Xiaomi is one of those companies which has tasted only success with every device launched in India till date. Ranging from flagship devices like the Mi 5 to the mid-range devices like Redmi 3S Prime and RN4, the company has only produced better and better devices. Today we review Redmi 4A, which is the most affordable device from Xiaomi priced at INR 5,999 to see if we have a new King in the budget range.
Box Contents:
- Power Adapter
- USB 2.0 Cable
- User guide, warranty card
- Sim ejection tool
The device has a polycarbonate body which looks like metal until you hold it. Measuring 8.5mm in thickness and weighing in at 131.5g, the device is super compact and light. On the front we have the 5 inch HD display below which there are capacitive navigation keys. The volume rocker and power keys are on the right side and a hybrid sim tray on the left. At the top we have a 3.5mm audio jack, noise cancelling microphone and a IR Blaster while at the bottom we have microUSB port and primary microphone. A 13MP camera with LED flash, Mi logo and the speaker are all housed at the back.
The display is a 5 inch LCD screen with 1280 x 720 resolution resulting in 296 PPI density. The company has not specified if there is any kind of protection on the screen but our guess is there is none just like other Redmi devices. The display is vivid and color reproduction is good too. The text and images are clear and crisp, touch sensitivity is way better than any of the displays we have seen in budget category. The color temperature can also be adjusted based on the user’s preference. The screen is visible even under direct sunlight and has good viewing angles too.
Redmi 4A is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 425 processor which is a 64-bit Quad-core CPU with 4 x ARM Cortex A53 cores and clocked at 1.4GHz. There is Adreno 308 GPU which takes care of graphics and the device not only handles casual games like Mario Run, Subway surfers but also games like Asphalt 8 and Dead Effect 2. The device has 2GB RAM to handle multi-tasking and there is 16GB of internal memory that can be expanded up to 128GB using a microSD card. The device is able to perfectly handle all the day to day tasks without any lag even though it is run by an entry-level processor like SD425. We were very pleased with the performance of the device because it felt like handling a mid-range device with the smooth UI and app switching.
Redmi 4A runs on the latest MIUI 8 which is based on Android 6.0 Marshmallow. MIUI is just like any other Chinese ROM with no app drawer but has lot of customizations and thousands of themes to choose from. The users can also customize individual things like icons, wallpapers, screen lock etc using the Theme store. There is support for 13 Indian languages in MIUI now which also includes Kannada, Tamil, Marathi, Assamese, and Bengali. The dual apps feature is available in this device too where users can install two instances of the same app (example: 2 whatsapp accounts) and also the Second space feature is retained which allows users to keep personal and business data separate.
There are other features like rolling screenshots which allows the user to take a screenshot of the entire webpage, a child mode that allows you to lock few apps and the Quick Ball button which is like assistive touch on Apple devices to provide shortcuts. Mi however should reduce some of the pre-installed apps which could eat away some space given the internal memory is only 16GB.
Redmi 4A features a 13MP camera with a 5-element lens and f/2.2 aperture. The pictures taken with the device during day time and under sufficient lighting conditions came out well . The camera however struggled a bit under low lighting but given the price tag we have no complains whatsoever. There are different modes like low-light enhancement, HDR, panorama, burst mode, and face recognition. The filters that we first saw on Mi 3 are still present in the camera app which can be used to take fun pictures. The rear camera can shoot 1080p videos as well. The front facing 5MP selfie camera also has f/2.2 aperture and manages to capture decent pictures.
There is a 3120mAh battery which keeps the phone running easily for 2 days with casual usage. With some gaming, music, videos and browsing, we were able to get through for more than a day without charging. The 720p screen along with the power efficient SD425 processor results in a great battery life. There is a power saver mode which when activated takes battery life beyond the usual time by deactivating few apps and background processes. There is no Quick Charge support for Redmi 4A but it takes only around 2 hours to fully charge the device.
The phone’s speaker is loud enough for a small room and is clear too. The device also supports most of the audio and video formats. The call quality is good and the voices were clear, and the device suits for long conversations given how compact and comfortable the device feels. There is support for 4G and VoLTE also and the device was able to acquire enough signal even in low reception areas and there is no heating as well.
Overall the Redmi 4A is a great budget device with light body, good camera in the segment and great battery life too. The device would be a perfect fit for the first time smartphone users or even for the family members who want an affordable device instead of fancy smartphones that cost higher. The phone is priced at INR 5,999 which is just 1K less than Redmi 3S that packs similar specs with better processor and bigger battery. In the segment below 6K, Redmi 4A is certainly the best device to buy which offers great features and good value for money.
