By Kim | 12 August 2022 | 0 Comments
Xiaomi Redmi Note 5A Review
Redmi Note 5A
Build and Design
The Note 5A, like previous Redmi phones, has an outstanding design and build quality. It feels solid thanks to its metal unibody design, but it isn't particularly tough. The back of the phone, which is bare aluminum, has a very smooth matte finish that is pleasant to the touch. The front bezels are a pleasing white, and the panel is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 3. It's 7.6mm thin and easy to hold.
MIUI also includes Dual Apps, which allows you to run two instances of the same app (useful if you're using the dual-SIM functionality and want, say, two WhatsApp accounts), second space, and App lock for password-protecting specific apps.
Other usability enhancements include a one-handed mode that can reduce the usable screen size, a Quick ball that can be placed anywhere onscreen for quick access to frequently used features, split screen, and a few other gestures like three-finger screenshots.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 5A specs:
5.5-inch IPS display @ 1280 x 720 px
2.5D Curved Glass
1.4GHz Qualcomm MSM8940 Snapdragon 435
Adreno 505 GPU
2GB, 3GB, 4GB RAM
32GB, 64GB internal storage
expandable via micro SD up to 256GB (dedicated)
13MP f/2.2 AF rear camera with LED Flash
16MP f/2.0 front camera
4G LTE
Dual SIM, Dual Standby
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
Bluetooth 4.2
GPS, A-GPS, Beidou
Fingerprint Scanner
micro USB
Android 7.1.2 Nougat w/ MIUI 8
3080mAh non-removable battery
153 x 76.2 x 7.6mm
150g
Champagne Gold, Platinum Silver Gray, Rose Gold
Build and Design
The Note 5A, like previous Redmi phones, has an outstanding design and build quality. It feels solid thanks to its metal unibody design, but it isn't particularly tough. The back of the phone, which is bare aluminum, has a very smooth matte finish that is pleasant to the touch. The front bezels are a pleasing white, and the panel is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 3. It's 7.6mm thin and easy to hold.
Above the 5.5-inch HD IPS display are the notification LED, call speaker, 16MP front camera, and LED flash, as well as non-LED capacitive navigation buttons.
Meanwhile, the back has a 13MP rear camera, an LED flash, a fingerprint scanner, and two visible antenna bands. The unit we have is in the Platinum Silver Grey color, which I must say is simply stunning.
The volume and power buttons are on the right side, while the hybrid SIM tray is on the left.
The top and bottom load-outs are fairly standard, with the former featuring a noise-cancelling microphone and 3.5mm headphone jack and the latter featuring a micro-USB port and a pair of audio grills. The micro-USB port had a minor issue at first, as it required quite a bit of pressure to slide into the included cable.
Despite its simple design, the device looks and feels great. Redmi phones are frequently praised for their build quality, and the Note 5A is no exception.
Display
The Redmi Note 5A has a 5.5-inch IPS display with a resolution of 1280 x 720, which is a step down from the Redmi Note 4 and 4X's Full HD displays. Regardless, I don't consider this a deal breaker because it still looks great with bright colors and gets so bright that you don't even need to turn it all the way up when you're outside. The only area where it falls short is contrast, which could be due to the reduction in resolution.
Display
The Redmi Note 5A has a 5.5-inch IPS display with a resolution of 1280 x 720, which is a step down from the Redmi Note 4 and 4X's Full HD displays. Regardless, I don't consider this a deal breaker because it still looks great with bright colors and gets so bright that you don't even need to turn it all the way up when you're outside. The only area where it falls short is contrast, which could be due to the reduction in resolution.
Being a smartphone speaker, the speaker is about average. The bass is lacking, and the highs clip when the volume is turned up to 11, but the mids are present throughout. It works best at around 75% volume and is suitable for casual listening or watching dialogue-heavy content.
Software
The Note 5A can be upgraded to MIUI 9.5, the most recent version based on Android Oreo. It will appear to those familiar with standard Android to be quite a departure, given that Xiaomi preinstalls all of its own alternative apps to the usual Google services, overhauls the Settings menu (use the search bar), and removes the app tray.
If you purchase the Global model, Google services should be preinstalled. But don't worry if you don't know how to install Google Play Services on MIUI 9. (You may have to update from MIUI 8 to 9.5 first). There's no need to be concerned because the process is no longer as frightening as it once was.
Software
The Note 5A can be upgraded to MIUI 9.5, the most recent version based on Android Oreo. It will appear to those familiar with standard Android to be quite a departure, given that Xiaomi preinstalls all of its own alternative apps to the usual Google services, overhauls the Settings menu (use the search bar), and removes the app tray.
If you purchase the Global model, Google services should be preinstalled. But don't worry if you don't know how to install Google Play Services on MIUI 9. (You may have to update from MIUI 8 to 9.5 first). There's no need to be concerned because the process is no longer as frightening as it once was.
MIUI also includes Dual Apps, which allows you to run two instances of the same app (useful if you're using the dual-SIM functionality and want, say, two WhatsApp accounts), second space, and App lock for password-protecting specific apps.
Other usability enhancements include a one-handed mode that can reduce the usable screen size, a Quick ball that can be placed anywhere onscreen for quick access to frequently used features, split screen, and a few other gestures like three-finger screenshots.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 5A specs:
5.5-inch IPS display @ 1280 x 720 px
2.5D Curved Glass
1.4GHz Qualcomm MSM8940 Snapdragon 435
Adreno 505 GPU
2GB, 3GB, 4GB RAM
32GB, 64GB internal storage
expandable via micro SD up to 256GB (dedicated)
13MP f/2.2 AF rear camera with LED Flash
16MP f/2.0 front camera
4G LTE
Dual SIM, Dual Standby
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
Bluetooth 4.2
GPS, A-GPS, Beidou
Fingerprint Scanner
micro USB
Android 7.1.2 Nougat w/ MIUI 8
3080mAh non-removable battery
153 x 76.2 x 7.6mm
150g
Champagne Gold, Platinum Silver Gray, Rose Gold
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