Redmi Note 12 Pro & Redmi Note 12 Pro+ Review: The Price Is Right

April 20, 2023

Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 Pro Series Tab Editor Review

Xiaomi recently announced several Redmi phones around the world. I'm talking about the Redmi Note 12 series, of course. We're here to review two of the most powerful phones in the lineup: Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G and Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G. From now on, I will refer to the two without the "5G" part to keep things simple. However, "5G" is included in their official name.

Considering that Redmi Note 12 Pro and Pro+ are very similar in many ways, we decided to cover both in one article. The two phones are completely identical in terms of display, processor, RAM (in multiple variants), and a few other categories. Heck, even three of the four cameras on each phone are the same. Although there are some differences. There is a reason why the "+" alias is added to the stronger section name. So let's dive in, shall we?

Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G and Pro+ 5G Review: Hardware / Design

Redmi Note 12 Pro and Pro+ look almost the same, at least at first glance. Here are some differences to look out for. The Redmi Note 12 Pro has a flat glass back while the "+" model has slightly curved sides. The bezel is flush on both sides of the phone. Despite the plastic bezel, you'll find glass on the back of both phones, though you won't actually notice it. I had to research this because I didn't like it the first time I used it. Both phones are very comfortable to hold in your hand, and they are by no means cheap.

They have thin bezels and a well-functioning side-mounted fingerprint scanner.

You will notice that both have very thin bezels and the camera is at the top center. They contain a flat screen and all the physical buttons are on the right side. You will notice that the volume up and down buttons are located above the power/lock button. By the way, the power button doubles as a fingerprint scanner, which works great on both phones. On the back of each phone is a camera island with three sensors. They are very similar but use a different main camera. More on this in the test report.

They are very similar

You will also see the "Redmi" logo on the back of each phone. They are very similar in design and that's not a bad thing. You'll notice the extra weight on the Pro+, though both feel the same in the hand. It weighs 208 grams compared to the Redmi Note 12 Pro which weighs 187 grams. They are almost identical in height, width and thickness. The Pro+ model is slightly thicker at less than a millimeter. It should also be noted that both devices are protected from splashes and dust according to the IP53 standard.

Accessories

In the packaging of each of these phones you will find a box. Xiaomi includes a regular transparent gel/silicone case. Honestly, this is a great addition and a great no-fuss solution until you find a bag that suits your style better. Some people prefer these gel cases, so it doesn't matter.

Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G and Pro+ 5G in the test: advertising

Both phones have the same look and feel. On both phones, you'll find a 6.67-inch FullHD+ (2400 x 1080) OLED panel. Flat screen with 120Hz refresh rate, Dolby Vision supported, as well as HDR10+ content. The maximum screen brightness is 900 nits. That's good, but it's far from the brightest flagship smartphone out there, and that could be a problem if you use your phone in direct sunlight a lot.

Both screens have the same protection with Gorilla Glass 5 on the front. It's not the most modern solution, but still a good one. I've had a lot of experience with Gorilla Glass 5 over the years because it's less scratch resistant than the Gorilla Glass 3 that OEMs love to use in their budget phones. So you don't have to worry about Gorilla Glass 5 at all.

The screen is bright, clear and generally good

This display can switch from 30Hz to 120Hz refresh rate as needed and supports 240Hz touch sampling rate. The screen is very good. It's not great, mostly due to the brightness, but it's what you'd expect in this price range, maybe better than what you expect. Colors are vibrant and viewing angles are good too. The touch dynamics are pretty good too, etc. You can't really blame it, that's for sure. The program even has a manual control for this.

Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G and Pro+ 5G Review: Performance

In terms of performance, the two phones are pretty much the same, at least in our experience. This comes as no surprise since both are powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 1080 SoC. It is a 6nm processor with LPDDR4X RAM and UFS 2.2 flash. Both of our devices come with 12GB of RAM, which is the highest level of options on offer. The Redmi Note 12 Pro is also available in 6GB and 8GB RAM, while the Pro+ model comes with 8GB RAM in addition to the 12GB RAM variant.

