Xiaomi Redmi Note 4: Form over function

Over the years, most smart phones have pandered to customers who ask: how much bang for my buck? How big a screen, how many megapixels, how many megabytes, for how little rupaiya? But in any given price band, it is difficult for one smartphone to stand out, when a dozen others have almost identical specifications.

So finally some makers are putting thought and money, into aesthetics and design. Among those projecting form, not just function, is the new Redmi Note 4. With a metal body and aluminium lines (just 5 mm at the thinnest point), it is designed in perfect symmetry. The speaker grills at the back panel are centre-aligned with precision, along with the camera, the flash and the fingerprint scanner. Even in front, the headphone jack, the lens and other elements are perfectly aligned. While this may not seem like a big deal, it poses a design and R&D challenge to accommodate all these elements in a small frame.

Yet, its under-the-hood performance matches the design frills. It is fuelled by one of the more efficient processors, Snapdragon 625 processor which comes with the 14 nano metre FinFET technology, that is said to provide an additional 25% efficiency boost to the 4100mAh battery. With the Adreno graphics card, this means games fiends can play on for hours between recharges. The 13 MP rear and 5 MP front cameras, are pretty much standard these days. The Infra Red blaster means you can use your phone like a remote with the appropriate software. It works across all Indian 4G bands, with Voice over LTE, which means, voice calls too are made at 4G quality.

With the latest Android Nougat OS, Redmi Note 4 costs Rs 9,999 (2GB RAM + 32 GB storage), Rs 10,999 (3GB + 32 GB) and Rs 12,999 (4GB+64GB)... the same prices as the Redmi Note 3.

A thing of beauty, sure! A joy forever? What's 'forever' in the phone world? until the Redmi Note 5 comes along?

—IndiaTechOnline