Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G Review

1comment
Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G Review

Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G Intro


The Redmi brand name comes up often when talking about affordable phones, and for a good reason as it often packs a punch at a low price. And now, the new Redmi Note 13 series arrive in early 2024 with five different models, each hitting a slightly different price point, but all of them aim to offer better value for the money than the competition.

This review is for the most advanced phone in the series: the Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G.

Yes, that name is a mouthful, and while the phone shares a similar 6.7-inch OLED screen and MIUI software as the rest, it stands out with a much faster chip, insane 120W fast charging, beautiful design and a few other notable features.

You can find our reviews for the rest in the Redmi Note 13 series below:

What’s new about the Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G

  • 6.7-inch AMOLED screen with 120Hz refresh rate
  • 200MP main camera with sensor crop zoom
  • 8MP ultra-wide camera, but no telephoto camera
  • 5,000mAh battery
  • 120W wired charging, no wireless charging support
  • 500E price for 8/512GB base model

Table of Contents:

Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G Specs

Dimensity chipset and 120W fast charging stand out

Before we dive deep in our experience, here is an overview of the Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G specs:


Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G Design

In one word: beautiful
 

Unlike all other models in the series, the Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G has a curved back for a more ergonomic handling and it just looks really good in person.

It is also the only phone in this Redmi series with IP68 certification for proper water and dust protection.


And here are the available Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G color options:
  • Midnight Black
  • Midnight White
  • Aurora Purple

Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G Unboxing



Here is what you can find in the box:
  • Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G phone with pre-applied plastic screen protector
  • 120W charging brick with USB-A output
  • Charging cable (USB-A to USB-C)
  • Silicone Case
  • SIM tool
  • User manuals

While flagship phones these days come with a box with almost no contents, the Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G is packed with accessories: a pre-applied screen protector, a free case and even a charger. Nice!

Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G Display



The 6.7-inch screen here is curved slightly, while all other Redmi Note 13 models have a flat panel.

Whether you like that or not comes down to personal preference, but one objective advantage of a curved screen is that swiping from the sides is a bit easier and more pleasant.

The screen also hits nearly 1,200 nits of max brightness, a really impressive number, which ensures great outdoor visibility. Minimum brightness at 1.8 nits, however, could be a bit lower for more comfortable use at night.

Display Measurements:




For biometrics, you have an in-screen fingerprint scanner, which we found to be quite zippy and accurate with readings, so no issues here.

Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G Camera

A main camera that impressed us


Neatly arranged on the back, you have three cameras on the Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G:
  • 200MP main shooter with f/1.65 aperture and OIS
  • 8MP ultra-wide camera, f/2.2
  • 2MP macro camera

The macro camera is the weirdest one in this list: at 2MP it does not have enough detail and for most people it will be practically useless.

Photo Samples



The main camera, however, is really impressive. The large sensor performs well both during the day and at night, and it's great to see super clean, noise-free images in all conditions.

It also does great with zoom, especially at the 2X and 4X levels, and only then the quality starts to drop noticeably.

The ultra-wide camera is clearly not in the same category as the main one, but it does a quite decent job and you can get a good shot out of it in low light too.

We are also quite happy with selfies taken with the front camera, which have good detail and pleasing colors.

Video Quality


You have 4K video support using the main camera and footage comes out with a good amount of detail and video stabilization is very decent too.

When you start walking a bit faster though, the stabilization cannot keep up and that is probably the one downside we have to mention, but this is also true for most phones in this price range.

Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G Performance & Benchmarks

MediaTek Dimensity 7200-Ultra inside and it's fast


Under the hood, the Dimensity 7200-Ultra chipset delivers very good performance for this price range. It is paired with 8GB of RAM, which also seems sufficient.

In daily use, the phone feels fast and smooth, and for more advanced tasks and gaming it is also quite capable.

Below are the test results for those who want to see the exact numbers.

Performance Benchmarks:


Geekbench 6
Single
Higher is better
Geekbench 6
Multi
Higher is better
3DMark Extreme(High)Higher is better3DMark
Extreme(Low)
Higher is better
Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro+5G1105
2696
No data
No data
Google Pixel 71452
3318
1854
1521

On the Geekbench test which focuses on CPU performance, the Redmi scores slightly below the Pixel 7, but not too far behind.

Unfortunately, we could not run a graphics benchmark because of incompatibility, but you should expect mid-range performance in the gaming department.

Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G Software


We have Android 13 and MIUI 14 running the show here, and yes, that is definitely behind the times (most other phones run Android 14 and Xiaomi phones already have the new HyperOS skin).

But this is not our biggest issue with the software. MIUI continues killing apps in the background and this messes with push notifications. For many apps, this is not a problem, but if your preferred messaging app does not deliver messages to your lock screen, then we have a problem. Unfortunately, that is the default behavior for all newly installed apps. Xiaomi's excuse is that this conserves battery, but we'd rather have a properly functioning notifications in the first place, so be warned about this issue with some apps. 

For software updates, the Redmi Note 13 is scheduled to receive 3 years of major OS updates and 4 years of security patches. This means, it will receive:

Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G Battery


With a 5,000mAh battery, this Redmi phone has the capacity to keep on going for a while and in real life we found that we would average around a day and a bit more between charges.

Below, we have run our battery tests to see the exact battery life numbers.

PhoneArena Battery Test Results:


Video StreamingHigher is betterWeb Browsing(hours)Higher is better3D Gaming(hours)Higher is better
Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro+5G9h 33 min
11h 56 min
9h 17 min
Google Pixel 79h 13 min
13h 56 min
6h 8 min

The Redmi outclasess the Pixel 7 by a small margin on our YouTube video streaming test, but it ranks behind it on our lighter web browsing test. Overall, though, the battery life of the two is not too far apart in our measurements.

Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G Charging Speeds



However, when it comes to charging, you get this beefy 120W fast charger in the box and some truly insane charging speeds.

15 MinsHigher is better30 Mins(%)Higher is betterFull Charge(hours)Lower is better
Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro+5G66%
No data
0h 25 min
Google Pixel 726%
49%
1h 36 min

A full top up takes merely 25 minutes! Did we already mention the word "insane"?! And if you're in a pinch, you can get a nearly 70% top-up in 15 minutes. Truly game-changing.

There is no wireless charging on board here, though.

Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G Audio Quality and Haptics


We were not surprised that this phone also sounds the best among others in the series with a good punch and clear sound.

Unfortunately, there is NO 3.5mm headphone jack here (the rest of the Redmi Note 13 models have it).

Haptics are nice and sharp, so that's a good thing.

Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G Competitors



The Note 13 Pro+ 5G price is set at 500 euro for the base model with 8GB of RAM and 512GB of storage.

And that is a LOT of storage.

The main competitor in this price range has to be the Pixel 7, which can be found for around 550 euro these days.


Learn more here:

Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G Summary and Final Verdict



So... what's the verdict on the Redmi Note 13 Pro+?

It's mostly positive: the phone has tons of storage, beautiful design, it works smoothly, and the main camera is truly impressive.

If you can live with the MIUI software, which can mess up notifications for some apps, we think this phone should be on your radar for great mid-range options in 2024.

Loading Comments...
FCC OKs Cingular\'s purchase of AT&T Wireless