 5020mAh battery (the same as in the Note 10 Pro) has been a revelation though - I rarely get it below 50% charge after a typical day's use.

Quite simply, if you're searching for the best camera budget phone on the market right now, this is a no-brainier - you'd need to spend a lot more cash to get appreciably better tech or performance.

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The Redmi Note 10 Pro (Pro Max in India) is made by Xiaomi. Xiaomi also makes excellent phones under the Poco name, like the Poco X3 NFC, and of course Xiaomi phones like the flagship Xiaomi Mi 11. No stranger to fantastic budget camera phones, Xiaomi hasn’t always nailed user experience, but it tends to get value very right, and its cameras are also competitive. This has never been more true than now, with the Redmi Note 10 Pro combining a 108MP main camera with a $279 price - and currently available exclusively through Aliexpress.

The head-scratchingly good value doesn’t stop there, with the Redmi Note 10 Pro’s 6.67-inch display combining AMOLED technology with a flagship 120Hz refresh rate. Add to the mix a 5020mAh battery as well as 64GB or 128GB, and we’re confused as to how any other phone hopes to compete on value.

Design and screen

The Redmi Note 10 Pro is a fairly large phone, combining a 6.67-inch screen size with a 193g weight — lighter than an iPhone 12 Pro Max, but heavier than the iPhone 12 Pro. Thanks to its curvy back and sides, it doesn’t feel clunky, with a comfortable fit in-hand. 

Unlike most flagships, the 10 Pro is made of plastic, but it definitely doesn’t feel cheap. With a glass-a-like finish, it shimmers handsomely, and thanks to its decent weighting, doesn’t feel hollow either. 

Available in four colors: Onyx Gray, Glacier Blue, Gradient Bronze, whichever you get, the Note 10 Pro is relatively hardy, with a pre-fitted screen protector, a case in the box and IP53 dust and splash resistance. 

Also worth noting, there’s a headphone jack alongside the USB-C port, and stereo speakers at the top and bottom of the phone. We especially appreciate the attention to detail Xiaomi pays to the seemingly curved fingerprint scanner on the right side, which matches the frame’s curve. The stepped camera bump also looks much better than the bumps on clunky budget competition. If we had to nitpick ,the words ‘Ultra Premium’ printed across it are a bit naff, but that aside, the Note 10 Pro nails design. 

As for the screen, there isn’t much to say other than wow. 

At the Redmi Note 10 Pro’s price, you can usually expect either a high refresh rate of up to 120Hz with LCD technology, or a 60Hz OLED panel if you’re lucky. Xiaomi packs both into this phone, complete with 1200-nit brightness, HDR10 support and Gorilla Glass 5 protection.

Simply put, if you want the best screen money can buy for around $279, the Redmi Note 10 Pro is it at the time of publishing this review.

Cameras

The flagship features continue, as the Redmi Note 10 Pro’s main camera module features a 108MP Samsung ISOCELL HM2 sensor, matched with an f/1.9 aperture 26mm lens. While the sensor has notoriously small pixels (0.7µm), using nine-pixel-binning, it creates an effective pixel-size of 2.4µm. While there’s no optical stabilization helping the lens along in low light, the camera does feature a night mode, and locks onto subjects with dual pixel PDAF.

The main camera’s the star of the show, so the 8 MP ultra-wide alongside it isn’t quite as impressive, with its lower pixel-count, f/2.2 aperture and 118˚ field of view. It also misses out on autofocus, which we’d expect at the price, though that isn’t the case for the phone’s macro camera.

Macro cameras on budget phones tend to be awful, but Xiaomi loads up the Redmi Note 10 Pro’s with the same module found on the flagship Mi 11: a 5 MP, f/2.4, combo that only adds to the across-the-board camera value the phone delivers. There’s also a depth sensor and a 16MP selfie camera with an f/2.5 aperture, which make five cameras in total across both sides. 

Xiaomi has trickled down its shooting modes from its more premium line down to its Redmi Note 10 Pro. The Pro Mode engages all the shooting lenses — wide, ultra-wide and macro, with RAW support across all three, and offering up to 30-second exposure and an ISO of up to 6400, in capable hands, the potential is through the roof. What the phone does miss out on is 4K 60fps video, instead, climbing up to 30fps at max resolution, and 60fps at Full HD. 

Camera performance

Good light and a steady hand, matched with a still subject and your Redmi Note 10 Pro can capture fantastic amounts of information that can be cropped into five times comfortably. With no OIS, the phone struggles more than the flagship Mi 11 and Galaxy S21 Ultra, both sporting 108MP sensors. As a result, photos captured indoors with less light aren’t quite as croppable, and backlit or challenging scenes can be hit and miss.

