Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 32GB

The improvements start from the design itself. The Redmi Note 3 came clad in metal, but didn’t really rock our boat in terms of looks. The Note 4 changes that, not drastically we admit, but enough to improve the in-hand feel quite a bit.

The new phone sticks to the same 5.5-inch FHD IPS display used by the predecessor, and it’s quite capable in terms of most parameters, including colour reproduction, sharpness, touch response, sunlight legibility and viewing angles. As usual, you can tweak display output to suit you preferences, and there's a night mode for more comfortable reading after dark too.

Moving on to the snappers, the Redmi Note 4 actually drops the megapixel count to 13 (in comparison to 16MP on the predecessor). On the front is the same 5MP shooter as before. Don’t get disappointed with the reduction in megapixels though, as the Redmi Note 4 is a far more accomplished shooter than the older model.

The Note 4 doesn’t really have anything new to offer on the software or connectivity side of things. it runs MIUI 8, with Android Marshmallow as base. Xiaomi’s MIUI remains one of our favourite Android-based ROMs, offering a smooth, stable experience. The thing with MIUI is, that it’s quite simple to use (it even offers a Lite mode for newbies), yet comes loaded with a barrage of features power users would appreciate.

The Redmi Note 4 utilises a processor which has fast become a 91mobiles favourite. The octa-core Snapdragon 625 inside the phone is a solid blend of grunt and power efficiency, and has been very consistent across all phones we’ve experienced it on. Right from the Asus ZenFone 3 (review), to the Moto Z Play (review), and even the Lenovo P2 more recently, the Snapdragon 625 chip has proven its capabilities in terms of performance, battery life and keeping the heat in check. The Redmi Note 4 does nothing to shake that belief, and comes across as a smooth performer - whether it’s day-to-day tasks, intensive games, or media consumption. Thanks to 4 gigs of RAM on our review unit, multitasking was a breeze too.

The Redmi Note 4 packs a sealed 4,100mAh battery (marginally more powerful than its predecessor), and thanks to the power-efficient Snapdragon 625, kills it in terms of the battery life. In our usage, we were able to eke out a full day’s use comfortably, even with heavy usage. The handset lasted for a good 17 hours in our video loop drain test, which indicates how good its battery life is.