Xiaomi recently launched its new Redmi Note 13 series and we bought the vanilla variant, the Redmi Note 13 4G, to test and share with you if it’s worth it.
Unboxing Experience
When you buy the Redmi Note 13, it comes with a white box with a product image and product model name on the front, and also the model name plus “With your favorite Google apps” on the sides. Inside the box, we will see the SIM ejector tool, documentation, silicon case, USB-C cable, 33W fast charging adapter, and of course our phone itself.
Design and Build Quality
I was really impressed with its design because, even though it is just a vanilla variant and very cheap, it still feels premium when you hold it. Maybe it’s because of its flat sides, the camera bump, as well as its display which we’ll talk about later. Although its back is glossy, you need to clean it regularly because of smudges.
But it has a silicon case, it’s good that Xiaomi included one. Most of the budget phones that we have reviewed only include a jelly case. I prefer the silicon case because it doesn’t turn yellow when it lasts. Plus, the included silicon case looks classy, so you’ll love putting it on your phone.
We can see the volume rocker and the power button on its right side. At the bottom is the Hybrid SIM tray, USB-C port, microphone, and the main stereo speaker. The 3.5mm headphone jack, secondary speaker, IR blaster, and secondary microphone are at the top.
Display and Multimedia Experience
One of the worthwhile features of this budget phone for me is its display. Although it is still the same size as the Redmi Note 12 which is a 6.67-inch AMOLED display with FHD+ resolution now, it is brighter because its max brightness is up to 1,800nits instead of 1,200nits.
Of the phones I’ve tried, this one has the brightest display. I actually have an OPPO Find X5 Pro with a maximum brightness of only 1,300 nits and I can see the difference between them. This is a big deal especially if you are always outdoors.
Since this Redmi Note 13 has an AMOLED panel, the colors you can see on display are beautiful, especially since it is 100% DCI-P3 wide color gamut, so you will definitely enjoy watching your favorite videos, especially since it has dual stereo speakers.
Before I forget, this Redmi Note 13 also supports the 120Hz refresh rate, so my experience was very smooth. So far, the high refresh rate is stable and I haven’t encountered any problems. I remembered my POCO M3 Pro before, its 90Hz refresh rate was very buggy even after several MIUI updates.
Its screen is definitely durable because it has Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection. Besides, this phone also supports an in-display fingerprint scanner.
Performance
Performance is the next thing we will talk about, this phone is equipped with a 6nm Snapdragon 685 octa-core processor paired with up to 8GB LPDDR4X RAM and 256GB UFS2.2 internal storage. But the only memory configuration we have today is the 6GB/128GB variant, so your experience might be different if you buy the 8GB/256GB variant.
Based on my experience, its performance is also quite smooth although I feel that MIUI is really heavy. Speaking of MIUI, it runs MIUI 14 based on Android 13 out of the box. But the news is that it will receive the new Xiaomi HyperOS this first quarter of the year.
But maybe you shouldn’t expect too much from its performance because this phone is only for casual use and light gaming, just like the vivo Y27s we just reviewed. But don’t worry guys, you will have a really smooth experience here on the Redmi Note 13.
It actually got 376K+ scores in AnTuTu while its score was 7,100 in PCMark.
Additionally, it is stable to play Mobile Legends and Call of Duty Mobile and since the chipset used here is not very powerful, it still struggles a bit when playing Genshin Impact. By the way, even though I’ve played several games with ML, he doesn’t warm up right away.
Camera
What I don’t like the most about the Redmi Note 13 is its camera. The image quality that you can get here is good and clear, but sometimes the colors are not that good and even though it has 108MP, the photos are not that detailed. Take note, just sometimes, in short, there is a time when it fails and it’s a bit annoying.
The 108MP main shooter comes with an 8MP ultra-wide lens, a 2MP macro lens, and a 16MP camera for selfies.
By the way, the camera modes it has are 108MP mode, Documents, Portrait, Night, Pro, Short Video, Panorama, Slow motion, and time-lapse.
As for the video, it can shoot up to 1080p@30fps in both front and rear cameras, and image stabilization is also supported so I was happy to use it for video. It’s bright and the colors are fine in the video.
These are our sample photos and videos(more on our vlog):
Battery
When it comes to the battery, it only got 12 hours and 54 minutes in the PCMark Work 3.0 battery life benchmark and that’s low if I compare it to the vivo Y27s.
I’m not sure but my suspicion is its software. That’s why I said earlier that MIUI is heavy. Is it battery-efficient because its a chipset? What do you think is the reason?
The battery capacity of this Redmi Note 13 is 5,000mAh and it supports 33W fast charging. Charging this phone 20-100% will only take roughly an hour. That’s already fast!
Verdict
For our verdict, I can say that this Redmi Note 13 is good and worth it even though it has some cons for me like the battery, software, as well as the camera that sometimes misses the color. But so far, its other features are okay, especially the display and design.
The performance you can get is just right, and I think it’s enough for our daily tasks. The chipset Xiaomi puts here is not really powerful, but at least it’s capable and good for light gaming. I can recommend this phone to students and parents out there whose budget is under 10K.
Check my Redmi Note 13 review vlog too!
Redmi note 13 4G Specifications
- Display: 6.67-inch AMOLED panel, FHD+ resolution, 120Hz refresh rate, Corning Gorilla Glass 3, 1,800nits (peak)
- CPU: 2.4GHz 6nm Qualcomm Snapdragon octa-core processor
- GPU: Adreno 610
- RAM: 6GB, 8GB + Up to 8GB Virtual RAM
- ROM: 128GB, 256GB
- Rear Camera: 108MP + 8MP ultra-wide lens + 2MP depth lens + LED flash
- Front Camera: 16MP
- Battery: 5,000mAh, 33W fast charging
- OS: MIUI 14, Android 13
- Connectivity: 2.4GHz & 5GHz WiFi, 4G LTE, Bluetooth 5.1, GPS, Hybrid Dual SIM (nano)
- Sensors: Accelerometer, light, orientation, proximity, gyroscope
- Colors: Midnight Black, Mint Green
- Others: in-display fingerprint sensor, AI face unlock, USB-C, IP54 rating, Hi-Res Audio, Dual speakers,
Pros:
- Premium design
- Bright display
- 120Hz refresh rate
- In-display fingerprint scanner
- Fast charging support
- Dual speakers
Cons:
- Heavy software
- Camera color
- Short battery life
Price and availability
- 6GB/128GB – PHP 7,999 | Shopee link | Lazada link
- 8GB/256GB – PHP 9,999 | Shopee link | Lazada link
The Redmi Note 13 4G is available at Xiaomi’s official store on Shopee and Lazada for only PHP 7,999 for the 6GB/128GB variant and PHP 9,999 for the 8GB/256GB variant.