The 108MP mode is a gamble, but if you’ve got an even spread of abundant light, it can pay off, with the image above illustrating a 108MP photo on the left, and a 10x crop of it on the right, 

Colour and saturation are a bit muted when compared to the zingiest smartphones out there, and this should suit many after a more natural-looking photo in automatic mode. When the lights drop, contrast climbs a bit and things start to look a lot more ‘smartphoney’, so the Redmi Not 10 Pro definitely isn’t beyond reproach. 

The ultrawide camera is significantly softer than the main camera, and its colour accuracy isn’t always matched. This makes it the least impressive module on the device, though is still a nice to have for landscapes and middling quality group shots. A boon for it is the fact it supports night mode, which isn’t always a given on secondary cameras.

Unlike the Asus ROG Phone 5, the Note 10 Pro doesn’t fire up full-blown night mode automatically, and its night mode doesn’t keep the shutter open as long. That said, if you remember to switch modes when the lights dim, you can get some striking HDR-a-like low light photos. If your subjects are moving and you use automatic mode in dim lighting though, the results don’t hold up so well, creating muddy blur.  

As for the macro camera, it focuses between about 2cm and 8cm, and is a fantastic, creative addition to the mix. From fingerprints to the fine detail of a walnut or flower, it unveils a world unseen, which is something other smartphone macro cameras fail to do, especially budget ones. 

Also impressive is the Note 10 Pro’s selfie camera. Despite the specs not reading exceptionally, and a lack of autofocus, its modes open up some fun creative flourishes for the price, and the pure quality of its photos isn’t bad. Portrait mode supports adjustable background blur post-capture, and you can overlay lomography-a-like effects too without the need for a third-party app. 

With 4K video that benefits from electronic image stabilization, while we expect all budget phones to drop the ball in some big way, the Redmi Note 10 Pro checks more boxes than any other camera phone in its price category. 

Redmi Note 10 Pro: Additional specs

With Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G power, matched with either 6GB or 8GB RAM, you get midrange internals powering the Redmi Note 10 Pro, and that’s no surprise or disappointment. Running Android 11, app support is excellent, and while MIUI 12 is overbearing on the €749 Xiaomi Mi 11, on the $279 Note 10 Pro, it’s easy to justify given everything the phone can do. 

Swipes are smooth, it’s responsive and MIUI 12 has always looked good. You do get adverts within the UI when installing a new app, though these can be disabled.

With 64GB or 128GB storage, as well as microSD card support, the Redmi Note 10 Pro gives you plenty of room for your 108MP photos and 4K videos, and thanks to a 5020mAh battery, lasts all day, and longer if you’re happy dropping the screen refresh rate. It even packs faster charging than the iPhone 12 Pro, with 33W speeds that power it up 50 percent in 27 minutes, and 100 percent in a little over an hour.

Redmi Note 10 Pro: Verdict

The worst thing about the Redmi Note 10 Pro is how difficult it is to find. It launched with availability on Aliexpress, you can import it now into the US or UK, but  it won’t be enjoying a much wider release until April. 

That said, if you do find it and need a low-cost smartphone, it’s hands-down the easiest budget device to recommend right now, especially for photography enthusiasts looking for a steal. Sure, it isn’t the best camera phone of 2021, but it’s definitely the best budget camera phone of the year, and a benchmark for smartphones going forward. 

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UPDATE 08/06: The Xiaomi Redmi 9 has recently been listed on Filipino retailer Lazada's website, complete with official images, specs and pricing. While the Redmi 9 is due to be officially launched on 25 June, the new details revealed by Lazada line up well with the previous rumors we've heard about this upcoming set of phones.

The Xiaomi Redmi 9 will come with a Helio G80 chipset and will come in two memory versions, 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage and 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. There will also be a microSFD card slot so that users can expand their storage. The Redmi 9 will come in three different colors, have a rear-mounted fingerprint reader, AI Face Unlock, dual SIM support, IR Blaster and a 3.5mm headphone jack. 

• Read more: Best camera phone

The 3GB/32GB version is currently set at PHP6,990 ($140) and the 4GB/64GB version is priced at PHP7,490 ($150). You can see the phones listed at Lazada here.

ORIGINAL STORY:

While the Xiaomi Redmi Note 9 is currently on sale around the world, the non-Note series hasn't yet been introduced to the market. However, specs for the Xiaomi Redmi 9, Xiaomi Redmi 9A and Xioami Redmi 9C were leaked on Monday – and it looks like these handsets could be quite interesting. 

