Following the announcement of the Xiaomi Mi 5C came the unveiling of the Xiaomi Redmi 4X. The launch of the Redmi 4X should not come as a surprise to those familiar with Xiaomi. It was already obvious the Redmi 4 will get the X-treatment after the Redmi Note 4X was announced.
With the addition of this new phone, we now have a total of four Redmi 4 devices: the Redmi 4A, Redmi 4, Redmi 4X, and Redmi 4 Prime. You can call them the Fantastic Four if you wish.
All four phones are well made and are priced at less than $200. However, even though they share the same name, they differ in lots of ways. So if you are having a hard time deciding which is right for you, you should read this to the end.
Display: Same but Different
All the phones in the Redmi 4 line come with a 5-inch display making them perfect for one hand use. The difference lies is in their resolution. While the Redmi 4A, Redmi 4, and Redmi 4X have 720p displays, the Redmi 4 Prime has a 1080p screen. That translates into different PPIs too, 294 as against 441.
If you want your display sharp and crisp, you should look to the Redmi 4 Prime but if you don’t care much for that, the Redmi 4, 4A or 4X is fine.
Processors: Different Dragons
Xiaomi has settled for Qualcomm chips only. The Redmi 4A sports the Snapdragon 425; the Redmi 4 gets the Snapdragon 430, the Redmi 4X has the newer Snapdragon 435, and the Redmi 4 Prime uses the popular Snapdragon 625. The Redmi 4 Prime is basically the Redmi Note 4X with a smaller screen. Nothing more, nothing less. So I won’t compare its chip to the rest.
The Snapdragon 425 has a quad-core CPU clocked at 1.4GHz and an Adreno 308 GPU. The Snapdragon 430 and 435 on the other hand are octa-core chips clocked at 1.4GHz and have a more powerful Adreno 505 GPU. The advantage the Snapdragon 435 has over the Snapdragon 430 is in LTE speeds. The SD435 has Cat.7 LTE as against the SD430’s Cat. 4 LTE. That means you will get faster download speeds on the Redmi 4X.
RAM and ROM
The Xiaomi Redmi 4A and Redmi 4 ships with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of storage. The Redmi 4X is available in two variants: a 2GB RAM + 16GB ROM and a 3GB RAM + 32GB ROM. The Redmi 4 Prime is only available with 3GB RAM and 32GB of storage. All four devices support microSD cards of up to 128GB. If you want a larger RAM, the Redmi 4X or Redmi 4 Prime is your best option.
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Cameras
The Redmi 4 line are all equipped with 13MP rear cameras and 5MP front cameras for selfies. The only difference is in the Redmi 4X which has a f/2.0 aperture for its rear camera whereas the others are f/2.2.
Battery
The Redmi 4, 4X, and 4 Prime ship with a 4100mAh battery but the Redmi 4A takes a dip down to 3120mAh. Since they are all 5-inch devices, battery life should be pretty stellar plus they all feature power efficient chips. However there might will be variations in on-screen time. The ones with the higher screen resolution may likely record less screen time than the 720p displays.
Fingerprint Scanner
Fingerprint scanners have now become a regular feature in mid-range phones. We have even seen them in some sub $100 devices but sadly, the Redmi 4A misses out on this feature. All the other 3 have fingerprint scanners at the back.
Price
Redmi 4A – ¥599 (~$87)
Redmi 4 – ¥699 (~$102)
Redmi 4X- 2GB RAM+ 16GB ROM = ¥699 (~$102); 3GB RAM + 32GB = ¥899 (~$131)
Redmi 4 Prime – ¥899 (~$131)
NB: Prices are MSRPs and not what you will get them from re-sellers.
Conclusion
Redmi 4A – cheapest of the lot but at the expense of a smaller battery and lack of a fingerprint scanner.
Redmi 4 – the fingerprint scanner and larger battery gives it an edge over the Redmi 4A. Battery life will be great too but probably won’t last as long the Redmi 4X.
Redmi 4X – has a more powerful processor in terms of LTE speeds than the Redmi 4A and Redmi 4 and also has a fingerprint scanner. The screen resolution might be the deal breaker for some. It is also the only other one with a 3GB variant.
Redmi 4 Prime – Best of everything. Compact body, higher resolution display, power efficient CPU, more powerful GPU, and larger RAM and storage. Basically the smaller version of the Redmi Note 4X in size alone.
If you do not care about the resolution, you are better off buying the 2GB RAM variant of the Redmi 4X or the Redmi 4. The Redmi 4 Prime is the one you should buy if you want to tick all the boxes. The Redmi 4A on the other hand is what you should get if you are looking for a second phone to complement that flagship in your pocket or if you want to get a gift for an older relative.
