Finally after trying it for a long time we are ready to bring you the review of the new one Redmi Notes 9S, the latest solution to Xiaomi for the mid-range that we find at an already very attractive price. How did he behave during our tests? It will be yet another best buy or could they have done better? Let's find out together in the article.
Index
Redmi Note 9S review
Unboxing - Redmi Note 9S
Inside the sales package we find the following equipment:
- Redmi Notes 9S;
- silicone cover;
- USB data cable - USB Type-C;
- wall power supply with European socket and 22.5W output;
- pin for the SIM slot;
- instruction manual.
Design and construction
As for the purely aesthetic aspect I think that Xiaomi worked a lot on the new model and tried to give it a less standardized design than the previous variants, which were very similar to each other and to the competitors.
I like how they inserted the quad camera rear and I do not mind at all the hole in the central part of the display. Maybe the similarity to Huawei Mate 20 Pro further improves the quality perception of the device, giving it an almost premium appearance. The beautiful green color also contributes to this.
Unfortunately, the implications of the coin are different, first of all the photographic form it's a little too much protruding and placing the smartphone on a table this could wobble a little, not to mention that it could be ruined. With the cover we go to equalize the difference in height, but a small part is still in contact with flat surfaces. The second, however, is that the glass back cover does not have a oleophobic treatment excellent, effectively retaining several fingerprints.
For the rest the construction è very good, the smartphone returns a feeling of solidity and robustness, thanks also to the aluminum side frame. On this point of view Xiaomi has always guaranteed good quality even in the lower end devices.
Another aspect of the series Notes 9 which cannot be ignored concerns the dimensionsin fact, compared to previous versions the device has a more elongated shape and a greater weight and this does not facilitate certainly one-handed use. In fact, Redmi Notes 9S has the measures of 165.5 x 76.68 x 8.8 millimeters for a weight of 209 grams.
For the rest, below we find the 3.5 mm jack input and USB Type-C, the system speaker and the main microphone, while at the top there is the microphone for the reduction of environmental noise and the IR sensor that I personally find very comfortable to change channel to TV.
For the first time on the series Redmi Note, fingerprint sensor pass on right side and next to it we find the volume rocker, unlike the opposite side where only the one is located dual SIM + microSD slot. Excellent news for those who have two numbers and do not want to sacrifice any to expand the memory.
Finally, frontally, the camera resides in the hole of the display, the ear capsule, the notification LED and the proximity and brightness sensor.
Since I introduced the latter I also tell you how it goes, because it is well known that on Redmi Note 7 this tends to cause tantrums during calls. Let's say the problem was solved on call, but randomly when I listen to a audio su Whatsapp o Telegram if I pass my finger too close to the right side of the smartphone (near the sensor) the audio will come out of the ear capsule and the display will darken. This happens more than will be, when there is little light.
Display
Il Redmi Notes 9S is equipped with a display LCD da 6.67 "Full HD + (2400 x 1080 pixels) with ratio in 20:9, TÜV Rheinland certified, support HDR10 and protected by a screen Gorilla Glass 5.
As previously anticipated, the panel has been stretched compared to the previous generation and makes it much more in my opinion Gaming friendly. In fact, during the game sessions you have the feeling of being immersed in the game and in addition you will also have a more comfortable grip since there is more space for your hands.
Moving on to quality of the panel this turns out to be average for its price range, in fact I made a quick comparison also with Honor 9X Pro and there are very few differences between the two. Maybe the Redmi Notes 9S has a little bit of less contrast, but otherwise we are there.
The good thing is that we have the support HDR10 and finding it on board such a cheap smartphone is not easy at all. We appreciate the differences compared to many more expensive smartphones.
La maximum brightness è sufficient even in direct sunlight and to make matters worse in difficult conditions the automatic brightness sensor will help us by increasing the contrast. The latter however is not a splinter in reactivity, but it is still sufficient (we are talking about a smartphone for less than 199 euros).
On board we find a certification Widevine L1 so we will have full support for Full HD su Netflix.
Hardware and Performance
Il Redmi Notes 9S is moved by a chipset Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G, or an octa-core solution with a maximum clock frequency of 2.3 GHz. Next to it we find a GPU Adreno 618 a 750 MHz, 4 GB di RAM LPDDR4X e 64 GB of storage UFS 2.1 expandable via microSD.
During daily use we have not encountered slowdowns or various problems, as the smartphone manages to guarantee good performance for its price range. The opening of the app takes place fairly quickly, but if you want an even more snappy device I recommend you go to the opzioni sviluppatore ed eliminate o reduce animations. For the rest we are talking about a more than reliable device.
Turning to Gaming il Redmi Notes 9S behaves very well, managing to reproduce even the heavier, high-resolution titles and without any kind of problem or overheating. I played for a few hours (distributed throughout the week) in PUBG and I must say that it is truly a pleasure, too bad that you cannot play it in HDR despite the support.
Camera
Il Redmi Notes 9S It is characterized by one quad camera composed of a main sensor from 48 mega-pixels with opening f / 1.79 and PDAF autofocus, flanked by sensors from 8 mega-pixels wide angle a 119° e f / 2.2, 5 mega-pixels macro f / 2.4 e 2 mega-pixels for depth of field with, finally, Single Tone LED flash.
