Redmi 11 Prime 5G First Impressions: Unlocking 5G at an affordable price

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Xiaomi has launched two new budget smartphones under the Redmi 11 Prime series – Redmi 11 Prime 4G and Redmi 11 Prime 5G. It is the first smartphone in the Prime series to come with 5G network support. 11 Prime 5G is also currently Redmi’s most affordable 5G smartphone to date. With the 5G rollout in India, Redmi is hoping to target consumers who want to experience next-generation networks without spending too much.

The Redmi 11 Prime 5G comes with typical budget 5G smartphone hardware. The company has launched its new 5G smartphone with two storage options. The base variant offers 4GB RAM and 64GB internal storage and is priced at Rs 13,999. Those who want the 6GB RAM option can get it for Rs 15,999. This particular variant offers 128GB of internal storage. Along with Rs. 1,000 off on ICICI Bank credit and debit card transactions, the Redmi 11 Prime 5G is more affordable starting at Rs 12,999.

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Redmi 11 Prime 5G in its Meadow Green color

Now that the price is out of the way, let’s see what the Redmi 11 Prime 5G has to offer. I have used the phone only for a few hours and my first impression is that the phone looks good. I have the meadow green color variant here, which definitely looks refreshing. Xiaomi has recently launched several Redmi phones in blue and white colors and the addition of this green color variant looks good. The textured back also has a matte finish, which helps keep fingerprint smudges at bay. If you’re not a fan, you can opt for either the Chrome Silver or Thunder Black options.

The body is made entirely of plastic, which is typical for phones in this price range. Continuing the trend we see in most phones launched in 2022, the Redmi 11 Prime 5G features a flat frame design. The back panel is curved, which makes it easy to grip. The power button doubles as a fingerprint scanner and is located below the volume buttons on the right edge. You also get a USB Type-C port and a single speaker at the bottom. There is a 3.5mm headphone jack at the top for those who want to connect their wired earphones. Redmi is also offering a dedicated microSD card slot, which can be found in the dual-SIM slot on the left edge.

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Redmi 11 Prime 5G has a plastic frame

The phone is a bit heavy at 200g and fairly thick at 8.9mm. Redmi has added a silicone protective case in the box. You also get a 22.5W fast charger and a USB Type-A to USB Type-C charging cable. The phone however supports 18W fast charging.

The Redmi 11 Prime 5G has a 6.58-inch IPS LCD display on the front. At 400 nits, the screen isn’t the brightest outdoors but I had no problems using it indoors. There’s a waterdrop notch at the top of the display but it’s the thick chin at the bottom that’s more noticeable. There is a single speaker setup, which takes away from the multimedia experience. Xiaomi has added a layer of Corning Gorilla Glass 3 on top of the screen for extra protection from accidental scratches and drops.

The Redmi 11 Prime 5G also comes with a 90Hz AdaptiveSync display. This means the screen will automatically switch between 50, 60 and 90Hz, depending on the on-screen content.

The Redmi 11 Prime 5G is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 700 SoC, which aims to provide an affordable 5G experience. Xiaomi has also said that the Redmi 11 Prime 5G supports seven 5G bands. Also, both SIM slots support 5G, which means you can enable 5G services on your two SIM cards. We’ll share more details about the phone’s day-to-day performance in our Redmi 11 Prime 5G review.

Coming to the cameras, the Redmi 11 Prime 5G has a dual-camera setup at the back. The phone has a 50-megapixel main camera with f/1.8 aperture along with a 2-megapixel depth sensor. For selfies, the waterdrop notch houses an 8-megapixel front camera.

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Redmi 11 Prime 5G runs Android 12-based MIUI 13

In terms of software, the Redmi 11 Prime 5G runs Android 12-based MIUI 13 out of the box. MIUI is known for being feature-rich but also notorious for the bloatware that comes with it. Users can uninstall most third-party apps. Since this is a budget offering, we don’t expect the Redmi 11 Prime 5G to receive multiple software updates in the future, but maybe Xioami will surprise us. We hope the phone gets at least Android 13 in the coming months. Xiaomi has not released any information about software support.

Redmi 11 Prime 5G finds itself in the crowded budget smartphone segment, which includes Moto G32, Moto G42, Realme 9i 5G, Infinix Note 12, etc. Some of these phones aim to offer good hardware for the money with 4G processors, while others, like the Redmi 11 Prime 5G, aim to offer a 5G experience at an affordable price. Redmi 11 Prime 5G is available to buy in India at Rs. We will test the phone to see if it is the best 5G smartphone under 15,000. Stay tuned for the full review coming soon on Gadgets 360.


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