Redmi Turbo 5 review: power user’s delight

• By Ashish Kumar
Published On: 19 June 2026 | 10:40 IST

The Redmi Turbo 5 is an ambitious addition to the brand’s portfolio, positioned just below the Redmi Note 15 Pro+. Unlike the Note series, which places greater emphasis on cameras and all-around usability, the Turbo 5 is designed with performance and endurance in mind. Powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 8500 Ultra SoC and backed by a massive 7,540mAh battery, it is Redmi’s most capable performance-focused smartphone yet, aimed squarely at gamers, power users, and heavy multitaskers.

How does all that come together in real-world usage? In this Redmi Turbo 5 review, we find out where it stands and compare it against some of its rivals.

Verdict

The Redmi Turbo 5 excels in the areas that matter most to power users. The handset delivers excellent gaming performance, rich visuals, and long battery life. The 100W fast charging further enhances the overall experience. The premium build and robust IP ratings are added bonuses. However, the cameras lag behind those of key rivals, and thermal management and standby battery efficiency could be improved. If performance and endurance are your priorities, the Redmi Turbo 5 is an easy recommendation.

Performance: strong gaming credentials

The MediaTek Dimensity 8500 Ultra, ticking at the Redmi Turbo 5’s core, is paired with 8GB LPDDR5X/12GB LPDDR5X Ultra RAM and 256GB UFS 4.1 storage onboard. It’s the same chipset we saw on the Xiaomi 17T smartphone, but the Turbo 5 features Redmi’s 3D Ice Loop Cooling system, which comprises a large 5,300 mm² stainless steel layer and a Graphite Layer that is said to offer 3x better thermal management than a traditional vapour chamber.

The setup certainly helps the smartphone deliver smooth performance for everyday usage and gaming. The handset even managed to offer 120 fps gaming consistently while playing BGMI and COD: Mobile extensively with Wild Boost enabled, ensuring a seamless gaming experience. However, the Redmi Turbo 5 needs further optimisation to be the most thermally efficient device out there. While it didn’t get uncomfortably warm, I could feel the smartphone getting warm around the camera module.

Burnout Score

Xiaomi Redmi Turbo 5

49.1%

OnePlus Nord 6

45.4%

Motorola Edge 70 Pro 5G

43.6%

Burnout assesses CPU throttling and sustained performance under heavy load (higher is better)

During our internal testing, the Redmi Turbo 5’s surface temperature increased by 14°C after 40 minutes of BGMI and COD: Mobile. While this is lower than the lifestyle-focused Motorola Edge 70 Pro, which is powered by a similar MediaTek Dimensity 8500 Ultra chipset, the OnePlus Nord 6, originally launched in the sub-Rs 40,000 segment, demonstrated slightly better thermal efficiency.

AnTuTu score

OnePlus Nord 6

Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 4

2,366,913

Motorola Edge 70 Pro 5G

MediaTek Dimensity 8500 Extreme

2,194,258

Xiaomi Redmi Turbo 5

MediaTek Dimensity 8500 Ultra

2,135,669

AnTuTu assesses a smartphone's CPU, GPU, memory, and overall user experience (higher is better)

That said, our Burnout CPU throttling test shows that the Redmi Turbo 5 holds a slight advantage over the OnePlus Nord 6 in sustaining peak performance under heavy workloads. Its results in other benchmarks, including AnTuTu and Geekbench, are also among the best in the segment, reinforcing its strong performance credentials.

Battery: fast charging, excellent endurance

Backing the needs of power users is a massive 7,540mAh battery, one of the largest capacities in this segment. The benefits are evident in both synthetic tests and day-to-day usage. In the PCMark battery benchmark, the handset lasted 16 hours and 5 minutes, placing it slightly behind the OnePlus Nord CE6, whose larger 8,000mAh battery delivered close to 18 hours of runtime.

PCMark Battery score (in hours)

OnePlus Nord CE 6 Lite 5G

7000 mAh

17.1

Xiaomi Redmi Turbo 5

7540 mAh

16.0

Motorola Edge 70 Pro 5G

6500 mAh

14.0

PCMark battery test measures phone battery life from 100% to 20% (higher is better)

In our real-world battery tests, which included 30 minutes of video streaming and 60 minutes of gaming, the Redmi Turbo 5 consumed a combined 14 percent of its charge. While not class-leading, this is a respectable result for the segment and should comfortably last a full day, even under relatively heavy use.

Users can expect upwards of seven hours of screen-on time between charges, although standby power consumption remains higher than expected, preventing the handset from fully capitalising on its massive 7,540mAh battery. As a result, its overall endurance falls slightly short of what one would typically expect from a smartphone with a 7,500mAh-plus battery, and you may need to recharge the device sooner than anticipated.

