Xiaomi just announced recently their latest Redmi Series in the form of the Redmi Pro together with the Mi Notebook Air. Now this new phone is Xiaomi's first OLED display on a mobile device, as well as its first dual camera lens handset.

Recently we just unconfused eveyone with our thread here: Redmi 3 Pro vs Redmi 3S vs Redmi 3X: Unconfusing the Confused, now here we go again with all those numbering with the Redmi series again. Now we can see that Redmi Pro is a 5.5" which should or could have been properly named as Redmi Note 4 due to its screen size catergory. Now there will be come who will be lost in counting, Redmi 1s, Redmi 2, Redmi 3, Redmi 3s, Redmi 3x and then.... Redmi Pro? Wait I'm lost in counting!



Let me explain a little on my theory on what just happened in the numbering series, based on my analysis, there is a reboot in the Redmi series.



Reboot What?!

Yes you heard it right, its a reboot, just like Spiderman Movie, after Tobey Mcguirre, Sony reboot the series with another leading character in Andrew Garfield. Now Redmi is heading toward a new direction, and they are redefining the midrange smartphone category. The result? Superb! This unit is quite fascinating. Lets find out!

Redmi Pro Specs Sheet:


5.5-inch OLED display @ 1920 x 1080 pixels, 401ppi
2.1GHz MediaTek Helio X20 deca-core CPU
2.3Ghz MediaTek Helio X20 deca-core CPU
Mali-T880 MP4 GPU 700Mhz / Mali-T880 MP4 GPU 850Mhz
3GB RAM / 4GB Ram
32GB / 64GB 128 GB internal storage
Expandable via microSD, up to 128GB (uses SIM 2 slot)
13MP Sony IMX258 PDAF + 5MP Samsung rear cameras w/ dual-tone flash
5MP f/2.0 front-facing camera
Dual-SIM (Nano + Micro)
4G LTE
Wi-Fi 802.11ac
Bluetooth 4.2, A2DP, LE
GPS w/ A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS
Fingerprint scanner
USB Type-C
4050mAh battery
Android 6.0 Marshmallow w/ MIUI 7.3
151.5 x 76.2 x 8.15 mm
174 g
Available in Silver, Grey and Gold



Whats in the Box:









Unboxing Video:



Design:


The Redmi Pro is somewhat a shadow of its predecessor the Redmi Note 3, only in a different dimension. It is slightly bigger, but the feel is more premium than its older sibling. Its unibody construction is made out of brushed aluminum metal when gives the handset its premium look, and of course shinnier since its polished.






The display is an OLED panel with a Full HD resolution (pixel density 401ppi). As we expected, the display is pretty exceptional and very cool to the eyes. Also, Xiaomi noted a full NTSC gamut coverage for the panel. At front is a 5MP selfie camera which is located above the display, while at the home button rest the fingerprint scanner with two capacitive buttons to its left and right. And if you noticed it, its pretty similar to the Mi5.






We noticed that the sides and edges are a little sharp, though its CNC finished, the edges needs to be refined more especially when you grip on to your phone, this is not an issue if you use cases to protect your phone. The right side lies the volume rocker and the powerbutton. While on the left side we can find the sim tray, sim 1 is micro sim, sim 2 is nano sim / sd card.




Sitting on top is the 3.5mm jack, together with the noise cancellation mic and the IR blaster to control appliances at home. Down below hides the USB Type C port coupled with the loudspeaker holes to its left and right. This is the first USB Type C for the Redmi Series just for your information.





Turning around to the back we can see the brushed aluminum metal finished battery cover, and Xiaomi's first dual camera is there as well, a 13MP Sony IMX258 PDAF Lens and a Samsung 5MP as well. The camera’s feature is similar to most dual-camera setups wherein the secondary sensor helps the main sensor achieve a stereoscopic effect to add bokeh and adjust focus after taking the shot. Lastly, a modest Mi logo sits down below for branding purposes.






Helio X20 and X25

The Helio X20 sports a 2.1 Ghz deca-core processor while the Helio X25 sports a 2.3Ghz deca-core processor. The variants are as follows:
3GB RAM 32GB ROM Helio X20
3GB RAM 64GB ROM Helio X25
4GB RAM 128GB ROM Helio X25

We have brought the Helio X20 to the test as well as the Helio X25. Both performed well in multitasking and doing basic daily task like messenger, calls, facebook and surf. While trying some online games like Pokemon Go, we did not experienced any slowdown on the unit or lags in terms of processing.

