Overview
This morning Xiaomi held a launch event in Beijing and officially introduced the new Redmi Note 4. Unlike previous launches, this event was co-hosted with China Mobile. Previously, only the Redmi 3X had been released jointly with China Unicom, so using this approach for the standard Redmi Note 4 indicates Xiaomi's focus on strengthening distribution channels.
Relying mainly on online sales makes it difficult to increase market share. Partnering with carriers to enter offline channels may produce better short-term results.
Positioning
Compared with the Redmi Pro, the Redmi Note 4 targets a lower market segment. Features such as dual rear cameras, a brushed metal finish, and the Helio X25 processor are not included. Nevertheless, the Redmi Note 4's configuration remains competitive for its price tier and covers the essential features.
Design and Build
The Redmi Note 4 uses a CNC diamond-cut unibody metal design with a nano-scale ceramic sandblast surface finish, using finer 205-grade ceramic sandblasting. The edges have metal chamfers. Although the display measures 5.5 inches, the phone retains a comfortable hand feel and does not have noticeable sharp edges.
The front is covered with 2.5D glass, similar to the Redmi Pro, which can complicate applying screen protectors. There is no Xiaomi logo on the front; the logo appears only on the back.
Dimensions are 151 x 76 x 8.35 mm and weight is 175 g. Compared with the Redmi Note 3, dimensions remain largely unchanged while weight is slightly higher. The exterior changes are minimal; color options include gold, silver, and gray.
Hardware and Specifications
The Redmi Note 4 features a 5.5-inch 1080p display and is powered by a deca-core 2.1 GHz MediaTek Helio X20 processor. The higher-end model includes 3 GB of RAM and 64 GB of internal storage, while the standard model comes with 2 GB + 16 GB. The phone offers a 5 MP front camera (f/2.0 aperture, second-generation 36-level beauty mode) and a 13 MP rear camera with a 5-element lens, f/2.0 aperture, and PDAF phase-detection autofocus. Battery capacity is 4100 mAh. The device supports dual-SIM standby, full network compatibility, and Micro SD card expansion (hybrid SIM slot). It also includes a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor.
Software
The Redmi Note 4 is the first phone shipped with MIUI 8. Previously released devices typically received the MIUI 8 update after launch. The article that follows this review introduces notable MIUI 8 features.
