Smartphone brands have been releasing 5G-enabled handsets in India since 2020. Initially, only premium devices had support for 5G. However, starting in 2021, sub-₹15,000 5G smartphones were introduced to the market.
Back then, these budget 5G smartphones didn’t offer better value than similarly priced 4G models. Even after the country’s 5G network went live in 2022, the situation remained largely unchanged.
Fast forward a year, and we finally have a good option in the form of Redmi 12 5G. Having used this phone for the last few days, I have expressed my thoughts in this article.
I’d like to start off by letting readers know that Xiaomi India loaned me the device. However, as always, the opinions mentioned here are mine, and the brand had no early look either.
A Design that Stands Out
There have been many sub-₹15,000 5G smartphones before, even from Xiaomi. However, none of them felt as premium as the Redmi 12 5G.
Even today, there’s only a single competitor to this product in the design department. The alternative is nothing but an offshoot of this very same phone, the Poco M6 Pro 5G.
The Redmi 12 5G’s premiumness comes from its CMF (Color, Material, and Finish). It has a glass sandwich body with a plastic frame in between.
The rear glass has a glossy finish, which is not a con here unless you get the Jade Black color option. The Pastel Blue and Moonstone Silver color variants don’t show smudges.
The sides are flat and accommodate all the important ports, slots, and buttons. The two cameras on the rear and their accompanying LED flashlight sit inside the islands of their own.
All in all, the device looks not only attractive but also feels comfortable to hold.
It’s a known fact that most users put a case on their phones. But even so, design still plays a key role in choosing a smartphone.
Excels in user experience
The display is the most used part of a smartphone. The screen on the Redmi 12 5G is large, smooth, and bright enough.
The 6.79-inch LCD panel has a centered punch hole for a modern look. It offers a resolution of 2460 x 1080 pixels, a 90Hz refresh rate, and 550 nits peak brightness level.
The display outputs punchy colors which is what most consumers prefer. The color reproduction, though not accurate, is better than what I experienced on the Realme C53.
A Qualcomm Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 chip with LPDDR4x RAM and UFS 2.2 storage powers the device. This hardware combination is capable of driving the phone without any hiccups.
The device is even good for multitasking as it does not kill background apps, at least on the 8GB RAM variant I used. Though it also comes in a 4GB option, it is recommended to get the 6GB version or higher if possible.
On the software front, the handset boots MIUI 14 based on Android 13. Unlike in the past, you get a clean software experience without any intrusive ads or uninstallable bloatware.
This is the best MIUI experience I have had on a budget Xiaomi smartphone in years. It is well-optimized and hopefully remains this way with future system updates.
Most importantly, the 5G performance is excellent. The phone is reliable and does not throttle speeds even when it gets warm while using it as a WiFi hotspot to download large files.
Not without drawbacks
No phone is perfect, be it a flagship or a budget model. The Redmi 12 5G is no different, as it has certain shortcomings.
The first one is cameras. Though you get dual cameras on the rear, only the primary 50MP shooter is usable, as the secondary module is merely a 2MP depth sensor.
The output from the rear camera is inconsistent. You get good results only when the lighting is ideal. When the sun goes down, the image processing takes even more hit. I could say the same for the 8MP selfie camera.
Secondly, I wish the handset had dual stereo speakers, which is now common across all price ranges. The single bottom-firing unit is not that loud and is very easily blocked.
Last but not least, it would have been nice to have support for faster charging. The 5,000mAh battery easily lasts more than a day, but excessive 5G usage can deplete it quickly.
The 18W charging takes about 2 hours to fill up the cell. A 33W support could have made a huge difference.
Closing remarks
The Redmi 12 5G’s icing on the cake is its pricing. The product starts at just ₹11,999 for the base 4GB + 128GB memory variant. It also comes in 6GB + 128GB and 8GB + 256GB versions priced at ₹13,499 and ₹15,499, respectively.
With discounts, especially during the upcoming festive sales, you can get it at an even cheaper price.
As for alternatives, the only handset I could think of is Realme Narzo 60x 5G. This device costs about the same and offers 33W fast charging support.
I haven’t experienced the Realme phone personally, so I can’t comment more on it. But based on specs and design, I can say that it is a different package targeted mostly at youth.
On the other hand, the Redmi 12 5G is the budget 5G smartphone for the masses, just like how I recommend the OnePlus Nord CE 3 for most consumers under ₹30,000. It gets a huge thumbs from me as it ticks all the important boxes.
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