Nevertheless, charging the Redmi Turbo 5 is a quick affair. The smartphone supports 100W HyperCharge and ships with a compatible charger in the box. In our testing, it took just 51 minutes to charge from 20 to 100 percent, which is impressive considering the sizeable 7,540mAh battery. The combination of a large battery and fast charging makes the handset particularly appealing for users who spend long hours away from a power outlet and need minimal downtime between charges.

Display: bright and immersive

The Redmi Turbo 5 sports a 6.59-inch 12-bit AMOLED display that bears 1.5K resolution, up to 120Hz refresh rate, DCI-P3 colour gamut, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, wet touch support, and 3,200 nits peak brightness. The screen is also TUV triple eye protection certified and offers up to 2,560 instant touch sampling rate for a highly responsive gaming and everyday user experience.

There are slim bezels all around and a small centred punch-hole cutout for the selfie camera, helping the display feel immersive while watching videos or gaming. HDR10 support is available out of the box on YouTube and other compatible streaming platforms, delivering richer contrast, improved highlights, and a wider dynamic range for a more engaging viewing experience.

Colours also appear punchy and vibrant by default, though users can switch to a more natural colour profile if preferred. Combined with excellent viewing angles, the display offers a consistently enjoyable viewing experience across different types of content. Additionally, the display remains perfectly legible outdoors under direct sunlight.

To enhance the viewing experience, the POCO X8 Pro boasts a stereo speaker setup, which gets fairly loud but may lack crispness at maximum volume. For security, there is an optical fingerprint scanner, which isn’t very intuitive owing to its positioning at the bottom of the screen, but it accurately unlocks the device.

Design: excellent durability

As observed in the first impressions, the Redmi Turbo 5 feels a tad heavier in the hand at 204 grams, but it is comfortable to hold thanks to its relatively compact form factor, nicely curved corners, and flat edges. The smartphone measures 157.53 x 75.19 x 8.18mm, which is impressive for a phone with a massive battery capacity.

The smartphone also feels solid and premium with its aluminium framing and glass back. There is a matte finish on the back panel and flat edges to ward off fingerprints and smudges, while the front of the smartphone features Corning Gorilla Glass 7i protection, which should survive minor drops and falls. We didn’t have the heart to test that, but we did put the Redmi Turbo 5 underwater, and it survived with flying colours. The smartphone is IP66, IP68, IP69, and IP69K certified, which means it can withstand high temperatures and high-pressure water jets as well.

This makes the Redmi Turbo 5 more durable than most smartphones in the segment, including the Motorola Edge 70 Pro, which stands out for its sleek appearance. The Redmi smartphone attempts to stand out with its Pixel Matrix housed within the two camera rings on the back. The Matrix comes with 8 built-in colours, customisable and adjustable brightness, for gaming, notifications, call alerts, and music. The lights can also be used with any app and as a camera status indicator when taking timed or burst shots.

While I did not find it particularly useful during gaming sessions (it was only supported with COD: Mobile during my time), the lighting system proved handy for alerts and notifications when the phone was placed face down and set to silent mode.

Software: smooth and connected

The Redmi Turbo 5 boots HyperOS 3 layered atop Android 16 out of the box. It’s the latest custom skin from Xiaomi, which delivers a near-identical experience to the Xiaomi 17T. The overall UI looks less user-friendly due to a plethora of pre-installed apps, including 22 third-party ones. In fact, the Redmi Turbo 5’s 63 pre-installed apps are higher than I’ve come across within the segment.

The software also feels slightly less mature than some rival Android skins and misses a few customisation options, such as widget customisation and app folders. But other than that, HyperOS 3 feels quite good for day-to-day use, with smoother animations, a Gaussian blur effect, personalised lock screen options with depth effects, and numerous subtle visual improvements throughout the interface.

The haptic feedback could be better integrated, but there are also some fun additions, including AI pets that can live on your home screen. Furthermore, the Hyper Island, which functions similarly to Apple’s Dynamic Island, previews content and expands to more details with a tap. Add to that HyperOS 3’s cross-ecosystem integration, which allows seamless communication not only across all Xiaomi devices, but also with Windows PCs, Macs, iPads, and iPhones via the Xiaomi Interconnectivity and Link to Windows features. Users can now run Xiaomi phone apps directly on their iPad or Mac, thereby reducing dependency on a particular device and enhancing productivity.

