Xiaomi launched the Redmi Note 9 Series in China yesterday. The lineup has two 5G devices- Redmi Note9 5G, Note9 Pro 5G, and a Note9 4G version. Today, a teardown of the entire series by popular AIO Technology shows the difference between the devices. And as teased by Lei Jun earlier, the devices bring improvements in performance, battery, camera, and more.
Rear Shell, Display
As reported by SeekDevice(via GSMArena), the teardown begins by taking off the back covers. As per the reports, both 4G and 5G version of Redmi Note 9 series has plastic shell. And, the 5G version is made to look like AG glass. However, the Note 9 Pro 5G reportedly has a real AG(Anti-Glare)Glass cover.
Talking about the display, we already know that the entire series uses LCD displays. The teardown additionally reveals that all of them are made by TCL CSOT, and have the connecting interface fused to the back of the display. Moving on, the rear shell of 4G and 5G Redmi Note 9 have fingerprint sensors, and antennas attached to them. The 5G version has more antenna contact points which is obvious.
Processor, Cooling
The top cover of the Note 9 series covers the Processor and Camera modules. Among this, the NFC on the Note9 Pro 5G is integrated into the top cover. Beneath it are the SoC along with memory and other components. The 3.5mm audio jack on the 4G version is sorted to the board while others have it integrated. Additionally, all the devices have Infrared sensors(IR blaster) sorted to the board.
Besides, the processors are covered with metal cover, copper foils, and a thermal paste beneath the surface. Removing them reveals the CPU, memory(UFS 2.2, DDR4 RAM). Talking about the cooling, Note9 4G has a heat dissipation film attached to the rear panel but the 5G versions have it on the fuselage(body). While the mid-frame of the devices have more heat dissipation film, the Note9 Pro 5G has a copper tube running in the mid-frame for extra cooling.
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Camera module
The camera modules on the 4G and 5G devices are different. The Note9 4G has a rectangle layout and is it at the far left while two 5G devices have a circular layout at the center. Interestingly, the Note9 Pro 5G has an additional protection cover and three more screws to hold the arrangement. The flash on 4G version is fused to the back cover. But the 5G version has it on the layout and the 5G Pro version has it sorted to the board.
The cameras themselves are reportedly similar in the 4G and 5G base version with the difference being a depth of field(2MP depth) and macro lens(2MP Macro) on the former and latter. The Redmi Note9 Pro layout has the biggest 108MP HM2 module and auxiliary sensors.
Battery, and other parts
Removing the big ribbon cable that separates the bottom and upper part reveals the battery. All of them are protected by adhesives. As we all know the batteries on 4G, and two 5G versions are 6,000, 5,000, and 4,820mAh respectively.
The bottom part is also protected by a cover. Removing it reveals the USB-C, Speaker, vibrator, and 3.5mm jack on the 5G versions. The report says the speaker and vibration motor are similar across the models but the 5G versions have a Z-Axis linear motor.