Apparently, the Xioami Redmi 9 family will be divided into four handsets. All of them will share the same 6.53" LCD screen and house a 5MP selfie camera on the front. They'll also all have 5,000 mAh battery and a USB-C port as well. However, most of their specs then diverge. 

• The best Xiaomi phone guide

The Xioami Redmi 9A will apparently be the cheapest device, according to GSMArena. It will have a single 13MP camera on the back, a Helio G25 chipset and 32GB of storage. Meanwhile, the Xiaomi Redmi 9 will have a quad camera unit, including a 13MP, an 8MP, a 5MP and a 2MP camera, and 64GB of storage. 

There has been some debate over what chipset the Redmi 9 will be using. Originally, it was said to be a Helio G70 SoC, but a new leak claims that it will actually be a Helio G80. If this is the case, then we could see the Redmi 9 come with 18W fast charging as well. Interestingly, images of the Xiaomi Redmi 9 have also recently been leaked by a user on Chinese social media site Weibo.

The Xiaomi Redmi 9C is a little more complicated, as it's actually divided into two separate handsets – one with NFC and on without. The variant with NFC will have a dual camera unit on the back of the phone, with a 13MP camera and a 2MP camera. However, the variant without NFC will have a triple camera unit, with a 13MP, 5MP and 2MP camera. However, both Redmi 9C phones will have a Helio G35 chipset. 

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For many camera phone fans, the selfie camera has continually been a bone of contention. Whether it's housed in a notch or a punch-hole, the front-facing camera can't help but disrupt the display. However, in June 2019 Chinese camera phone manufacturers Xiaomi and Oppo displayed a prototype phone with a selfie camera incorporated under the screen, a development in technology that would swiftly solve the selfie camera problem.

However, this camera phone prototype was far from being able to be put into production. Oppo and Xiaomi both announced afterwards that the image quality of the under display camera just wasn't quite up to scratch. This is apparently because the camera wasn't able to receive enough light through the display, so the photos come out looking too dark. 

• Read more: Best camera phone

However, the concept of an under display camera captured the imagination of camera phone users, who are eager to see this technology hit the market. 

Luckily, tech website LetsGoDigital has discovered that Xiaomi filed a patent for a camera phone with an under display camera on 29 April 2019. However, the patent was only approved on 24 April 2020, after which it was published in the WIPO Global Design database. LetsGoDigital has also produced a series of renders using the patent images to show what a camera phone with an under display camera might look like.

While a patent doesn't necessarily mean that the technology will definitely come to market, it's certainly exciting to see that camera phone manufacturers are continuing to explore this new technology.  

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Xiaomi’s sub-brand Poco has remained silent for some time, but after rumblings of new Poco phone with a 64MP camera, the Poco X2 has officially launched in India with, you guessed it, a 64MP camera as well as a dual front camera and a 120Hz Samsung Galaxy S20-smooth screen. 

If you’ve been keeping an ear to the ground, you’ll also know that Xiaomi launched the Redmi K30 in select markets - a phone that looks set to claw a spot on our best budget camera phone podium when we get our hands on it. In a turn for the books though, we can confirm that as far as specs go, the K30 and Poco X2 are almost identical twins.

You should still be jazzed about the new Pocophone though, especially if you’re in India. The Poco X2’s price is excellent given what it can do. 

Unlike the original Pocophone which had flagship power, the Poco X2 is more in line with the Redmi K20’s midrange specs, also known as the Xiaomi Mi 9T in the west. Powered by a Snapdragon 730G, it won’t be quite as top-tier as Snapdragon 8-series devices like the Redmi K20 Pro (aka the Xiaomi Mi 9T Pro), but banging that value drum again - wait until you hear its price. 

Its design is premium, there’s up to 8GB RAM and 256GB storage inside and the Poco X2 has a giant 4500mAh battery. Additionally, with 27W fast charging, it also powers up quickly, in as little as 68 minutes according to Xiaomi.

As for those cameras, if features a new 64MP Sony IMX686 main sensor, the second sporting this resolution we’ve seen to date, with the first made by Samsung and found in the Realme X2 Pro. It’s also an impressive 1/1.7” in size. This is combined with an 8MP ultra-wide lens with a 120-degree field of view, a 2MP macro lens and a depth sensor. The notable omission here is the telephoto camera, but with that big pixel-count main sensor, digital zoom could be salvageable in good light.

