Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro Review: Worthy successor to Redmi Note 5 Pro or not?

Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro is a good smartphone overall on paper, however, does it perform equally well in the real world, let's find out.

Xiaomi, Redmi Note 6 Pro
Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro is the successor the popular Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro was launched a couple of months back as a successor to Redmi Note 5 Pro, one of the most popular mid-segment smartphones in India. The Redmi Note 4 and its successor, the Note 5 Pro cemented Xiaomi's name in mid-segment smartphones in India. So does the smartphone live up to the legacy of its successors or not? Let's find out.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro: Specifications

Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro comes with a 1.80 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 coupled with an Adreno 509 GPU and 3/4/6 GB of RAM depending on the variant you choose. It sports a 6.26-inch (1080 x 2280 pixels) notched LCD display. For optics, it features a 12-megapixel f/1.9 rear sensor along with a 5-megapixel f/2.2 sensor and an LED flash. For selfies, it packs a 20-megapixel f/2.0 along with a 2-megapixel f/2.2 sensor. All of this is backed by a 4,000mAh battery.

Xiaomi, Redmi Note 6 Pro
The smartphone is backed by a massive 4,000mAh battery.

The device sports a metal back panel with a plastic frame around the sides. It runs Google’s Android 9.0 Pie with completely modified MIUI 9.0 skin on the top. The phone sports hybrid dual sim card slots, a 3.5mm headphone jack and a micro-USB port for charging & data syncing.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro Review: Design

Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro features a metal back with a plastic frame. The look and feel of the smartphone are not that great in hand. The materials feel a little cheap, which considering the price point can be accepted.

Xiaomi, Redmi Note 6 Pro
The front has a huge chin on the bottom.

The device sports a 6.26-inch, 19:9 aspect ratio notched LCD display. The dual front camera, earpiece, notification led and the proximity sensor are all placed inside of the notch.

Xiaomi, Redmi Note 6 Pro
Back of the device is made out of metal.

On the back, there is a dual camera module paired with an LED flash aligned in a vertical orientation. The phone bears Xiaomi's logo and the fingerprint sensor on the back.

Xiaomi, Redmi Note 6 Pro
Top, Bottom, Left, Right in that order.

On the right edge, there is the power button along with the volume rockers just above it. The left side only holds the sim card tray, which consists of a hybrid dual sim card slot. On the top edge, there is a headphone jack and on the bottom edge, there is the micro-USB port along with a primary microphone and the speaker grille. Xiaomi made the microphone look like a secondary speaker grille for symmetry, which is appreciated.

Also Read: How to disable MIUI ads on Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro

Overall, the design of the smartphone is pretty much similar to that of the Mi A2. The plastic frame robs the otherwise great feel of the metal and the bevelling on the sides makes holding the smartphone in hand a slight inconvenience. Overall, the design of the smartphone is unimpressive but not necessarily boring.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro Review: Software

Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro runs Google’s Android 9,0 Piew with a heavily modified Android skin on top. Xiaomi's approach to software has always been quite complex. They tend to heavily modify the operating system (OS) to add customisability, but it tends to take the UI's look away from what we think Android looks like. Moreover, introducing so many features causes a lot of minor bugs in the software.

Xiaomi, Redmi Note 6 Pro, Software, MIUI 10
MIUI 10 has more of a love of hate relationship with people.

Features like a built-in theme engine in the smartphone and an ability to modify various settings that you can't on the stock Android gives the MIUI an edge. But the absence of an app drawer, complete overhaul to the UI and a lot of bloatware in the form of Xiaomi's alternative apps for stock Android apps along with those stock android apps push the people like me, who love a stock Android UI away. In the end its a matter of personal preferences.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro Review: Performance

Performance is a major area of concern on any device, Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro sports a 1.80 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 coupled with an Adreno 509 GPU and 3/4/6 GB of RAM. We had the 6GB variant, so your performance might vary depending on the unit you purchase.

Xiaomi, Redmi Note 6 Pro, AnTuTu, Geekbench
AnTuTu (left) Geekbench (right).

We ran our usual benchmark tests to evaluate the performance of the phone. On AnTuTu, the device yielded a score of 116436, which is okay considering the price and competition. On GeekBench, it managed to get a single core score of 1325 and a multi-core score of 4762. The performance numbers of the device on paper were not bad for the value.

Also Read: Here’s everything we know about the upcoming Xiaomi Poco F2 so far

While playing light games such as Temple Run and Crossy Chicken, the phone runs smoothly. Games like PUBG Mobile and Asphalt 9 Legend's also works fine with a slight lag after long gaming hours. Considering the price of the smartphone, it performs pretty well.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro Review: Display

Xiaomi, Redmi Note 6 Pro
Xiaomi utilises a notch design similar to the one seen on Apple's iPhone X.

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro sports a 6.26-inch 19:9 aspect ratio LCD display with a massive notch. The brightness turns up high enough to offer great sunlight visibility and turns down enough to offer comfortable usage experience even in the complete darkness. We did observe slight discolouration on the panel, however, it might be an issue with our unit only.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro Review: Cameras

Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro features a 12-megapixel f/1.9 rear sensor along with a 5-megapixel f/2.2 sensor and an LED flash. For selfies, it packs a 20-megapixel f/2.0 along with a 2-megapixel f/2.2 sensor. Although, not everything depends on a camera’s megapixel count as we have seen in the past.

The rear camera of the device offers images with good details and great colour reproduction. The saturation and contrast are great. The camera boosts, the colour of images a little bit, but it is not noticeable easily.

Xiaomi, Redmi Note 6 Pro, Camera Samples
Without beauty mode (left), with beauty mode (rihgt).

The front camera of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro is also not so bad. The colours are not natural and are a bit boosted. The beauty mode is annoying, which gets turned on automatically whenever you open the camera. With the beauty mode is turned to its maximum, the colours are so highly boosted that subject looks weird and unnatural.

Also Read: Android Q Beta will be available for more smartphones: OnePlus 6T, Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 and more

Overall, apart from the software annoyances of MIUI, the camera quality of the device is great.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro Review: Battery

Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro comes packing a 4,000mAh battery, which lasts for a little over 12 hours on a single charge. Charge time with the included charger is around one and a half hours, which is perfectly normal. Overall, you would like to charge the smartphone in the night before going to bed, so as to it doesn’t die on you in the middle of the day leaving you stranded.

Xiaomi, Redmi Note 6 Pro, PC Mark Work 2.0
PCMark Work 2.0 battery life test result.

We ran PCMark’s Work 2.0 Battery Life test, which subjects the phone to heavy usage and finds out how the battery performs in those conditions. The device yielded a result of 12 hours and 50 minutes, which lines up with the battery capacity in the smartphone and our day to day usage.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro Review: Conclusion

Xiaomi, Redmi Note 6 Pro
Overall, the smartphone is a hit or a miss.

At the time of writing this review, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro starts at Rs. 12,999 with 4GB RAM, 64GB storage. Our 6GB RAM variant costs Rs 14,999.  At that price point, the performance is not upto the mark. Competitors from Huawei and Asus are offering way better performance for the price. The story is the same with the cameras. It all boils down to the software. MIUI software is loved by many and if you like it, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro is a great option, else you should stay away from it.

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