Xiaomi Redmi A4 128GB

Redmi A4 5G Tecno Spark 30Citel Color Pro 5GThickness 8.22 mm 7.82 mm 8.45 mm Weight212.4 grammes 189 grammes 190 grammes IP rating IP52IP54NA

The Redmi A4 features a 50MP primary camera paired with an auxiliary lens and a 5MP front camera. The device delivers satisfactory daylight shots for its price, but in low-light conditions, the images tend to be soft, even with night mode enabled. The selfie camera performs reasonably well but is limited by its small sensor, often struggling to capture facial details and producing images with a fair amount of noise. Let's see how it compares against its key competitors below.DaylightComparing the daylight shots of the Redmi A4 5G with the Tecno Spark 30C (review), you'll notice the latter's image has a lot more contrast. The colours appear better, and the details are also superior compared to the Redmi A4 5G. To be fair, the Redmi A4's daylight shot is closer to the actual scene with the hazy view owing to the ever-present smog in Delhi NCR. That said, if you prefer social media-ready shots, the Tecno Spark 30C does a better job.The itel Color Pro (review) takes a much sharper image compared to the Redmi A4 5G, almost to an extent where it appears overprocessed. Although the former's colour reproduction reflects the actual scene better, the Redmi A4 5G, in this case, has slightly boosted colours to make its image stand out. SelfiesThe Redmi A4's selfie camera shows its limitations when compared directly with the Tecno Spark 30C. The former's image may look quite appealing, but when zoomed in closer there's a significant noise level, while the Tecno Spark 30C preserves details much better. The itel Color Pro does a decent job of reproducing the accurate skin colour of the subject, while the Redmi A4's image features a slight saturation. In terms of details, the itel Color Pro still maintains the lead compared to the Redmi A4. Low-lightBoth the Redmi A4 5G and Tecno Spark 30C struggle when it comes to night shots, even with night mode enabled. The Redmi A4 manages to portray the scene well, but the details are very soft, and there's a lot of noise present. The Tecno Spark 30C illuminates the scene better but adds a greenish tint to the image, which makes it look unnatural. Even so, the details are better on the Tecno phone compared to its counterpart, and the image looks more appealing. The itel Color Pro remains one of the best low-light shooters in this price bracket, and the difference is visible right away when you compare it with the Redmi A4 5G. The former's image is much sharper, the details clearly better, and you can differentiate between the varying hues and buildings with ease. 

The new Snapdragon 4s Gen 2 lies at the core of the Redmi A4 5G and comes with 4GB of LPDDR4X RAM and up to 128GB of UFS 2.2 storage, further expandable with a MicroSD card. The chipset is based on a 4nm processor and delivers decent performance for its price bracket, although its synthetic benchmark numbers fall slightly short compared to its competitors like the Tecno Spark 30C and the itel Color Pro.AnTuTu benchmark scores (higher is better)There's not a significant difference in these scores, however, so you can expect the real-world performance to be on par. My experience with the device was quite similar, and the regular day-to-day performance is decent for the price. There were the occasional lags while browsing or using YouTube, but nothing too significant.Geekbench benchmark score (higher is better)We also tested out some popular gaming titles like BGMI and COD: Mobile to see how the phone holds up against its rivals. One thing to note is that the device did crash during our testing when playing COD: Mobile, with the GPU artifacting (pixelation and dark spots) mid-gameplay.The phone's gaming performance is also slightly lower compared to the other two. Its average frame rates are comparatively lower than the other two phones, so if you're someone who wants a good gaming experience on a budget, the itel Color Pro or the POCO M6 Pro is the better option. Burnout benchmark scores (higher is better)SoftwareThe device runs on Android 14-based HyperOS out of the box with 2 years of OS updates and 4 years of security updates. What's curious, however, is that the UI does not resemble the HyperOS I've experienced in other Xiaomi products like the Redmi Pad Pro, Redmi 13 5G, and more. The notification shade is actually in the style of the old MiUI, which is something I did not expect. A possible explanation could be the brand kept the UI elements light so that the phone runs smoothly.There's also a good number pre-installed apps on the device, which includes some third-party games, although most of these can be uninstalled if you wish to. There's an option to hide the waterdrop notch if it bothers you, though it reduces the visible screen space a little. Pre-installed appsSoftware updates Redmi A4 5G592 years OS, 4 years security Tecno Spark 30C442 years of security updates itel Color Pro 45NA

The Redmi A4 5G comes with a 5,160mAh battery with 18W fast charging support. The brand also gives you a 33W charger in the retail box, unlike the Tecno Spark 30C. The battery had an excellent score on the PCMark battery benchmark test, and its resilience is truly commendable. The device easily lasts for an entire day even with high usage levels, which should appeal to many battery-focused customers. PCMark battery life benchmark (higher is better)In our lab tests, the phone's battery dropped just 20 percent during 2 hours of heavy use, which includes playing multiple games and YouTube streaming, which is an excellent result for the price. The paired 33W charger takes roughly 1 hour and 40 minutes to achieve a full charge from 20 percent capacity. The charging time is slightly slow, but for a battery that lasts as long, it's a decent amount. SmartphoneCharging speedCharging time (20 to 100 percent)Redmi A418W99 minutesTecno Spark 30C18W120 minutesitel Color Pro 18W112 minutes