Onto the most impressive thing about the Poco X2 - selling in India from as little as Rs. 15,999 (approx. $225, £175), it really does scream sensational value for money. While nothing has been confirmed for the west, Xiaomi will be holding a press conference at Mobile World Congress 2020, so there’s a good chance we’ll find out more about this phone - whatever it ends up being called at the end of February. 

Via TechRadar

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The Honor 8X was one of 2018’s most impressive affordable smartphones, combining a big screen with tiny bezels and plenty of power; upon launch, it was elevated to best-in-class budget phone status and held the top spot for most of the year. Now, its successor, the all-screen Honor 9X has hit shelves, complete with a pop-up selfie camera and no less than three sharpshooters around the back, despite a budget price. 

Working against it is a Kirin 710F processor - a midrange chipset, as well as no NFC, so contactless payments aren’t an option. There’s also no telephoto camera, with the Honor 9X instead featuring the same setup as found on the ROG Phone 2 and Asus Zenfone 6 - a wide and ultra-wide camera. This means that the 9X won't be gunning for the best camera phone crown.

Loaded up with an ample 128GB storage and either 4GB or 6GB RAM though, not to mention a huge 4000mAh battery combined with a starting price of under £250 in the UK, with no US release expected, does the Honor 9X have what it takes to etch itself into our smartphone hall of fame like the 8X did? 

Camera specs

The Honor 9X is the umpteenth phone to launch with a Sony-made 48MP camera sensor this year. The module has featured across devices like the pricier Xiaomi Mi 9T and the more affordable Redmi Note 8T, but Honor always applies a special sauce to its shooting modes. 

Before we dive into those, let’s start with specs, and the 9X’s primary 48MP sensor features a 1/2.0” sensor with 0.8µm pixels. The module also supports PDAF (phase detection autofocus).

The additional shooting camera is an ultra-wide-angle combo, with an 8MP sensor matched with an f/2.4, 13mm lens.

There’s another camera here too, a 2MP f/2.4 depth sensor, but naturally, it won’t take pictures independently. Finally, the 16MP selfie camera pops up out of the top of the Honor 9X, enabling that all-screen design. It also features an f/2.2 aperture with a 26mm wide angle lens. 

Shooting modes: The Honor 9X’s camera shooting modes are incredibly comprehensive for a midrange smartphone. In addition to the now-standard Photo, Video and Portrait modes, there’s an extended exposure Night mode, an Aperture mode so you can refocus subjects and play with background blur post-shot, Light Painting, Pro mode - supporting an ISO of up to 3200 and a 30-second shutter speed, and more.

Camera performance

With a default shooting resolution of 12MP, the Honor 9X can capture plenty of detail even without ramping things up to the sensor’s maximum 48MP resolution. 

Just like the OnePlus 7T Pro, it down-samples the pixel-count to deliver better noise-handling and dynamic range in challenging conditions, though in good lighting or manual mode with a long exposure, you can afford to shoot at the camera’s full resolution.

The 9X’s primary camera is incredibly competent in well lit environments given its price. Detail is sharp, and it’s able to handle high-contrast scenes relatively well. That said, the ultra-wide camera can struggle; 8MP is the lowest resolution we’d expect from a secondary camera on a phone these days, and the ultrawide doesn’t give you much room to play with shots once captured.

When the lights drop, things across both cameras can get muddy, with detail in shadows being completely lost. This is particularly noticeable when capturing tricky objects like black cat fur, but it even struggles with typical scenes like night skies.

Fortunately, the night mode comes to the rescue for the main camera, helping out with exposure times of in-excess of 20 seconds if you can steady the Honor 9X on a surface. That said, the long-exposure trick also works when shooting handheld, grabbing a roughly 4-second exposure, though this doesn’t work nearly as well. 

This night mode also doesn’t engage the ultra-wide camera, which is a shame and relegates the secondary camera’s use exclusively to well-lit conditions.

Fortunately, the depth sensor seems to work across a range of conditions, from well-lit to indoor. It was able to generate respectable separation between background and foreground, and if you shoot in aperture mode, you even have the option to adjust the focal point after a shot is taken.

With a maximum video resolution of 1080p at 60fps, the Honor 9X falls behind on this front. Significantly cheaper phones like the Redmi 8T feature 4K capture now, as does the Oppo A9 (2020). Still, capture is held together well, with electronic stabilization helping things along, and unless you’re shooting in middling to low light, detail is on-point. 

Honor 9X sample images

Interface and performance

Given the fact Huawei owns Honor, it’s worth noting that the Honor 9X has full access to Google services if you’re buying it in the UK. In turn, unlike the otherwise excellent Huawei Mate 30 Pro, app support is excellent on this midrange smartphone. 

