“The Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime 2 and Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 are both available under Rs 15,000”

It is now no secret that the South Korean giant, Samsung and China’s Apple, Xiaomi are battling it out to claim the top spot in the Indian handset market. Xiaomi recently launched its Redmi Note 5 Duo – the Redmi Note 5 and the Redmi Note 5 Pro (review) in India, and as expected, these smartphones have been flying off the shelves. To counter the competition, Samsung has now gone ahead and expanded its Galaxy J series of smartphones in the country. The latest launch from the Chaebol comes in the form of the Galaxy J7 Prime 2, which is an upgraded variant of the Galaxy J7 Prime launched back in 2016. Since both the Redmi Note 5 (first impressions | review) and the Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime 2 are in the same price bracket and compete with each other head on, we have taken a closer look at them side by side. Stay with us to find out which of the two emerges on top.

Design and display

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In terms of looks, both smartphones feature the signature designs of their respective brands. The Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime 2 features a unibody design with a matte finish on the rear panel. The handset has a physical home button on the front flanked by capacitive keys on either side. The home button also integrates a fingerprint scanner. The Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 on the other hand, flaunts a bezel-less form factor with the rear panel remaining identical to its predecessors. It gets a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner. Both devices are equally aesthetic and ergonomic. However, the Redmi Note 5 gets a brownie point for featuring a tall 18:9 display with minimal bezels.

Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime 2 FB

Speaking of the display, the Redmi Note 5 again gets an upper hand with its larger 5.99-inch screen as compared to the 5.5-inch display on the Galaxy J7 Prime 2. In terms of screen resolution, while Samsung’s offering has a full HD panel, the Redmi Note 5 features a full HD+ display and as such there is not much difference in the display visuals. Both smartphones also get Corning Gorilla Glass layers on top.

Performance and software

Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime 2

Coming to the performance, Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime 2 is powered by the Exynos 7870 octa-core processor mated to Mali-T830 graphics and 3GB RAM. The Redmi Note 5, on the other hand, has an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor with Adreno 506 GPU and 3GB RAM. Further, both these phones get 32GB of built-in expandable storage. The Redmi Note 5 comes in an additional variant that offers 4GB RAM and 64GB storage. We can expect the performance offered by both smartphones to be at par with each other.

However, speaking in terms of software, Redmi Note 5 boots the newer Android 7.1.2 Nougat operating system out of the box with MIUI interface running on top. The Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime 2, on the other hand, runs a slightly dated Android 7.0 Nougat.

Camera and battery

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Coming to the optics, there is not much difference in the rear cameras of these two, as the Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime 2 comes with a 13-megapixel shooter, whereas the Redmi Note 5 gets a 12-megapixel camera. However, as we move to the front, the Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime 2 scores over the Redmi Note 5. The Redmi Note 5 features a 5-megapixel camera up front and in comparison, the Galaxy J7 Prime 2 offers the same 13-megapixel shooter as the one on its rear panel. However, the selfie camera on Redmi Note 5 comes accompanied by a dedicated LED flash, making it ideal for low light selfies.

Moving on to the battery, Redmi Note 5 is powered by a beefy 4,000mAh battery compared to a 3,300mAh pack on the Galaxy J7 Prime 2.

Closing thoughts

Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime 2 vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 5

Both these smartphones are equally good and come with their share of pros and cons. However, the point to be noted here is that while the Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime 2 is already available to pick from Samsung stores, it’s difficult to get hold of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 because the stocks disappear as soon the phone goes on sale. The performance and other factors being identical, if you have the patience to order through flash sales and are willing to try your luck in several sales before you get one in your cart, the Redmi Note 5 has received good response from the masses and critics alike. Also, both variants of the Redmi Note 5 are more affordable than the Galaxy J7 Prime (3GB variant for Rs 9,999 and 4GB for Rs 11,999 as compared to Rs 13,990 for the Galaxy J7 Prime).

On the other hand, if you lack the patience, the Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime 2 is readily available across Samsung stores across the country and online. Also, selfies lovers might actually favour the Galaxy phone over the Redmi Note 5 for the 13MP shooter up front. Let us know, which phone out of the two caught your fancy.