Chinese-made smartphones have gained serious popularity in the countries of the former Soviet Union. This is not surprising, because for a very reasonable price, the buyer becomes the owner of a device with a stylish appearance and decent content. The hit of this year was Xiaomi Redmi Note 2, whose characteristics are more than impressive.
What are we dealing with?
Attention gadget lovers are offered a phone with the makings of a tablet. The 5.5-inch screen will please with unexpected actual characteristics and affordable price.
In comparison with the first version, the phone has decreased in size. The back cover is made of practical polycarbonate and is available in a wide range of colors. The manufacturer increased the screen resolution to FullHD. Installed 64-bit chip at 2 GHz. RAM is offered 2 GB, available for use - 16 GB. To create an extensive photo or video library in a compact gadget will allow a microSD slot, where you can insert a memory card up to 64 GB. Fans of high-performance equipment will be presented with a turbo version of Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 Prime 32GB, whose characteristics are 0.2 GHz higher than the subject of review.
Equipment
The Chinese brand does not change the packaging design. Customers will be offered a durable cardboard box in a yellow-mustard design. Inside the happy owner they will expect: a smartphone, a USB cable, a device for charging the battery, an adapter for Russian-style sockets, instructions in several languages, a warranty card.
Appearance
The phone looks concise and restrained, which makes it an ideal choice for business people seeking to be in the trend of modern technology. A plastic rectangle with rounded edges is covered with a reliable protective glass on the front side. The characteristics of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 phone indicate a high margin of safety for the case and preventing scratches.
Immediately above the display there is a speaker for conversation, a front view camera, a sensor and an indicator. Below it are three standard touch buttons. We are talking about the manager of running applications, “Back” and “Home”. They are distinguished by a characteristic red backlight, which the user can reconfigure or completely disable.
On the sides - the basic set of the average smartphone. Left: talk microphone and MicroUSB connector. Right: volume control panel, power button. Above: a 3.5 mm headphone compartment, a microphone for noise reduction, and finally, an innovation - the Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 features an infrared port for remote control of the equipment. Previous models did not have such capabilities.
And what's under the cover?
The back cover is equipped with an external speaker mesh with a slight bulge. The latter is designed to minimize jamming of the sound of the phone on a table or other hard surface. The camera eye is framed by a “metal-like” plastic frame, immediately below it is an LED flash.
To remove the cover, you have to be smart. First, the bottom panel needs to be picked up with nails. It is recommended to carry out manipulations on a solid surface in order to be able to stop. Similarly, the covers of Nokia or Microsoft devices are removed in the low and medium price range.
Immediately beneath it is a removable battery, micro SIM slots and memory cards. The hot swap function is not supported.
Screen Details
Specifications Xiaomi Redmi Note Pro 2 is represented by an IPS screen with a resolution of 1920x1080. Design confidence adds an oleophobic coating of high quality. There is no air gap, viewing angles are maximum, this allows you to get a picture of decent quality without distortion.
A reading mode is available, characterized by a sharp decrease in the brightness of the display and the predominance of green tones in the design.
System color gamut remains unchanged. Only the settings of the screen itself can be changed, which can easily be “redrawn” for oneself.
Performance and memory
Satisfied users of the Chinese product leave feedback on the characteristics of Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 No. 1 - the eight-core MediaTek Helio processor. These parameters are enough to ensure uninterrupted high-performance operation of the system, support for modern applications and heavy games of the latest generation. The processor independently determines the severity of the tasks and regulates the functioning of the cores by disabling or including some of them, as well as adjusting the clock frequency. With prolonged loads, the case heats up moderately.
Standard equipment requires 16 GB of memory. For storing photos, music, videos and other content without "weighty" games of this volume is more than enough. Fans of the “kill" 10-15 minutes after completing a super-popular arcade game should get acquainted with the characteristics of Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 Prime with twice the free memory.
Volume and autonomy
The top speaker makes a decent clear sound. Those who require a maximum of the device should not be equated with the top Xiaomi or Meizu, the sound quality in our case will be inferior, as well as the price, which should not be forgotten!
For communication with the outside world, the phone offers a maximum of possibilities:
- two-phase Wi-Fi;
- Bluetooth 4.0 LE;
- GPS receiver
The portable characteristics of Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 16GB are represented by a built-in 3060 mAh battery. However, in standalone mode, it will not work out much. In FullHD video viewing mode without recharging, the phone will last no more than 7 hours. During daylight hours (8-10 hours), the user will be able to talk for 20-30 minutes, get access to the Internet in Wi-Fi mode for up to 3 hours and play their favorite games for no more than an hour.
If you transfer your smartphone from full functionality to a balanced mode of operation, changing the energy-saving indicators, this will allow you to squeeze out a few more hours from the battery.
UI Convenience
According to the characteristics of Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 is the debutant of the MIUI7 version built on the Android 5.0.2 OS. Compared to its predecessor, the performance of basic functions has accelerated, but not significantly.
The owner has several desktops with applications and widgets. Available to change the order of desktops, animations and wallpapers.
The upper curtain is a combination of two sections - quick settings with playlist management and notifications. Of the new products - the ability to enable / disable system notifications for applications directly from it.
During the conversation, an available recording option is available, not all smartphones running Android can boast of such properties.
The manager of running files and applications allows you to clear RAM. The lock is removed in the usual way. The settings menu is represented by an arbitrary list. A useful innovation is the “parental control” function, which allows you to block a number of applications and operations.
Speaking of settings. In "Xiomi" they are given paramount importance. Initially, it seems that there is no such parameter that can be adjusted for yourself. This is not only about the design of the interface, but also the functionality of the touch buttons under the display, the style of displaying the battery charge, light indication of various events, the parameters of the processor, etc.
According to surveys, it became known that 30-40% of smartphone users listen to the radio. Good news for them, the Chinese flagship is equipped with an FM receiver that can work with or without a headset. You can record from the air.
The music player is made in the best tradition of Xiaomi technology. True, now you can switch your favorite tracks on the active locked screen.
From the usual applications: weather forecast, voice recorder, calculator, compass, explorer, notes, a program for working with office documents and an assortment of five themes.
Camera features
The characteristics of Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 in the case of the main camera are identical to the characteristics of Samsung. Resolution 13 megapixels, aperture F / 2.2, phase focusing allow you to create high-quality photos. Front camera - 5 megapixel OmniVision.
There is support for HDR, video recording in FullHD format 30 fps and slow motion mode. In general, the camera interface has remained virtually unchanged. From useful - quick access to shooting modes, flash, filters. Access to other modes can be obtained by long pressing the menu key.
Summarizing
The happy owners of Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 post a lot of positive reviews on the Internet. Their essence boils down to the following points:
- lovers of massive gadgets with a large bright screen should definitely pay attention to the presented model;
- in its price segment, it is the most profitable option for the ratio of price and quality;
- A 5.5-inch screen will allow you to enjoy a decent image, a powerful modern filling will please you with speed, a competitive main camera will capture important moments of life, and a practical universal design will suit a schoolchild, student and businessman;
- The smartphone also has disadvantages. However, they are insignificant, and even with them the apparatus is quite viable.