2023 started and yet we didn’t get value for money device, Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G is a pricey smartphone and has tons of major problems. So before we start the review, let me share with you the India price of the Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G.
Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G Price in India
- 6GB Ram + 128GB storage: Rs 24,999
- 8GB Ram + 128GB storage: Rs 26,999
- 8GB Ram + 256GB storage: Rs 27,999
The device is available in Obsidian Black, Arctic White, and Iceberg Blue color options while it will be available from 11th January 2023 at noon From Flipkart and Mi.com/in.
By the way, For a Limited time, you can get an instant Rs 3000 discount on an ICICI bank Card.
Contents
Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G Review
Yes, the Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G is worth buying but it’s not value for money device. However, if you’re a fan of Redmi and don’t want to buy any other brand’s smartphone then do consider the Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G otherwise, better save Rs 24,999.
Max, Redmi should have priced this smartphone up to Rs 20,999 but now at Rs 24,999 price tag, it’s too much for what Redmi is offering.
When you spend 25k, you have options like Motorola Edge 30, RealMe 10 Pro Plus 5G, and even RealMe 9 Pro Plus 5G. So it doesn’t make any sense to pay a premium for Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G.
Related: 5 Best Smartphones Under Rs 30000
Concluding everything from price to features, it’s better to skip the Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G and consider the RealMe 10 Pro Plus 5G as it has slightly better specs. Although, RealMe 10 Pro Plus 5G is also not a value money device but as of now, From RealMe and Redmi, these are the two good options available.
Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G Pros and Cons
| PROS | CONS |
|---|---|
| 120Hz Smooth AMOLED Display | Overpriced |
| Bright 900 nits Panel | Night Photography Can be Improved |
| 10 5G Bands | OIS Doesn’t Support Videos |
| Louder Stereo Speakers | Front Camera has Dynamic Range Issue |
| Long Lasting Battery Life | Not the best Options for Gamers |
| Takes Decent Images Under Sunlight | No In-Display Fingerprint Sensor |
| Plastic Unibody | |
| Still Runs on Android 12 | |
| No SD Card Slot |
Display
I recently reviewed the Redmi Note 12 Pro Plus 5G and guess what, Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G has the same display as the 12 Pro Plus 5G, not even a single change, so let me just borrow some paragraphs from that review.
The Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G comes with a 120Hz 6.67-inches AMOLED display with a resolution of 1080 x 2400 pixels and pick a brightness of 900nits. This is a 10-bit panel and 240Hz Touch Sampling Rate while it also has the Wide Vine L1 Support.
To protect the front side, Redmi is using the Corning Gorilla Glass 5. Now, the rear and even frames are made from plastic.
Related: 5 Best Smartphones Under Rs 20,000
One Tip from my side, don’t buy the Stardust Purple color option because it look cheap. Still, if you love the design of the Stardust Purple color then go for it.
The MediaTek Dimensity 1080 is not a very powerful SoC and it will handle the 120Hz refresh rate without any problem.
All in all, The Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G has an excellent display and it does justify the Rs 24,999 price tag.
Performance
Again, no change in Processor too, both the Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G and Redmi Note 12 Pro Plus 5G have the SoC.
The MediaTek Dimensity 1080 is not made for heavy games, so if you’re thinking to buy Redmi Note 12 Pro for gaming then don’t because, after 30 or even 45 minutes of gaming, you will see frame drops and lags.
In short, don’t buy Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G to play games like COD Mobile, PUBG New State, or even Apex Legends. Now, it’s not like these games won’t run but if you play for a long time then you will feel disappointed with your purchase.
By the way, Redmi has also added the 12-layer graphite sheet which means, the phone won’t get hot. Now, the real test of a 12-layer graphite sheet will be in summer, so let’s wait.
Related: 5 Best Gaming Smartphones Under Rs 50,000
The phone also has 10 5G Bands which include the SA; n1, n3, n5, n8, n28a, n38,
n40, n41, n77, and 78 NSA; n38, n40, n41, n77, and n78. In short, you will be able to take advantage of 5G all over India.