Here are the Antutu ratings of both processors:

Helio X20


Helio X25


MIUI 7.3

Its a bit surprising to see that this unit did not get launched in the latest MIUI 8, not even MIUI 7.5. The MIUI is pretty snappy, and we upgraded it to China Developer Rom to experience the MIUI 8 in it and it was fantastic. If your asking if the device is locked, well yes its bootloader locked. You will need to request for unlock permission if you want to install your favorite custom rom. But the bootloader is locked for your own protection.






Photo Gallery of Redmi Pro:














Connectivity:

The Redmi Pro supports 8 different LTE bands, its easy to switch to LTE network inside the settings but once your do the second sim will be running on GSM connectivity only. You can freely choose which sim you want to use your LTE data, since this is a Dual LTE, Dual standby smartphone. Wireless connectivity via Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/ac is also smooth and it also supports Wi-Fi Direct. Wireless screen mirroring is also available via the Miracast protocol, tethering data is also working perfectly. Bluetooth 4.2,GPS, and GLONASS are all present.

Here are the supported bandwidth by the Redmi Pro

GSM B2/B3/B8
WCDMA B1/B2/B5/B8
TD-SCDMA B34/B39
CDMA2000/1X BC0
FDD-LTE B1/B3/ B5/B7/ B8
TD-LTE B38/B39/B40/B41(2555-2655MHz)

Audio and Video
We were able to test watching 1080p movies, and we tried to watch Captain America: Civil War and it was really clear and crisp, sounds on the loudspeaker are also clear and very powerful. We were glad they did not copy the loudspeaker location of the Redmi Note 3. Here are the supported audio and video files in Redmi Pro:

• MP4
  
• M4V
  
• MKV
  
• XVID
  
• WAV
  
• AAC
  
• MP3
  
• AMR
  
• FLAC
  
• APE
  
• DSD
  
  

Camera
The main focus of this unit is its dual camera, first by Xiaomi and we were excited to snap photos using this camera. Now this camera presents the Scene Mode. what is scene mode? its the 3D effect that the camera can make, by adjusting the focus of the other lens, it can create a 3D effect which can be viewed in the gallery of the said phone.




How does Scene Mode works Video Tutorial:






The camera takes good photos in daylight and above average in low light areas, its best performance is outdoors, taking crisp and great photos.


Photo Gallery: (Unedited Photos)







































Scene Mode Photos: not sure how you can view it but still here is the upload.








Battery and Temperature:







While stuffing in a 4050mAh battery inside a thin unibody is no easy task, the Redmi PRo has a pretty goof battery life. This unit supports 5V 2A charging and was able to record 10 hours for Helio X20 and 9 hours for Helio X25. While on the heat side, it recorded a 31 Celsius on standby mode, 33.5 Celsius on normal usage and roughly 38 Celsius on full throttle during our stress test using PC Mark Battery Tester.

Helio X20



Helio X25



Mi5 vs Redmi Pro


We can see clearly that Redmi Pro is a resemblance of the great flagship Mi5, now here are some photos comparing side by side as well as video comparison. In the display category, Mi5 displayed more whiter, and Redmi Pro displayed more yellowish.
















Mi5 Camera vs Redmi Pro Camera Photos

Mi5

Redmi Pro

Mi5

Redmi Pro

Mi5

Redmi Pro
Redmi Note 3 vs Redmi Pro


Comparing the Redmi Note 3 Pro and the Redmi Pro, we can see that it is a bit bigger than its predecessor, but way more handsome that it was before. Check it out






Other Benchmarks:


Helio X20











Helio X25










Conclusion:


Now that we have done reviewing the phone thoroughly, we are down to this question: Is it worth it? My answer is yes, display, storage, expansion storage, multitasking, finger print sensor, dual camera, its basically all here. Now I know many will pop this question to me, between Redmi Pro and Mi5, which will you pick? For me its a no brainer, its definitely Mi5 in most aspect. We love the way this phone is build, the improvement from Redmi Note 3 was far too great not to mention here. We hope this will mark a new era for the Redmi Series of Xiaomi.


Prices:

3GB RAM 32GB ROM Helio X20 1499 RMB
3GB RAM 64GB ROM Helio X25 1699 RMB
4GB RAM 128GB ROM Helio X25 1999 RMB


Xiaomi.com


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.

as much as i like to make it greek, im not a native greek speaker sad to say.
maybe you can ask our great moderators here to give you an assist.
Or ask mr google for translate? hehe