Powered by a Kirin 710F processor, it has enough power to handle 2D and 3D games alike, though it won’t showcase them with the smooth frame rates you’ll get in flagship devices. That being said, we reviewed the 6GB version and were able to play demanding titles like Injustice 2 without any issues or slowdown. 

The phone packs plenty of space for all your files, with 128GB storage as standard, though you can bump this up by half a terabyte with a microSD card. 

The lack of NFC is the worst thing about the Honor 9X in our opinion. Contactless mobile payment has become a standard, and with much more affordable phones like the Redmi Note 8T now including it, the omission is felt.

You get a lot of great stuff here too; there’s a huge 4000mAh battery that easily makes it through a day, a USB-C port for charging and data, a responsive fingerprint scanner at the back of the phone and the Honor 9X ships with a case in the box as well as a pre-fitted screen protector.

Speaking of that screen, it’s a 6.6-inch LCD tour de force for the price. The pop-up camera enables a futuristic full-display look that makes notched phones look dated, and with a Full HD+ resolution combined with a tall 19.5:9 aspect ratio, it’s well optimized for movies and TV shows.

The inclusion of a headphone jack will please audio fans, though we did find Bluetooth audio quality to be a bit hit and miss, with spoken word sounding a touch robotic - we have reached out to Honor to identify if this was just an issue with our device.

Honor 9X verdict

The most natural device to compare to the Honor 9X is the Motorola G8 Plus. They feature very similar on-paper camera setups and price-to-performance. 

Where the Moto G8 Plus edges ahead is in its stock Android interface, which may please some. It also charges a bit faster, delivers stereo audio tuned by Dolby, and packs a bit more power. 

The Honor 9X is our pick in terms of design, with its all-screen display looking unique at its sub-£250 starting price. It also packs double the storage of the G8 Plus as well.

Irrespective, both are excellent given their prices. With incredible budget camera phones like the 48MP Xiaomi Redmi Note 8T having launched, and OnePlus expected to enter the affordable space in 2019, however, the competition is chomping at the bit for some of that sweet best budget camera phone market share; Iet's see if Honor can stay ahead of the pack in 2020.

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If you want a spec sheet to KO the competition, the Asus ROG Phone II delivers; it’s got a liquid-smooth 120Hz AMOLED screen, an overclocked CPU, masses of storage and no less than 12GB RAM in its highest-end configuration. It doesn’t look set to be the best camera phone around, given the fact there are just two around the back, a 48MP wide-angle module, and an ultrawide option; that’s exactly like the dual-camera of the Asus Zenfone 6, on paper at least.

Since it was announced, a few options have dropped: the Strix Edition, which includes 8GB RAM and 128GB storage for $629.99 / £599, the Elite Edition, with 12GB RAM and 512GB storage, which is the version we reviewed, costing $899 / £829.99, and the Ultimate Edition, which bumps storage up to 1TB and costs $1,199 / £899.99.

Even without its over the top credentials, illuminating RGB back and dual-USB ports, the ROG Phone 2 clearly offers an excellent price-to-performance ratio. Do we need another gaming phone though; and can a flagship camera phone without a telephoto lens really be recommended in today's competitive smartphone market?

Asus ROG Phone 2: camera specs

The Asus ROG Phone 2 has a dual camera around the back which may feature the same specs as that of the Zenfone 6, but doesn’t pack the same pivoting flip out tech.

That means the main camera array features a primary 48MP camera (Sony IMX586 sensor, 0.8µm pixels, f/1.79 lens, 26mm lens, 1/2.0” sensor) and a 13MP ultrawide camera (f/2.4, 125mm). Neither pack optical image stabilization (OIS) and the primary camera features phase detection and laser autofocus.

Where the ROG Phone 2 steps away is when it comes to the selfie camera and microphones. Asus has tuned the selfie-setup for streamers who want to record themselves blasting through battlefields with decent audio. As for specs, it’s a 24MP, f/2.2 module.

With time-lapse, slo-mo, motion tracking, video, photo, portrait, panorama, night and pro modes, there’s plenty to sink your teeth into here, but the fact remains, there’s no telephoto module, which has become something of a standard for flagship smartphones today. 

Asus ROG Phone 2: camera performance

The ROG Phone II shoots 12MP images despite its 48MP sensor, grabbing detail from 4 pixels and creating one ‘superpixel’. This 'pixel binning' technique, as found on the OnePlus 7T Pro works to great effect - broadening the tonal range and reducing noise in tricky environments, but you can override and fire up 48MP shots it if you want that extra bit of detail, and the lighting is on your side.