To put it simply, Don’t buy the Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G for gaming but for day-to-day usage, it’s a good option to consider.
Software
Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G runs on MIUI 13 based on Android 12. Redmi has promised 2 Years of OS Updates and 4 Years of Security Updates, so this device will get OS Updates up to Android 14.
The catch is,
The device runs on Android 12 and Android 13 has been out for months. Now, what Redmi did is, delayed the Android 13 update, so they don’t have to update the device up to Android 15.
Redmi has also said that MIUI 14 based on Android 13 is ready and it should be out within a month, so you see what Redmi did…
By the way, Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G comes with hall lot of Bloatware which you can uninstall but you will have to manually uninstall all the third-party apps which is not a good experience even after paying the Rs 24,999.
The phone has ads in the UI which you can disable from the settings but the problem is every single user won’t know about this, so they will continue using the device as it is.
Overall, MIUI 13 is the same as all the other Redmi Phones, there is nothing new to talk about.
Cameras
The bigger change is on the camera side of things,
The Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G has a 50MP primary sensor (OIS), 8MP ultra-wide lens, and 2MP macro sensor while there is a 16MP selfie shooter on the front.
The rear camera can shoot videos at 4k@30fps and 1080p@30/60fps while the front can shoot at 1080p@30/60fps.
Fun Fact, OIS works well when you take images but when shooting videos, it disappears, in short, OIS doesn’t work in videos.
So then million dollar question, why did Redmi bother to add OIS, if you can’t use it in videos?
No one will give me a million dollars but still, let me answer, it’s because they wanted to market the device.
By the way, if Redmi wants they can add OIS in videos by just updating the smartphone but they have to work on it. So let’s see whether they push updates or not.
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For those who are wondering, the videos don’t come out well at all. Lack of OIS shows when I was shooting videos.
Also, if you’re taking videos and there is light behind you then the sensor will have a hard time fixing the background. Now, this can also be easily fixed with an OTA update.
The primary 50MP sensor is from Sony and its Sony IMX766 which is a premium sensor that has been used on phones like OnePlus 10T and even ROG Phone 6 Pro.
So you will be like, it’s good right, it should take good images?
Now, the problem is, no matter how expensive the sensor is if the brand doesn’t optimize well then it’s just there for a showcase. That’s the case with the Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G
The Sony IMX766 takes useable images under daylight but when it comes to low light, it suffers a lot. It adds hall lot of noise and if you take an image of your friend then his/her skin will turn out to be on the softer side.
Also, as this is a Redmi smartphone, it does add a little bit of extra color, it’s not too much but yes, the human skin tone will be a bit saturated.
The 8MP Ultra-wide and 16MP front cameras are the same as Redmi Note 12 Pro Plus 5G.
The 8MP ultra sensor is there and it’s just there. If there is enough light then it will take good images but under low light, the images will come out soft.
The 16MP front camera is social media ready, you won’t have to use any kind of filter, just take a selfie and post it on social media and you will look white.
Overall, the Redmi Note 12 Pro has decent cameras and it can be improved further with an Update but it all depends on Redmi whether they want to put in extra hours and wants to improve the cameras or not.
As you can see, I didn’t add any camera samples of Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G, so what you can do is, go to this and you will find all the camera samples of this device along with videos too (Fyi, it’s Google Drive Link).
Audio
The device has a stereo speaker with the support of Dolby Atmos. Both of these speakers are good, they’re loud, sound clear, and have a good amount of bass too.
The microphone quality is also solid, so there won’t be any kind of problems with calling too while the carrier aggression also helps when the phone is not getting good singles.
It also has a 3.5mm audio jack and IR blaster as well.
Battery
The Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G has a 5,000mAh battery with 67W wired fast charging support and yes, the 67W adapter is supplied in the box.
