Review Summary
Expert Rating
Infinix has had a rather interesting lineup this year, especially with its Note 50 series. The Note 50x (review) distinguished itself for offering the MediaTek Dimensity 7300 Ultimate at a surprisingly aggressive price of just Rs 11,499. Now, the brand has followed it up with the Infinix Note 50s, a proper successor that brings upgrades like an AMOLED display, better brightness and colour tuning, faster RAM, and a sleeker chassis.
These changes bridge a few of the areas I felt were lacking in the Note 50x, making the Note 50s a more well-rounded option. What’s even better is that Infinix has managed to keep the price in check, as the Note 50s comes in at just Rs 15,999, which still makes it one of the more value-packed offerings in this segment. In this review, I’ll discuss what the Note 50s gets right and where there’s still room for improvement.
Table of Contents
Verdict
The Infinix Note 50s offers a good mix of features for its price. You get a vibrant curved AMOLED display, clean software, reliable day-to-day performance, and a camera setup that performs well in good lighting. The phone also feels light and premium in hand, making it a comfortable daily driver. However, there’s no option for expandable storage, and the phone struggles with heat management, especially outdoors, which leads to occasional lag.
Design and display
| Smartphones | Thickness | Weight | IP rating |
| Infinix Note 50s | 7.6 mm | 180 grams | IP64 |
| Vivo T4x | 8.19 mm | 208 grams | IP64 |
| Realme P3 | 8 mm | 194 grams | IP66 + IP68 + IP69 |
The Infinix Note 50s may look a lot like the Note 50x at first glance, but some meaningful changes give it its own distinct identity. The camera island design is mostly unchanged, except for the addition of Active Halo lighting. This subtle LED ring lights up during notifications, calls, charging, and while taking photos. It is a simple, useful touch that works especially well if you often leave your phone face down.
Around the back, you get a matte metallic finish with soft curves along the edges, which makes the phone feel really comfortable to hold. It’s also impressively lightweight, which adds to day-to-day usability. The rest includes a USB-C port, dual SIM slots, JBL-tuned stereo speakers, and even a colour-matched TPU case in the box.
The big upgrade here is the AMOLED display. It is a big step up, delivering rich colours and solid contrast. The Note 50s features a curved 6.67-inch FHD+ AMOLED panel with a 144Hz refresh rate, up to 1,300 nits of peak brightness, HDR10 support, and full DCI-P3 colour coverage. It’s a well-rounded panel that adds a premium touch to the overall experience.
| Smartphones | Display | Peak brightness |
| Infinix Note 50s | 6.78-inch AMOLED | 1,300 nits |
| Vivo T4x | 6.78-inch LCD | 1,050 nits |
| Realme P3 | 6.67-inch AMOLED | 2,000 nits |
Although, like with most curved panels, it is a bit too glossy, and reflections can get distracting in a brightly lit room. It is a great screen for the price nonetheless, immersive, vibrant, and a clear improvement over the one on the Note 50x.
The speakers, on the other hand, left a bit to be desired. They are not particularly loud either; we recorded a peak output of 78 decibels, which is lower than the segment average of around 82, and the audio lacks depth. Compared to something like the Realme P3 (review), the overall audio experience feels a little flat, especially for media consumption.
Cameras
The Infinix Note 50s features a 64MP Sony IMX682 dual rear camera setup along with a 13MP front camera. In good lighting, the main sensor delivers some impressive results. Images are sharp, exposure is well-balanced, and the dynamic range is wide enough to retain details across the frame. Shutter speed is also quick, and the phone handles moving subjects surprisingly well. The colour tuning is on the vibrant side, not the most accurate, but definitely eye-catching, especially if you’re someone who enjoys sharing punchy shots on social media.