The usual Xiaomi HyperAI tools are all here, including features for generating wallpapers, assisting with writing, recognising speech, translating conversations, transcribing calls, and more. The AI photo editing suite, however, feels less comprehensive than some rivals in the segment. For instance, the OPPO Reno15C offers tools such as AI Reflection Remover, AI Eraser, AI Unblur, and AI Perfect Shot, giving users more ways to refine their photos.

Hopefully, this will be addressed in a future software upgrade for the Redmi Turbo 5. The smartphone is promised to receive at least 4 major OS upgrades and six years of security updates, which is standard for the segment.

Cameras: primary camera excels

For photography, the Redmi Turbo 5 features a 50MP Sony IMX882 primary camera with OIS and an f/1.5 aperture, paired with an 8MP ultrawide lens (f/2.2). On the front, it houses a 20MP selfie camera in a punch-hole cutout. The phone can record videos at up to 4K 60fps, but this capability is limited to the primary camera. The ultrawide and selfie cameras are limited to 1080p at 60 fps, resulting in an inconsistent video recording experience across the camera system.

Having said that, the cameras are not the smartphone’s forte, resulting in minimal features and modes. You get mixed results with the camera system, with the 50MP primary sensor doing all the heavy lifting here. The sensor captures sharp, detailed images in daylight with slightly oversaturated tones for a visually appealing look. As for the ultrawide lens, it is average at best, with soft details and muted colours. The 20MP front camera offers similar performance, with oversaturated tones, neon-green tones, and underwhelming facial details.

To better analyse the Redmi Turbo 5’s camera performance, we compared it against the similarly priced Motorola Edge 70 Pro to see how well it stacks up against the competition in its segment.

Daylight

The Redmi Turbo 5 captures pleasing daylight shots with vibrant colours and good overall exposure. However, when compared side by side, the Motorola Edge 70 Pro delivers richer details, more accurate colours, and a wider dynamic range, resulting in images that look more refined and closer to reality.

Ultrawide

The Redmi Turbo 5’s ultrawide camera maintains colour consistency with the primary sensor; however, image details appear softer compared to the Motorola Edge 70 Pro, which produces sharper results and more accurate-looking images. Motorola also benefits from a wider field of view and improved edge correction, resulting in less distortion and more usable frame coverage.

Portrait

The Redmi Turbo 5 offers a couple of focal points for portrait shots, but the results appear very overexposed and artificial, with underwhelming facial detail. The Motorola Edge 70 Pro, which offers a wider focal length range, remains a superior choice for portraits.

Selfie

The Redmi Turbo 5 does a decent job with selfies. That said, if accurate skin tones and facial details matter to you, the Motorola Edge 70 Pro is worth considering. The handset also excels with better exposure to background details.

Low light (night mode)

In low light, the Redmi Turbo 5 outperforms the Motorola Edge 70 Pro with sharper details and better control over light flare. However, it achieves this by noticeably brightening the scene, resulting in images that stray from the actual ambience.

Final verdict

Currently retailing at its starting price of Rs 37,999, the Redmi Turbo 5 delivers on its core promise. The MediaTek Dimensity 8500 Ultra SoC ticking at its core offers excellent gaming performance and strong sustained performance. Furthermore, its vibrant AMOLED display enhances both entertainment and gaming, while its massive 7,540mAh battery, paired with 100W fast charging, strengthens its appeal for power users who prioritise endurance and minimal downtime.

Beyond performance, Redmi has also paid attention to durability and design. The aluminium-and-glass construction feels premium, while the IP66/IP68/IP69/IP69K ratings make the device one of the most rugged options in its segment. HyperOS 3 brings a feature-rich software experience and long-term software support, although the excessive number of pre-installed apps somewhat detracts from the overall experience.

Speaking of its drawbacks, the Redmi Turbo 5 also falls short on the camera front. Largely reliant on the primary camera, the setup is serviceable but lacks the capabilities that competitors such as the Motorola Edge 70 Pro (review) bring to the table. The smartphone’s thermal management could also benefit from further optimisation, while standby battery drain prevents it from fully capitalising on its enormous battery capacity.

But if you have your priorities figured out, the Redmi Turbo 5 remains an easy recommendation for gamers, power users, and anyone seeking outstanding battery life and performance.

Editor’s rating: 8.4/10

Reasons to buy

• The IP66/IP68/IP69/IP69K ratings make the device one of the most rugged options in its segment.
• Its vibrant AMOLED display enhances both entertainment and gaming.
• The handset offers excellent gaming performance and strong sustained performance.
• The phone should appeal to power users who prioritise endurance and minimal downtime.

Reasons not to buy

• The excessive number of pre-installed apps somewhat detracts from the overall experience.
• The smartphone’s thermal management could also benefit from further optimisation.