In comparison, they offer the same performance

In terms of benchmarks, both phones perform similarly, which isn't surprising given their specs. They are compatible with the Galaxy A54 and similar mid-range phones. Not bad at all, not bad at all. Redmi Note 12 Pro and Pro+ work very, very well. This applies to normal use and games. They are very responsive and even handle multiple applications very well. There are a few stutters here and there, but honestly not much to talk about. In general, the speech was very even, I was even a little surprised. This chip brings a number of improvements that the Redmi Note 11 series has to offer, especially in the gaming department, so I don't think it came as a big surprise.

They never overheat even while playing.

Even when testing some games, both phones never got hot. They are warm but not hot. To be honest, I haven't played this game for hours, but I've tried some of the more graphically intensive games to see how it works. I even left the screen on for a while to see how the phone would react. It does not greatly affect performance or heat. I have to say that I'm a bit overwhelmed by this. Software also affects performance, but more on that later.

Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G and Pro+ 5G Review: Battery

In addition to various other identical components, the two phones also have identical batteries. Each has a 5000 mAh battery inside. With the same screen, SoC, RAM and storage, you would expect battery life to be the same, right? Well, no, not really. It's comparable, but the Redmi Note 12 Pro was more efficient during our testing. It offers about 15% more battery life. By the way, the use cases are very similar. Most of you don't have to worry about your phone turning off at the end of the day. Battery life is generally good, even with light games. More than 6-7 hours shouldn't be a problem depending on usage, signal, etc. Just note that these two phones don't perform well on standby. They have above average battery life.

Redmi Note 12 Pro+ offers much faster charging

Now they differ in the charging compartment. Redmi Note 12 Pro supports 67W charging, while Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G supports 120W charging. Both include the required charger and do not support wireless charging. In terms of charging speed, Redmi Note 12 Pro+ can be fully charged in half an hour. At the same time, Redmi Note 12 Pro achieved 77% performance in our test. It takes about 55 minutes to charge it to 100%, which is almost double that of the Redmi Note 12 Pro+. However, it's not bad at all.

Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G and Pro+ 5G Review: Camera

Photos of the Redmi Note 12 Pro 11AH series

The two phones share the same ultra-wide, macro and selfie cameras. Although in the main camera section, everything is different. Redmi Note 12 Pro has a 50MP main camera (f/1.9 aperture, OIS, PDAF, 1.0µm pixel size), while Redmi Note 12 Pro+ has a 200MP main camera (f/1.7 aperture, OIS , 0.56). pixel size, PDAF). Both phones have an 8MP ultra-wide-angle camera (120-degree field of view) and a 2MP macro camera on the back. A single 16-megapixel camera is on the front.

The daytime shots of the Redmi Note 12 Pro are above average.

By default, the Redmi Note 12 Pro offers 12.5MP images from a 50MP sensor. Photos look great in daylight. They are well detailed, quite contrasty and bright, sometimes they can be too bright, and sometimes the optional AI mode only exacerbates the situation. We also used this mode in some of the shots, although most shots were taken without it. The photos may seem a bit exaggerated, but don't be picky. For a mid-range phone, it's great.

Low light shots are also good.

In low light, the phone decides when to activate night mode. This applies only to the main camera. For a mid-range camera, this phone performs very well in low light. It has good exposure, retains enough detail, and even keeps noise under control. The dynamic range is also quite good, which is surprising. If you select the special night mode, you will get a brighter picture.

Double shots are good, but not as good as the main camera shots. It's the same with portrait shots, which are good, but edge detection isn't great. The ultra-wide-angle camera performs well in good light, which surprised me given the hardware on offer. However, they look more artificial than photos from the main camera. However, they are pretty good. As far as the 2MP macro camera is concerned... I have absolutely no respect for the OEMs that use it. This sensor is too small. Again, these images are sometimes useful, but only when there is enough light in the scene.

Redmi Note 12 Pro camera examples:

Redmi Note 12 Pro 1 camera example
© Provided by Android Headlines

The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ takes great daylight shots.

The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ offers 12MP photos from the 200MP camera by default. Even in good lighting, this camera takes great pictures. This results in a lot of detail and only the leaves look a bit harsh. The picture looks less artificial than what the Redmi Note 12 Pro offers. You expect higher contrast, but that's not bad in my opinion.