There were a couple of minor bugs I ran into during use. Occasionally, the phone would display older images as still processing, even after snapping several new ones. It also has trouble dealing with harsh light sources like the sun, often producing a noticeable ring effect that makes the photo look a little off. The selfie camera is, in fact, my favourite of the lot. Selfies look clean, with decent sharpness, pleasing colours, and a fair amount of facial detail. The skin tones aren’t the most realistic, but they’re well-balanced and help enhance the overall result without going overboard.
The Note 50s falls behind in low-light performance. The rear camera churns out images that look a little washed out, though the level of detail and sharpness remains passable. It also struggles with light sources and managing lens flares effectively. The selfie camera behaves similarly under the same conditions. It is usable but not particularly impressive in dim conditions. There’s no OIS, so I was not expecting much stability in videos, but they turn out quite stable, which is commendable.
Both the front and rear cameras also support 4K recording at 30fps, which is a welcome addition at this price point. I also compared the Infinix Note 50s’ camera performance against Realme P3 and Vivo T4x. The samples are below.
Daylight
When comparing daylight photos between the Infinix Note 50s and the Realme P3, the major difference lies in colour science. The Realme P3 tends to keep colours more neutral, while the Note 50s adds a bit more vibrancy to its shots. Beyond that, the differences are minimal. Overall, the Infinix Note 50s has an advantage over its rival in terms of detail and clarity, thanks to its 64MP sensor.
The story is similar to the Vivo T4x. The key difference again lies in the colour tone, as the T4x leans towards cooler shades, while the Note 50s delivers warmer tones. When it comes to fine detail, however, the Vivo T4x does a slightly better job overall. Both phones, though, tend to over-sharpen images a little and can introduce some noise in the process.
Portrait
Portrait shots from the Realme P3 show better facial tones and more natural skin colours, although the detail level could be better. The Note 50s, by contrast, smoothens skin textures and tends to wash out colours slightly. Edge detection is also a touch better on the Realme.
The Vivo T4x offers similar improvements over the Note 50s, delivering sharper facial features and more accurate edge detection overall
Selfie
Selfie results largely reflect what we saw in daylight shots. The Realme P3 offers more realistic skin tones but falls short on detail. The Note 50s, meanwhile, captures sharper, more detailed selfies, albeit with a warmer colour tone.
The Vivo T4x gets colour accuracy spot on and does a better job of reproducing natural tones, although the Infinix Note 50s still holds an advantage in terms of overall clarity and detail.
Low-light
In low-light conditions and night mode enabled, the Infinix Note 50s captures sharp images with good detail, but it struggles with light sources and lens flares, which can leave the final result looking slightly hazy. The Realme 14T, while not as sharp or detailed, delivers more balanced images with better control over exposure and colours, making for a more visually pleasing photo.
Against the Vivo T4x, the Note 50s performs better overall. Its images are clearer and more defined, whereas the T4x produces softer results with less visible detail.
Performance and software
The new Infinix Note 50s features MediaTek’s Dimensity 7300 Ultimate SoC with up to 8GB of LPDDR5X RAM and 256GB of UFS 2.2 storage. There is no expandable storage option, so it’s best that you carefully choose your configuration depending on your needs. Performance in day-to-day use is pretty good. The phone breezes through regular tasks and handles heavier multitasking without any hiccups. In my time with it, I didn’t run into any lag, even with a decent amount of apps open in the background or while gaming. RAM management is decent; apps stay in memory for a good while.
However, the device does heat up during outdoor use, occasionally causing some lag. This could partly be attributed to Delhi’s ongoing heatwave. Given the phone’s slim profile, effective heat dissipation becomes a challenge in extreme summer conditions. While it wasn’t a major concern for me-as I don’t spend much time outside during the day-it’s something worth noting if you’re often on the move in hot weather.
Talking about gaming, titles like BGMI and COD: Mobile ran smoothly at medium graphical settings, delivering a consistent and fluid experience. We got a consistent 60 fps on the former and 30 fps on the latter on the medium preset, which is pretty decent. The phone also offers 90 fps support on COD: Mobile, so rest assured, even the most zealous fps gamers will have fun.
