Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 Review: A Budget Smartphone Packed With Features

The Xiaomi Redmi Note series has been a popular choice for budget-conscious buyers who want great specs without breaking the bank. Redmi Note 12, the latest edition, aims to continue that trend with its solid all-round performance and excellent value.

Introduction

Released in October 2022, the Redmi Note 12 arrives about a year after its predecessor, the Redmi Note 11. This newest model brings upgrades like a high refresh rate AMOLED display, faster charging, and a new camera sensor. However, it retains the same MediaTek Helio G99 chipset and 5,000 mAh battery capacity.

With prices starting at around 549 AED for the 4GB/64GB version, the Redmi Note 12 packs some impressive features considering its affordable cost. But how does it actually perform as a daily driver? Let’s take a detailed look at this review.

Design and Display

The Redmi Note 12 sports a simple and understated design, with a rectangular camera module on the back and a centrally placed hole-punch selfie camera up front. The rear panel has a matte finish that resists fingerprints well.

With dimensions of 159.9 x 73.9 x 8.09mm and a weight of about 179g, the Redmi Note 12 is easy enough to use in one hand. The build quality is also decent, thanks to a plastic frame and Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection on the front.

The 6.67-inch AMOLED display is a key highlight of the Redmi Note 12. It has slim bezels all around and a sharp FHD+ resolution. Xiaomi has also upgraded to a 120Hz high refresh rate panel, which makes scrolling and animations smoother.

The content looks vibrant on the AMOLED screen, and it has Widevine L1 support for HD streaming. The display is also bright enough for outdoor use. While not the best screen in its segment, the Redmi Note 12 display gives you an excellent viewing experience considering its price range.

Performance and Software

Powering the Redmi Note 12 is a MediaTek Helio G99 chipset, which is built on a 6nm process and has two Cortex-A76 cores clocked at 2.2GHz plus six efficient Cortex-A55 cores. For graphics, it relies on a Mali-G57 MC2 GPU.

You get either 4GB or 6GB of LPDDR4X RAM paired with 64GB or 128GB of UFS 2.2 storage. There is also a MicroSD card slot for further expansion.

General performance is decent but nothing extraordinary. The Redmi Note 12 handles regular use, like messaging, web browsing, and social media, without issues. But it needs to work on heavy multitasking and demanding games at high graphics.

On the software front, the phone ships with Android 12 out of the box, along with Xiaomi’s MIUI 13 interface. MIUI 13 brings some nice customizations but is still filled with ads and bloatware. Fans of stock Android may find it irritating.

Cameras

For photography, the Redmi Note 12 packs a 50MP f/1.8 primary camera, an 8MP f/2.2 ultra-wide camera, and a 2MP f/2.4 macro camera. The 2MP depth sensor on the Note 11 has been removed. Upfront is an 8MP f/2.0 selfie camera.

The primary 50MP sensor captures good images in daylight with plenty of detail and accurate colors. However, low-light photos are just average with visible noise. The 8MP ultra-wide camera also disappoints with poorer quality compared to the primary lens.

Portrait mode produces decent edge detection and background blurring. The macro camera is not that useful, though, and is included as a marketing point.

On the video front, the Redmi Note 12 can record up to 1080p 30fps clips. The quality is decent, but the lack of any stabilization results in shaky footage.

Battery and Charging

There is a 5000 mAh battery packed inside the Redmi Note 12, the same as its predecessor. Combined with the power-efficient Helio G99 chipset, it delivers an excellent battery life of around 1.5 days of moderate use.

The Note 12 supports 33W fast charging. With the included charger, the phone gets from 0 to 100% in about 68 minutes, which is quick enough.

Pros

• Sharp and vibrant 120Hz AMOLED display
• Excellent design with slim bezels
• Decent daylight camera performance
• Long battery life with 33W fast charging
• MicroSD card slot for storage expansion
• Good value for money

Cons

• Underwhelming low-light camera quality
• Average overall performance
• Pre-installed bloatware and ads in MIUI
• No 5G support

Conclusion

The Redmi Note 12 brings an AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and faster 33W charging compared to the Note 11. Performance is similar, though, and low-light camera quality could be better.

But for its asking price, the Redmi Note 12 still gives you great value with its crisp AMOLED screen, decent general performance, solid battery life, and good primary camera. Unless you are a demanding user, the Redmi Note 12 gets most things right at an affordable price point.

In summary, while not perfect, the Redmi Note 12 offers an attractive package for budget phone buyers wanting a device with modern features and excellent display quality without spending a lot. Competing with it are models like the Realme 9i, the Moto G62 5G, and the Samsung Galaxy A33.