Are you excited about what the tech industry has in store for this year? If you haven't been catching up, Xiaomi is one of the key players behind a major chunk of the build-up in the smartphone industry. Following the unparalleled success of the Redmi Note 4 last year, Xiaomi is ready to launch the successor — the Redmi Note 5 — which we've been hearing about a lot over the past few weeks.
Adding to that growing pile of rumours and speculations, a new report from China's MyDrivers (via GizmoChina) has shed more light on the phone's price along with its key specifications. It has unofficially confirmed that the Redmi Note 5 is launching next month, with major upgrades in terms of design, hardware, and camera.
Also Read: New Xiaomi Android phone coming to India next month: Will it be Redmi 5 or Redmi Note 5?
But Xiaomi has a reputation of maintaining secrecy as the Redmi Note 5 succeeds the self-claimed "bestselling" smartphone of 2017 — the Redmi Note 4. Now that the report claims the upcoming smartphone is going to be priced around Rs 15,000, there's more pressure on the Chinese tech giant to justify the hike. Will Xiaomi justify it fairly? We'll know soon enough.
Since we have access to various rumours about the phone's specs and the latest Chinese report lists all the key elements, we might be able to predict the phone's success early.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 is widely expected to come with a 5.99-inch Full HD+ display with 18:9 aspect ratio, fused into a metallic unibody for a premium look and feel. The next upgrade is expected in the optics department and the latest report reaffirms earlier claims about a dual-camera setup at the back.
The Redmi Note 5 is expected to come with a 16MP primary sensor and a 5MP secondary snapper, which will collectively produce detailed images especially while creating the depth-of-field effect. On the front, the Redmi Note 5 is likely to get a slight bump from a 5MP to an 8MP sensor for selfies.
Under the hood, the Redmi Note 5 may come with a 2GHz 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 630 octa-core processor paired with 3GB or 4GB RAM in 32GB and 64GB storage options. The handset is expected to run Android Nougat-based MIUI 9, but it is natural the phone will get Oreo soon.
Finally, the handset will sport a 4,000mAh battery, but there's no mention of fast-charging support. In addition to the fingerprint scanner, Xiaomi is likely to integrate the trend of facial recognition in the phone for quick authentication. This is quite common in phones with rear-mounted fingerprint scanners these days, as it makes it easier for users to unlock the phone without much trouble.
With all this, Xiaomi's asking price for the Redmi Note 5 is pegged at ¥1,499 (around Rs 15,000) for the 3GB+32GB configuration and ¥1,799 (around Rs 18,000) for the high-end 64GB storage model.
In many ways, this is a just price for a handset with its rumoured specs. But Xiaomi has always stood out for its low-price high-value phones.
It remains to be seen how successful 2018 is going to turn out for this disruptive brand that replaced Samsung in becoming the bestselling smartphone brand in Q4 2017.