The Infinix Note 50s runs on XOS 15, based on Android 15, right out of the box. This new version of XOS has seen some meaningful improvements, including smoother app animations, a refreshed app drawer, and an updated notification panel. The interface feels a lot cleaner and refined now, and Infinix deserves credit for cutting down on the number of pre-installed apps, something that’s often a concern with budget phones. I have also covered the new AI features in depth in my Infinix Note 50x review, so you can take a look at it here.
All in all, the software feels mature and is feature-rich, which makes it quite the package compared to its competitors. Notably, Infinix is marketing its latest smartphone as the Note 50s 5G+, with the “plus” highlighting its “True 5G support,” aimed at reducing network congestion and enhancing overall performance. However, its accessibility will be limited to select areas. In my experience, the phone delivered fast 5G speeds, comparable to what I typically get on my OnePlus 12.
| Smartphones | Pre-installed apps | Software support |
| Infinix Note 50s | 48 | 2 OS upgrades + 3 years security |
| Vivo T4x | 55 | 2 OS upgrades + 3 years security |
| Realme P3 | 69 | 2 OS upgrades + 3 years security |
Battery and charging
The Infinix Note 50s packs a 5,500mAh battery with support for 45W fast charging. In our battery tests, it delivered fairly average numbers when stacked up against key rivals, but in real-world use, it easily gets through a full day even with heavy usage.
One of the more thoughtful additions here is bypass charging. This feature sends power directly to the motherboard instead of the battery, which helps keep temperatures in check while gaming and is better for the battery’s long-term health, too. Another such feature is the low-temperature charging mode, which reduces the charging speed a little but helps extend battery health.
Charging speed could be a bit better. The bundled 45W charger gets the phone back to full in around an hour, which isn’t bad but not exceptional either. There’s support for 10W reverse charging, a nifty feature if you ever need to top up another device in a pinch.
| Smartphones | Battery | Charging time (20-100%) |
| Infinix Note 50s | 5,500 mAh | 57 minutes (45W) |
| Vivo T4x | 6,500 mAh | 67 minutes (44W) |
| Realme P3 | 6000 mAh | 61 minutes (45W) |
Final Verdict
The Infinix Note 50s is priced at Rs 15,999 for the 8GB+128GB variant, while the 8GB+256GB model will cost you Rs 17,999. At this price, it goes up against the likes of the Realme P3 (review) and Vivo T4x (review). The Realme P3 is ahead with a better multimedia experience, a sturdier design, and a larger battery. The Vivo T4x, on the other hand, is a more budget-friendly option that delivers comparable performance and build quality, along with a significantly bigger battery, although you do miss out on an AMOLED display, which makes the visuals a bit less vibrant.
The Note 50s, however, finds a good middle ground. You get a curved AMOLED display, a capable set of cameras, respectable battery life, and a software experience that’s among the better ones at this price. For lifestyle-focused users, it offers a good package at a reasonable price point.
There are, however, a couple of compromises worth noting. There is no option for expandable storage, which may be a limitation in the long run, especially if you’re going for the base variant. The other concern is heat management. The phone does tend to warm up quite a bit during outdoor use during summers, which leads to lag, both in general usage and while using the camera. Overall, the Infinix Note 50s is a well-rounded device for everyday users, especially if you value design and display quality.
Editor’s Rating: 7.9 / 10
Reasons to buy:
- The Infinix Note 50s boasts a slim, lightweight design that feels premium in hand.
- The curved AMOLED display offers vibrant visuals and good contrast.
- Performance is great for the price, and it handles everyday tasks and multitasking with ease.
- Daylight photos turn out well, with sharp details and punchy colours.
Reasons not to buy:
- There’s no option for expandable storage.
- The phone tends to heat up during outdoor use, which leads to performance drops.
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