2x photos look good, but not as sharp as the main camera. You can get similar results by cropping the main photo, a bit worse to be honest. The ultra-wide-angle camera does its job well in good light. It drops images most of the time and the dynamic range is great too. They aren't as detailed as the main camera shots, but that's to be expected. The macro shots are very similar to the Redmi Note 12 Pro, which means they look really good for a 2MP camera if you shoot in daylight. Portrait mode performance is similar to Redmi Note 12.

The phone holds up well in low light and even matches some flagship devices.

These low light photos look better than the Redmi Note 12 Pro. Dynamic range is very good, exposure is also good. Colors look good when shooting in low light, and photos are reasonably detailed. It can even stand next to some flagships, but without a top-end camera. Bear in mind that this is a mid-range phone and we have factored in photo quality with that in mind. Automatic night mode is supported, but only on the main camera.

Video recording is decent on both phones, but that's not a big deal. It can't compete with flagship smartphones, but it's more than comfortable to use, if not better. This applies to both stabilization and the image itself.

Camera examples for Redmi Note 12 Pro+:

Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G and Pro+ 5G Review: Software

Working with the software is basically the same on both phones. Both come with Android 12, which you can find MIUI 14 on. Yes, you read that right, Android 13 is not included here, but you still get the latest MIUI. Xiaomi has a special approach to updates, so… you get the best the company has to offer, not the latest version of Android. As you already know, MIUI likes to do things differently.

Only 8 programs cannot be removed

Speaking of approaches, many of you may be wondering what the situation with the virus is like. As a matter of fact. There are only 8 programs that cannot be uninstalled. Needless to say, this is great, just like the previous version, there are a lot of people to sit on and most of them get in the way. Speaking of unused apps, Xiaomi has introduced a rather interesting feature in MIUI 14. This version includes automatic compression for apps you don't use.

Some MIUI 14 features are still missing

Now MIUI 14 has received many improvements over MIUI 13, most of them related to performance. To be honest, it works very well, but some features are still missing. I tried to find an animated widget, but it's not there. The same goes for merging duplicate files and some other features. Again, you'll find most of the features you've come to expect, including the extended folder that many OEMs use today.

MIUI 14 fully customizable

MIUI 14 is rich in settings. For example, the notification bar is separate from the notification bar by default, but this can be changed. You can easily get a more normal Android experience. In fact, there are many such options in the settings. There are even customization options for the recent apps screen. Yes, you can also enable floating windows in MIUI 14 and a useful sidebar is also included in the operating system.

Xiaomi has also integrated its own multifunctional photo and video editing tool. The security app offered by the company is also full of features and can help you clear your phone or set some restrictions. There is also a remote app that can be used in conjunction with the aforementioned IR blaster etc. Overall the experience was great for us despite one or two hiccups. The operating system on Redmi Note 12 Pro freezes for a second, but returns to normal after two seconds. Notification panel on Redmi Note 12 Pro+ refuses to load for a few seconds. This only happened once during our use, so it's... weird, but not annoying at all. Overall, MIUI is better than before.

Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G and Pro+ 5G review: is it worth buying?

The Xiaomi Redmi sub-brand is known for offering great value for money and these two phones are no exception. They offer more than their asking price and are not hard to recommend overall. The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ is the better phone of the two, but the difference is small. Here's how you can easily buy and drop the Redmi Note 12 Pro. You save money and get a really capable phone. If you need a brighter screen and a slightly different camera, the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ is the right choice.

You should buy Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G and Pro+ 5G if:

You don't want to rob the bank, but you still get value
Good performance required
You love photography and are looking for an inexpensive mobile phone
You need an IR blaster
Do you appreciate that your phone has a good screen
You need ultra-fast charging on a mid-range device
You appreciate good people to talk to

Do not buy Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G and Pro+ 5G in the following cases:

Do you need wireless charging?
You need the latest version of Android
They appreciate the standard version of Android

Review of Redmi Note 12 Pro and Redmi Note 12 Pro +: The Price is Right hit the Android headlines for the first time.

Redmi Note 12 Pro vs Redmi Note 12 Pro Plus vs Redmi Note 12 Explorer Edition

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Redmi Note 12 Pro & Redmi Note 12 Pro+ Review: The Price Is Right

Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G and Pro+ 5G Review: Hardware / Design