When the Zenfone 6 launched, there weren’t too many phones packing Sony’s big-pixel sensor, but since, it’s become available on phones as affordable as the £170 Redmi Note 8T, and pixel counts have climbed as high as 108MP on devices like the Xiaomi Note 10.

Still, performance is strong for the most part on the ROG Phone 2. The phone’s AI scene detection and HDR+ processing both work well, pulling out detail from dark backdrops and keeping hotspots under control for the most part. In good light and, you’ll almost always get a decent photo out of it despite the phone’s lack of optical image stabilization (OIS), though it doesn’t pick up as much nuance in dark areas as the iPhone 11 Pro, for example. 

Even without using the dedicated night mode, indoor shots are respectable, with fair sharpness and solid detail. Night mode really helps with the edges of the frame, which can tint purple in dark scenes in auto mode.

As for the ultra-wide camera, it should be avoided in auto mode when lighting is poor, though you can use the phone’s night mode with it, which works well.

If you want a bit more detail from your shots and the light is right, you can change the default shooting resolution from 12MP to 48MP just like on the Zenfone 6. This deactivates auto-HDR, and noticeably degrades noise handling and tonal nuance in challenging scenes, but gives you a picture you can crop into more readily if the light is on your side.

The ROG Phone 2’s Pro mode offers up to a 32-second shutter speed, and the manual maximum ISO is 3200.

Video is shot at up to 4K resolution, 60fps, and despite the lack of OIS, electronic image stabilization clearly kicks in across frame rates unlike some phones like the Xiaomi Mi 9 SE, which cap out when you hit 4K resolution at 30fps. In turn, quality is impressive from the main camera. The wide camera, however, performs less favorably in challenging lighting.

As for that selfie camera, it shoots photos at 24MP or video at Full HD resolution, 60fps. Capture looks smooth, though you won’t be able to get too close to it owing to a lack of autofocus.

Asus ROG Phone II: sample images

OS, battery and connections

The ROG Phone 2’s specs are class-leading. It’s powered by an overclocked Snapdragon 855 Plus chipset combined with either 8GB or 12GB RAM which is as good as Android power gets.

Storage options are plentiful too, with either 128GB, 512GB or 1TB storage. There’s no microSD card slot, so if you’re a game hoarder who wants gigabytes of games installed at any given time, it might be worth opting for a larger capacity option.

The phone also has a headphone jack, which is something of a unicorn for flagship phones these days, and the 6000mAh is nothing short of class-leading, and actually turns the ROG Phone 2 into a bit of a power bank for other devices, given the fact it supports 10W reverse charging. This is also combined with 30W Quick Charge 4.

With a host of gamer-centric accessories, a stunning 6.59-inch AMOLED display with a silky smooth refresh rate and HDR10 support, not to mention seriously impressive stereo speakers and an under-display fingerprint scanner, the ROG Phone 2 is a powerhouse across the board. That said, it does look angry with its futuristic design and RGB back, so it won’t be to everyone’s taste.

Asus ROG Phone II: Verdict

The ROG Phone 2 is a great across-the-board smartphone, and if you can get past how angry it looks, it’s an easy phone to recommend to anybody after serious power.

The lack of a telephoto camera and OIS are both felt, so while it’s perfectly competent, it definitely isn’t one for the most discerning camera phone fan. Luckily, in almost every other way, it checks all the right boxes, despite the fact it undercuts most of the competition.

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Xiaomi has officially won the race to announce the world's first 64-megapixel phone, with the Redmi Note 8 Pro due to arrive in September.

The Redmi Note 8 Pro features a four-camera array centered around the 64MP primary sensor, supported by an 8MP ultra wide-angle, 2MP macro, and 2MP time of flight (depth detecting) sensor. On the front of the device is a 20MP selfie camera. 

The question remains, however, just how good the image quality is on that 64MP primary sensor, given the Redmi Note 8 Pro's identical camera specs to the Realme XT – which left testers less than impressed with its performance. 

Ever since the Samsung Isocell Bright GW1 64MP sensor was announced, promising greater resolution than anything shy of top-tier medium format cameras, phone manufacturers have been racing to deliver the first phone to feature the tech.

That race has been extremely neck-and-neck between Xiaomi and Realme. While Xiaomi seemed poised to win, by releasing the world's first ever 64MP camera phone image (of a cat, naturally), Realme appeared to take the lead by putting working Realme XTs in the hands of journalists.

Indeed, when it got wind of Xioami's announcement, Realme hastily put up a Twitter post and shipped sample handsets to reviewers to claim to be "first", even though it didn't announce any actual features, pricing or availability.