The device will take about 46 minutes to charge from 0% to 100% which is super fast but make sure you charge the device with a 67W charger.
The MediaTek Dimensity 1080 is battery efficient processor, so there is nothing to worry about it. Expect the battery to last for a day but if you’re a very heavy user then expect the battery to last till 4 to 5 PM.
Here, I have provided the rough numbers, so the real battery life can change user by user.
Verdict
Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G
Summary
The Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G could have been a killer smartphone at Rs 19,999 but now at Rs 24999, it’s just another smartphone with MediaTek Dimensity 1080 SoC and 67W fast charging. The moral of the story is, you won’t regret it if you skip the Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G and buy other devices.
Still, if you have any kind of questions then feel free to drop them in the comment box, I would love to answer them, see you there…
By the way, we also have a WhatsApp Channel, so feel free to join the channel. And yes, it’s FREE…
Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G Full Specifications
| Launch Date | 5th January 2022 |
| First Sale | 11th January 2022 via Flipkart at noon |
| Price | 6GB Ram + 256GB storage: Rs 24,999 8GB Ram + 128GB storage: Rs 26,999 8GB Ram + 256GB storage: Rs 27,999 |
| Display | 6.67-inches FHD+ AMOLED 120Hz Screen Refresh Rate 10-bit panel 395ppi density 900nits pick brightness Supports Wide Vine L1 240Hz Touch Sampling Rate 86.8% screen-to-body ratio |
| Resolution | 1080 x 2400 pixels resolution |
| Dimensions | 162.9 x 76 x 7.9 mm |
| Build | Glass front (Corning Gorilla Glass 5) Plastic Frame Plastic back |
| OS | Android 12 – MIUI 13 2 Years of OS Updates 4 Years of Security Updates |
| Chipset | Chipset: MediaTek Dimensity 1080 (6 nm) GPU: Mali-G68 MC4 CPU: Octa-core (2×2.6 GHz Cortex-A78 & 6×2.0 GHz Cortex-A55) Cooling: 12-layer graphite sheet |
| Storage Options | 6GB Ram + 128GB Storage 8GB Ram + 128GB Storage 12GB Ram + 256GB Storage – LPDDR4x Ram – UFS 2.2 Storage |
| SD-Card Slot | No |
| Rear Cameras | 50MP Primary Sensor (f/1.9) – OIS (Sony IMX766) 8MP Ultra-Wide (f/2.2) 2 MP Macro (f/2.4) Video 4k@30fps 1080p@30/60fps Camera Samples |
| Front Camera | 16MP Selfie Shooter Video 1080p@30/60fps |
| 3.5mm Jack | Yes |
| Wi-Fi Version | Wi-fi 6 2×2 (2×2 wifi) |
| Stereo Speakers | Yes |
| Carrier Aggregation | Yes |
| Bluetooth Version | 5.2 |
| 5G Support | Yes, 10 5G Bands. |
| 5G Bands | SA: n1, n3, n5, n8, n28a, n38, n40, n41, n77, and 78 NSA: n38, n40, n41, n77, and n78 |
| IR Blaster | Yes |
| Sensors | Proximity sensor, Ambient light sensor, Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Electronic compass, IR blaster, Geomagnetic sensor Fingerprint (Side-Mounted) |
| Fingerprint Sensor | Side-Mounted |
| Battery | 5,000mAh (non-removable) 67W Wired Fast Charging 0% to 100% in 46 Minutes |
| Colors | Obsidian Black, Arctic White, and Iceberg Blue |
| SAR Value | SAR Limit: 1.6 W/kg, Head: 0.844 W/kg, Body: 0.810 W/kg |
| Model Number | MZB0CXPIN |
| Weight | 188 Gram |
| In the box | Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G, 67W Charger, USB Type-C Cable, SIM Eject Tool, Protective Case, Quick Start Guide, Warranty Card |
| Available at | Flipkart |
*Images Credit: Gadget Bridge Hindi/YT
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