The shots in conditions of good brightness are more than enough for its price range. I've always shot with Automatic HDR to see how and when it would intervene, in some shots it was not necessary, however, at least made the photograph captivating.
By zooming in on the captured photos you can notice a sufficient level of detail. The colors are a little more saturated than reality and less contrasted, but always better than other devices that I have tested within the same price range.
The plus is obtained by installing the Google Camera, which will ensure a better color balance, more contrast and a slightly higher level of detail. The only thing you need to be careful of is taking pictures with a good steady hand. This is especially true at night where the results are clearly superior, especially with the night mode, but in that case a tripod or a support point will be almost necessary.
La wide-angle lens make good photos for sharing on social media, the lighting management is a little less accurate, as is the detail, while the portrait mode and bokeh are very good.
In night the situation is getting worse noticeably, the photos are characterized by poco detail and it will be quite easy to make the photos move with slight movements. The night mode raises the final grades a bit, but the wide angle can hardly be used to publish your photos on social media.
Frontally inside the hole we have a camera from 16 mega-pixels with opening f / 2.5.
Again in daytime the Redmi Notes 9S reaches the enough, but there is always that glossy / porcelain effect when shooting, even by turning off all filters. Despite everything, the quality of the shot is average, but at night we are not quite there.
Fortunately, in this case too the Google Camera it helps us, because although during the day you exaggerate a bit with the contrast and with the details, aging the face a little, the overall performance is better. The same can be said for the photographs taken in the evening, in which we can also take advantage of the night mode.
I video can be registered up to a maximum of 4K a 30fps. In Full HD instead the electronic stabilization is discreet and the colors are good.
Audio and connectivity
L'audio output from the lower speaker of Redmi Notes 9S has a good volume albeit a little bit of body and in the bass, favoring more the highs and the mids.
With headphones, both Bluetooth and wired, the situation improves considerably. Furthermore, even in the ear capsule there are no problems during calls and the audio will be crystal clear.
We then deal with connectivity because the Redmi Notes 9S supports dual SIM 4G LTE with 20 band and I have not encountered any particular problems in receiving. Unfortunately, however, I have to make a clarification, since given the difficult quarantine situation, the tests were carried out only at home and in the garden, so I was unable to prove its operation with cell changes, by meter in the car and so on.
Given the many requests under the video of first impressions after 24 hours, please note that the dialer I say Android Stock and not MIUI, so calls will not be recorded.
For the rest we find support for Wi-Fi a / b / g / n / ac Dual Band, Bluetooth 5.0, GPS / A-GPS / Glonass / Beidou / Galileo, infrared sensor and 3.5mm jack.
The same argument made previously also applies to the GPS, while the Wi-Fi dual band and Bluetooth 5.0 they work very well and without problems.
Great absentunfortunately theNFC and this could kill many users interested in buying. Such a pity.
As previously mentioned, for the first time on a Redmi Note il fingerprint sensor has been inserted on the side of the smartphone. I don't mind this position, but I admit it could be poco practical for left-handers.
The sensor however is accurate and manages to unlock the smartphone without problems around 9 times on 10, but it's a little bit slow in the unlock animation.
To speed up the operation you can also use the facial recognition standard present in every Android, which performs well in situations of favorable brightness, but which does a bit of a tantrum at night.
Software
Redmi Notes 9S is based on Android 10 with proprietary interface MIUI 11 Global, a UX that we already know very well and whose many customizations we appreciate.
In fact, the MIUI è one of the most complete UI in circulation and it will be possible to install themes, customize the navigation mode with gestures or retractable buttons, set the turbo for video games, customize the display settings, create a second space and much more.
We have not encountered any particular problems this week and everything went smoothly like oil. The only thing I went to edit was the speed of animations to make the device more snappy.
Battery
Under the body of the Redmi Notes 9S we find one battery by well 5020 mAh which guarantees us aexcellent autonomy. But first I have to renew the premise made previously, as with the quarantine in place I was able to try the smartphone only from home, but to balance the result a bit, in some days I used it exclusively with the data network and doing hotspots to other devices in the house.
Having said that I made it in medium about 8 hours of active display with maximum peaks of 8 hours and minutes 53 and lows of 6 hours and minutes 20 (this was the case of data network + hotspot).
So as you have understood, even by using it intensely you can get up to a day and a half of autonomy. You can easily reach the two days (e poco more) if you do not make excessive use of it.
Conclusions - Redmi Note 9S
Summing up for this smartphone is difficult because it has many best buy aspects who come ruined from some details such as the absence of NFC, fundamental to date, some defects still related to the proximity sensor or a back cover poco oleophobic and of the dimensions that begin to become important.
In short, apart from the first two aspects, the others can be considered gods details also seen that in recent days we have seen the price go down to 150 € su AliExpress with shipping from Europe (follow us on GizDeals to not miss these offers). This makes us think that the price will soon be even lower than the current one Redmi Note 8T.
Of course, if we were to consider it for the price of Amazon then there you go head-on with the Realm 6 and opinion may change, but don't worry because a match in the next weeks.
In conclusion we are certainly talking about a good device, which could be perfect for you if you don't use theNFC, but if you own the Redmi Note 8T o Notes redmi 8 Pro in my opinion it is not worth the upgrade (if not for the design).
Il Redmi Notes 9S It is available both on Gearbest in the variant 4 / 64 GB Global about 194 € in lightning offer.