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However, the Realme XT's image quality was found quite lacking. It delivered "very limited extra detail, if any," and phone's new macro shots as well as its digital 2x and 5x zoom also seemed to be a bit of a mess.

That's a concern because the XT possesses an almost identikit camera setup to the Note 8 Pro. However, the difference could well be in Realme's processing and image software – and we know, from phones like the Realme X, that the company's imaging magic is among the best in the business.

According to GSM Arena, at the heart of the Note 8 Pro is the Mediatek Helio G90T chipset (a smartphone first), with a liquid cooling chamber to manage the output from the gaming-oriented processor.

The camera phone features a 6.53-inch diagonal FullHD display, a 4,500mAh battery that boasts 18W fast charging, and comes with 6 or 8GB of RAM and either 64 or 128GB storage. 

The Redmi Note 8 Pro will be available in September in black, white and green. Pricing starts from an equivalent $195 / £160 for 6GB RAM with 64GB storage, up to $250 / £205 for 8GB memory and 128GB capacity.

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Realme will reveal the world's first 64 megapixel camera phone on 08 August, at its Realme Camera Innovation Event taking place in New Delhi. 

The company will simultaneously showcase its move into quad camera technology, making it a double-whammy announcement of the world's first quad-camera phone, widely expected to be the new flagship handset.

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"Get ready to witness some of the world's first in smartphone camera technology at the #realme camera innovation event", tweeted the manufacturer. "Stay Tuned as we #LeapToQuadCamera and reveal the world's first 64MP Quad Camera technology on a smartphone."

As GSM Arena points out, Realme already produces dual-camera phones in the form of its 3 series and the Realme X. In both cases, one of the cameras features a depth-detecting time of flight sensor.

It stands to reason, therefore, that one of the four sensors on Realme's new 64MP quad-camera phone will similarly be a time of flight affair. And, since the company doesn't make any triple-camera handsets, this new model will indeed be a big leap for the company.

In addition to the depth-detecting camera – which facilitates software-driven effects like background-blurring portrait modes with artificial depth of field – the other two non-primary units are almost certain to feature a wide-angle and a telephoto lens.

The race to produce a 64-megapixel camera phone has been a hotly run one. While Samsung announced the first 64MP camera phone sensor back in May, it appeared that Xaomi would be the first company to actually bring it to market. 

However, when Redmi released the first 64MP camera phone picture (of a cat, no less), it looked like it may be in pole position to win the race. And now Realme has come out of nowhere to steal the spotlight.

Stay tuned to Digital Camera World as we bring you the latest on Realme's new handset – and in the upcoming camera phone megapixel battleground.

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Asus has today revealed its latest Republic of Gamers (ROG) smartphone, the ROG II, and it’s a processing powerhouse with an impressive camera.

The phone is centred around the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 Plus chip, which it is the first smartphone to implement, and as such is expected to boast blisteringly fast processing speeds.

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As the phone is a gaming model you might have expected Asus to skimp a little on the camera functionality, but this is happily not the case. The main rear camera consists of two sensors – 48MP and 13MP, with a 125° ultrawide-angle field of view – and there’s also a 24MP selfie camera. Not bad at all!

Its display is a 6.59-inch 1080p OLED panel with an integrated fingerprint sensor and support for 10-bit HDR, as well as an impressive refresh rate of 120Hz. Asus claims that its touch latency of 49ms is the lowest of any phone that’s currently around, ensuring split-second response times that could potentially make the phone a decent candidate for fast action shooting. The 600nits of brightness also make the display usable even in bright daylight. 

The phone has a cooling system that prevents the processor’s lightning speeds from being throttled by overheating. It also boasts 12GB of RAM and up to 512GB of storage – more than enough for plenty of images or video footage. The impressive 6,000mAh battery should also deliver a huge amount of runtime, allowing users to keep on shooting for longer.

The phone isn’t launching for a while yet – it’s expected in the first week of September. We also don’t have any official word on pricing yet, though the original ROG phone launched for $899 (about £720), so it’d be reasonable to expect something in that ballpark.

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It looks like the first device to use Samsung’s new Isocell Bright GW1 sensor won’t actually be made by Samsung, with Redmi beating the tech giant to the punch. 

The company already makes phones with an impressive 48MP resolution, however the new Redmi flagship phone is going to seriously step its game up. While the phone has been teased before, in order to whet users’ appetites, the company released a teaser image on the Chinese social network Weibo, shot with the phone’s camera.

