Xiaomi Redmi 5A pros and cons

Xiaomi is the current market leader in India and they have the 3 of the most top selling smartphone models in India as well in the form of the Redmi Note 4, the Redmi 4 and Redmi 4A and they just launched the Redmi 5A in India and it is an entry level phone that is dubbed as the smartphone for everyone. It is also one of the most pocket friendly phones and just starts at just Rs.4999. It also comes in three attractive colors options. Gold, Rose Gold and Dark Grey. This phone replaces the Redmi 4A which sold a total of 4 million units in India and this phone has a lot riding on its back. So let’s take a look at the pros and cons of the device.

xiaomi redmi 5a

Redmi 5A Pros ?

Specifications: The Redmi 4A comes with a Snapdragon 435 Quad-core processor and starts at 2 GB of Ram with 16 GB of storage for the base variant priced at Rs.4999 and goes all the way up to 3 GB of Ram with 32 GB of storage for the higher end variant at Rs.6999. These are class leading specs for the entire segment as phones like The Moto C and The Samsung J2 (2017) only have 1 GB of ram and The Samsung J2 also comes with only 8 GB storage.

Display: It comes with a 5 inch 720p HD display and compared to the completion that’s not only higher resolution but this display is also sharper and has better colors as well.

xiaomi redmi 5a pros and cons

Battery Life: Phones like the Samsung J2 (2017) and the Moto C have smaller batteries which means a lower battery life but the Redmi 5A comes with a 3000mAh battery which means better battery life than the rest of the competition in the market.

Cameras: The cameras on the Redmi 5A are also class leading with a 13MP rear camera with an f/2.2 aperture and a 5MP Front facing camera with an f/2.0 aperture. The cameras on these phones are also capable of recording up to 1080p 30fps videos. Most of the completion only offers 5MP primary camera and 2MP front facing cameras.

IR blaster: The Redmi 5A is the only phone in the segment that has an IR blaster. This can be used to control your TV, A/C, set-top box and so on using your phone instead of reaching for the remote every time.

MIUI: The Redmi 5A comes with MIUI 9 out of the box on top of Android 7.1.2 Nougat and It provides a great software experience with tons of feature and customization.

Made in India: The Redmi 5A is also made here in India at Xiaomi’s Sri City, Andhra Pradesh plant. This means one can be sure that spare parts are gonna be more readily available at Mi service centers around the country.

Price: For the amount of specs and features it offers this phone is priced really well and at a very affordable price that is accessible to a lot of people.

redmi 5a dual sim

Redmi 5A Cons ?

Battery Size compared to Redmi 4A: The Redmi 4A launched with an 3120mAh battery but the Redmi 5A has a smaller cell at 3000mAh. This even though is a small change is a change nonetheless.

Software updates to future Android versions: Even though Xiaomi generally provides software updates for its MIUI software it almost never updates the base Android version in their phones and for some people this could be a deal breaker.

Price of the base variant: The Phone starts at Rs.4999 for the base variant and this price is limited to the first 4 million units of the phone after which the phone will retail at Rs.5999. So grab your Redmi 5A now if you want to get a hold of the discounted price.

The software: Even though MIUI is a feature packed skin with lots of customizability, it is quite a heavily themed version of android. People who prefer the clean and simple stock android interface might not like MIUI.

Charging speed: This phone can be charged at only 5V/1A which is a very slow way to charge the battery. Even a 5V/2A charger would have helped greatly.

Micro-USB port: The adoption of USB C hasn’t yet taken place in a lot of budget phones and if Xiaomi ends up using USB C in their budget offerings it would make a wide spread adoption of USB C possible as their budget phones sell in the millions here in India alone.