It was a rather busy year for Xiaomi, with many new device launches including the innovative Mi Mix and the powerful Mi 5s duo. Another interesting device that was launched by the company last year was the Redmi Pro, which was Xiaomi’s first smartphone with a dual lens camera and a deca-core processor. It was also the most expensive offering in the Redmi series at a starting price of $225. I managed to spend some time with the smartphone and was quite impressed by it.
The Redmi Pro has three variants based on the CPU, RAM, and storage, which are as follows:
For someone familiar with other Redmi series devices such as the Redmi 3 or the Redmi Note 3 , these may seem a bit too pricey. However, the device’s pricing is similar to the Moto G4 Plus ($249), which is widely considered as a good value for money smartphone, while aiming to offer an affordable flagship level product. I received the base variant of the Redmi Pro with 3GB RAM, 32GB storage, and the deca-core Helio X20 chipset clocked up to 2.11GHz. Read on to know more about the device.
Like most of its smartphone packaging, Xiaomi has gone with an iPhone-like box with minimal content inside for the Redmi Pro. The company isn’t providing any extra accessories such as adapter cables, screen protectors or back covers with the device.
Inside the box, there is the phone itself, a charging adapter, and a USB Type-C cable. Since the Redmi Pro is priced in the mid-range bracket, I was once again expecting Xiaomi to ship a pair of earphones with it. However, those were once again missing from the box.
The Redmi Pro looks great and feels even better in the hand. The metal unibody feels very sturdy and the brushed chrome finish helps the device look brand new all the time. On the front of the smartphone, it has a physical home button which is also the fingerprint sensor. This is a bit different from the Redmi 3S Prime, Redmi Note 3, and the Mi Max, which have rear-mounted fingerprint sensors.
However, in the case of the Redmi Pro, the rear side houses the dual-camera module and having the fingerprint sensor on the back would have made it look busy. The device looks a lot like the Galaxy Note 4 or the OnePlus 3 from the front, but the rear side looks rather unique due to the vertically positioned dual cameras.
The Redmi Pro is very slippery and slides off the palms often. Putting a cover on it is necessary, even more so if you have small hands like me. Other than this particular issue, the device is of top notch quality and I was very pleased with its build.
Unlike its other mid-range offerings such as the Redmi Note 3 and the Mi Max , Xiaomi has fitted the Redmi Pro with an AMOLED screen. The 5.5-inch display has a resolution of 1920×1080 (Full HD) which translates to a pixel density of 401 pixels per inch.
Xiaomi has done a decent job with the color calibration, but for certain colors such as orange and pink I felt that it was slightly off. The screen managed to brighten up significantly in direct sunlight and was quite visible until as low as 35% brightness. In normal conditions, the viewing experience with the Redmi Pro was very good. It is probably the best screen you would get in a mid-range smartphone and is an ideal one for watching photos and videos.
Cosmetically, the 2.5D curved screen doesn’t look as rounded as the UMi Max or the Nubia Z11 Max smartphones. This is mostly due to the plastic lining around the Redmi Pro’s edges. Overall, the display was pretty good and it’s nice to see a decent AMOLED unit in a mid-range device. Samsung has already begun shipping AMOLEDs in its entry-level J series smartphones and other manufacturers might also increase adoption of OLED in the near future.
The call quality on the Redmi Pro was average and I had to move around to get clear sound on many occasions. It was at its best in outdoor conditions but deteriorated significantly inside buildings.