The image is included below – take a look for yourself at the detail on the cat’s hair, and note as well the lack of grain. As mentioned, this is all thanks to the Samsung Isocell Bright GW1 64-megapixel f1/1.72 sensor, which is designed to compete with Sony’s industry-dominating IMX586 48-megapixel sensor.

The new sensor doesn’t just cram more pixels onto the same surface area either – it ups the sensor size in order to keep the pixels at the same size, ensuring that the camera doesn’t suffer from excess image noise. 

According to the tease post, the phone will produce images at sizes of 9,215 x 6,812 pixels, and in low light it can join four pixels into one to increase light sensitivity – though this does lower the resolution to 16MP. 

Rumours also indicate that the phone will also be capable of real-time HDR of up to 100dB (compared to the 60dB range of conventional image sensors), and will be sporting a Super PD "high-performance phase detection auto-focus technology" for faster and sharper results. 

There’s no firm release date yet, and not a word on price, however we have had prior assurance that the phone is due in the second half of 2019, so it shouldn’t be too long now. Will Redmi beat Samsung to the punch on its own sensor? This teaser indicates that we may find out the answer to that question sooner rather than later.

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If you're feeling down that Avengers: Endgame waved goodbye to some of your favorite Marvel superheroes, fret not; Xiaomi has revealed the Redmi K20 Pro Avengers Limited Edition camera phone to honor Earth's mightiest heroes. 

The device features the same core hardware as the regular Redmi K20 Pro, which means that it's packing a triple-camera array comprising a 48MP, 13MP and 8MP sensor, along with a 20MP pop-up selfie camera, and is powered by Snapdragon 855 processor and 4,000mAh battery with a 6.39" screen (thanks, GSM Arena).  

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Unlike the decidedly non-mighty versions, however, which come in Glacier Blue and Flame Red colorways, the Redmi K20 Pro Avengers Limited Edition comes with a sleek non-gradient black. 

If that doesn't scream "AVENGERS ASSEMBLE!" loud enough for you, however, the package also includes a bright blue rear case with the Chinese logo for Avengers: Endgame (or Avengers 4, as it is known in that territory).

While we love all things Marvel here at DCW, we can't quite match the boundless enthusiasm of the official announcement from Redmi. 

"Redmi K20 Pro Limited Edition Gift Box is officially launched! The powerful function is perfectly integrated with the cool look. It is only for sale. It is a hero who loves Marvel and loves you 3000 times," posted the company on Weibo. 

"Incorporate into the mysterious power of the Marvel universe, create a unique armor wind shell, deep blue warfare, full of faith! Redmi K20 Pro Limited Edition Gift Box, tribute to Marvel Heroes."

The special edition, complete with collectable Avengers-branded packaging, is currently only set for release in the Chinese market. Xiaomi hasn't announced any plans for other regions, and we imagine that its deal will be exclusive to the Chinese territory – so you probably won't see these in the West any time soon.

If they do start appearing on more local shelves, though, you can expect them to disappear as fast as Thanos can snap his fingers. 

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Xiaomi is set to become the first manufacturer to produce a camera phone with a 64-megapixel image sensor, according to a report from China. 

The company already makes phones with 48MP cameras, such as the flagship Xiaomi Mi 9, but now it's looking to push the envelope even further with a 64MP camera – which will be powered by a sensor produced by Samsung. 

The Samsung Isocell Bright GW1 was unveiled by the South Korean company in may, and it was widely anticipated that the Galaxy A70s would be the first phone on the market to feature the sensor. 

However, according to a report by tipster Ice Universe (by way of Money Control), it looks like Xiaomi will actually beat it to the punch and release a phone with the new sensor before Samsung itself does. 

According to Ice Universe's post on Weibo, while the exact phone model is not known, the sensor will make its debut on a Redmi phone in the Chinese market. It stands to reason that a global release would follow soon after. 

On sheer horsepower alone, this phone should be a top contender in the best camera phone stakes. 

In addition to its raw resolution, the Isocell Bright GW1 sensor employs Samsung's Tetracell technology to unify four pixels into one, producing high quality images even in low light conditions (though the resolution is subsequently lowered to 16MP). 

In good light, meanwhile, it uses Dual Conversion Gain to make more efficient use of the existing light, with a remosaic algorithm produces 64MP images with excellent clarity and quality. 

It's also capable of real-time HDR of up to 100dB (compared to the 60dB range of conventional image sensors), and it boasts a Super PD "high-performance phase detection auto-focus technology" for faster and sharper results. 

While there is no release window for Xiaomi's phone, the Samsung Galaxy A70s has been rumored to be announced in July. So, whichever device lands first, we shouldn't have to wait too long to see what the 64MP camera phone future looks like. 

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