We review the Redmi 5A!

While we were busy reviewing the Mi MIX 2, an unexpected item got launched by Xiaomi, and its the successor of the cheapest Redmi ever, of course its the Redmi 4A priced at only 499 RMB. Introducing the all new Redmi 5A! This series has only 1 variant as far as the official page has posted so far.



The Redmi 4A took just 5 months to be released after the Redmi 4, but this time, Xiaomi took it slowly and released the phone exactly 1 year after the debut of the 4A. Now the time is ripe to move on to another level, this time the price has increased by 100 RMB and we believe its justified by its specs and performance.

Unboxing Video:



Xiaomi Redmi 5A Specs
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 425 MSM8917 Quad-Core processor 1.4Ghz Cortex A53
• Adreno 308 GPU, 500Mhz
• 2GB of RAM
• 5-inch HD display, 1280 x 720 resolution, 296 PPI, 72% Color Gamut, Support Reading Mode
• 16GB of storage, expandable via microSD up to 128GB (using sim 2 slot)
• 13-megapixel rear camera, f/2.2 LED Flash, 1080p recording
• 5-megapixel front camera f/2.0, face recognition
• Dual-SIM (Sim 1 Micro Sim, Sim 2 Nano Sim / Micro Sd Card up to 128GB)
• 3G, LTE, Full Netcom 5.0 (supports LTE 2 carrier aggregation)
• MIUI 8.5 Android Nougat 7.1.2
• WiFi, Bluetooth 4.1, GPS, A-GPS
• 3000mAh battery
• Gold, Rose Gold, Grey

Network Bandwidth Support:

• 2G: GSM 2/3/5/8
  
• 2G: CDMA BC0
  
• 3G: WCDMA 1/2/5/8
  
• 3G: TDS-CDMA 34/39
  
• 4G: TDD-LTE 34/38/39/40/41
  
• 4G: FDD- LTE 1/3/5/7/8
  
  

Camera Specs:
13 megapixel rear camera

• 5 lens, f / 2.2 aperture
  
• color temperature and flash
  
• light picture quality enhancement technology
  
• HDR high dynamic range adjustment Technical
  
• Panorama mode
  
• Burst mode
  
• facial recognition
  
• in real-time camera filters
  
  
  

5 megapixel front camera

• f / 2.0 aperture
  
• countdown Self
  
• facial recognition
  
  
  

Recording

• 1080p / 720p video shooting, 30 fps
  
  

What's in the Box:







Now that we have have our hands on the Redmi 5A, this unit goes back to sporting an all plastic case, going back to the Redmi 2 days and continuing the footsteps of the Redmi 4A, where the unit is all plastic and Redmi 3 started with a metal back cover. The feel of the Redmi 5A is quite okay for a budget conscious person, but when you have held the Redmi 4 Basic or the Redmi 4 Prime in your hands, you might probably feel that this was a total downgrade from its predecessors, but of course at the end of the day it's just 599RMB and its a A series which means its an Affordable one for your pocket.




The Redmi 5A sports a round edge, continuing the design of the Redmi 4A, people have gotten used to a more edged corner that is present in the Redmi 4 series, but this one feels better on the hands less the edgy corners.







The top of the phone shows the 3.5mm audio jack as well as the IR blaster and the noise-cancellation mic. While at the bottom we can find the Micro USB port, the loudspeaker is placed at the back, similar to the Redmi 3 series while its siblings the Redmi 4 Basic and Redmi 4 Prime placed its loudspeakers at the bottom of the phone beside the charging port. We have a little hard time hearing the ring of the ringtone when someone called when the back is lying flat on the table. The right of the phone sports the volume rocker and the powerbutton while the left sports the sim card tray. We wished that Xiaomi could have integrated the new sim tray design on the Redmi Note 5A on this one, enabling users to use 2 sim cards together with the micro SD expansion slot.



The phone is pretty easy to carry, being the 5 inches smartphone that it is, this is the perfect size for one handed use. The HD display is pretty good enough as a daily driver, we felt that this unit's display was better than that of the Redmi 4A, more crisp and more vibrant colors displayed based on our keen observations. We did not have much difficulty reading the screen under the sun, but excessive sunlight will give you some difficulty. The capacitive button does not lit up like the MI Series, but the notification light can be under the capacitive home button just like the Redmi 3 series.






Snapdragon 425

The Redmi 5A has sported the same processor as the Redmi 4A, we cant blame them as this is really meant for the people on a tight budget or problably using this as a secondary phone. Snapdragon 425's slower processor is a bit slow but still gets the job done at the end of the day.




This SoC supports LTE connection in CAT 4. Although slower in processing, the SoC 425 sill preforms well for daily task like calls, text, messengers, social apps and online games. Its performance for multitasking is also average considering it has 4-cores ready to help you push those tasks to the finish line. AnTuTu gave it 36534 points. For more detailed infomation on the processor, check this out: qualcomm.com/products/snapdragon/processors/425



Audio and Video:

We have tested the audio for the loudspeaker, it is pretty normal for a small phone of its size, nothing special about it, but sound is weaker compared to my current Mi6 (quite a bit obvious). We also pitted it against the Redmi 4A and it quite sounded the same. We also tested watching 720p video via youtube and its pretty clear and decent for a phone on this category. Watching downloaded 1080p videos is also good, but of course dont expect too much.




Good camera for its class

The camera on this Redmi 5A phone is quite decent, imagine stuffing a 13 Megapixel camera into a budget series like this is not easy feat for the company. We believe that this camera is quite an above average for its category already and it performed as good as the Redmi 4A. Taking photos under good lightings was a breeze, but quite grainy on dim lights. Overall its pretty good for my standards of a low budget entry level phone.

Unedited Photos:













































































Selfie Camera:


Battery Test:

Battery has always been the most important element in consideration for buying a phone, this phone can withstand 11 hours and 50 mins worth of SOT based on PC Mark Test App for normal usage. Pretty good eh? It means its power consumption is low.



More Benchmark Results:





Mitch002 Verdict: Redmi 5A Surprised us on the Camera and Battery Endurance

With the market loaded with so much smartphone, the Redmi 5A has gained its grounds on the budgeted segment of the market. This will continue the market gained by the Redmi 4A and this will surely leave a good impression on the users.This phone is pretty simple to use, unsophisticated and unadulterated. Now, if you are pretty much on a tight budget but want to get the most out of your hard earned cash, this phone is probably the best option you have, good battery life, good daily driver, decent camera. This is also good as a secondary phone should you require one. If you don't use much mobile data, this phone can last you beyond one whole day, in short you don't need to keep pulling out your powerbanks. Xiaomi claimed it can last 8 days on standby mode as per official website. Overall the Redmi 5A is a pretty lightweight phone, average performance, decent camera and pretty good battery life.

The Redmi 5A is available at Xiaomi China Webstore for 599 RMB.


Redmi 5A

Disclaimer: Please don't send me any PM regarding any type of sales related inquiries. I'm a Xiaomi enthusiast but not a seller of Mi Products. I'm just a hardcore Xiaomi Fan, one notch higher than many of you here. Also I'm a Tech Blogger in the Philippines and all my review devices are either bought by myself from Xiaomi or borrowed from someone for a short period of time.