Redmi Note 13 Pro

This is the Redmi Note 13 Pro, and at this point, can we really say it’s an outright better device than the Redmi Note 12 Pro or the Note 11 Pro, or even the Note 10 Pro from three generations ago? It is actually better in a lot of ways, except in one important aspect which is music.

Since the Red Note 10 Pro, every year we’ve had to question every new Pro Note device if it is actually a worthy upgrade over the Note 10 Pro.

Redmi Note 13 Pro Phone Information

	🔲 8GB–16GB 🔳 Helio G99 Ultra 📱 6.67 1220×2712 📸 200MP 2160p 🔋 5000mAh ⚡67W
Price in Nigeria	₦360,000
👁️REVIEW	📳SPECS

Redmi Note 13 Pro Price in Nigeria

The Redmi Note 13 Pro 4G had a starting price of ₦360,000 here in Nigeria, but based on current exchange rates, you are going to now find it for over 400,000 Naira.

Redmi Note 13 Pro	Price in Nigeria
Redmi Note 13 Pro 8GB RAM + 256GB	₦427,807
Redmi Note 13 Pro 12GB RAM + 512GB	₦514,205

Redmi Note 13 Pro Full Specifications

Name	Redmi Note 13 Pro
Launch Date	September 21st, 2023
DISPLAY
Type of Screen	AMOLED
Size Of Screen	6.67 inches
Resolution	1220 x 2712
DESIGN
Weight	187 g
Dimensions	161.2 x 74.2 x 8
Build Material	Corning Gorilla Glass
PLATFORM
Software	Android 13, Hyper OS
Processor	Mediatek Helio G99 Ultra
CAMERA
Main	200MP
Ultrawide	8MP
Macro	2MP
Selfie	16MP
Video recording	4K@30fps, 1080p@30/60/120fps
MEMORY
RAM	8GB, 12GB,
Internal storage	256GB, 512GB
BATTERY
Capacity	5000 mAh
Type	Li-PO
OTHERS
Colors	Black, Blue
SIM	Dual Nano SIM
FM Radio	No
3.5mm jack	Yes

Design & Build Quality

The Redmi comes with a base RAM of 8 GB and a storage of 256GB. Thankfully, we are still keeping the SD card slot, although it’s hybrid, so you can either use one SIM card alongside a Micro SD card or dual SIM cards with no SD card.

Xiaomi continues to offer value with their devices, even right from the box, still giving you the desired unboxing experience with all the essential accessories, except wireless earphones. The protective casing is now a more durable one; it is not transparent, so there are no worries about discoloration coming from the Note 12 series or say the Note 12 Pro 4G.

Xiaomi has actually nailed the design here. You are looking at a much better-designed device than the previous generation. The Note 12 Pro 4G felt like a device Xiaomi just released to pacify those of us still attached to the Note 10 Pro. But design-wise, it wasn’t quite there. I say this is one of the finest looking Redmi devices so far, only below the Note 13 Pro Plus, of course.

That one looks amazing. The Redmi Note 13 Pro has a really flat profile with a flat frame, completely flat rear design with no major platform for the cameras. Instead, they sit individually to highlight the protruding cameras.

You will notice the back panel is segmented in its design; the area hosting the cameras has two slightly different shades of the main color, more like accents, giving it a really nice look. It should be noted that the Red 13 Pro 4G has a different design from the 5G version; that one has a noticeable camera bump.

The rear of the Note 13 Pro feels like frosted glass, but I believe it is plastic. It has a really nice feel, and I’m happy it’s not a glossy finish like the rest of the series. And there are a couple of color options for the Note 13 Pro 4G; mine is the forest green. Xiaomi did a thing with the software here, not giving us HiFi power, and on top of that, still keeping us on Android 13.

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Software & UI

No HiFi Pros, no Android 14, just MIUI 14 and Android 13. Not sure why we’re still getting Android 13 at this point; this actually robs the consumers of one major OS upgrade, as if this device is expected to get two or three years of OS upgrades. It’s technically minus one because it should be launching with Android 14 and not 13.

But hey, that’s only me nagging, I guess. It is not a deal-breaker; we’re just eager to experience Hifi. It should be noted, though, that Xiaomi intends to release Hifi globally from 25th February, so it’s actually not far away. MIUI 4 still remains an interesting UI for Xiaomi devices, and it’s smooth as ever on the Redmi Note 13 Pro. However, something struck me here; I know MIUI gets ads, but on the Note 13 Pro, I noticed it was more aggressive, without sending unwarranted notifications.

Now, this can be sidestepped if you know your way around Android, but I only expected this level of ads on the more affordable Redmi devices, not the Pro versions. But, as a side, we get a bug-free software experience with the Note 13 Pro. Animations are fluid, and I’m satisfied with the overall performance so far.

Display

The 120Hz high refresh rate makes things even better when operating the device; you can set the refresh rate to adjust automatically or fix it to 60 or 120 Hertz, depending on your preference.

The higher refresh rate will use more battery; setting it to Auto will give you a more balanced experience, but setting it to 60Hz will give you more out of the battery.

The display of the Redmi Note 13 Pro is one of the finer-looking ones when compared to other smartphones in this category. The bezels are slim, almost symmetrical; it’s a vibrant AMOLED display with a refresh rate of 120Hz. As I’ve mentioned before, it has up to 1300 nits of peak brightness, so there are no issues using this outdoors on a sunny day. It is 6.67 inches in size with an 88.9% screen-to-body ratio that gives you a solid media experience.

Talking of media consumption, the Note 13 Pro has really good quality stereo speakers; there’s no distortion at louder volumes, and it’s not one of those you’d say sounds cheap. Xiaomi has finally adopted an on-screen fingerprint scanner with the Note 13 Pro; it’s a responsive optical scanner which works just fine to unlock the device. The display here is protected by Gorilla Glass 5; I think that is the strongest you’ll find in this price range of devices.

Processor, Performance

Last year, we got the Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 with the Redmi Note 12 Pro; this time, however, while we’re not getting a Snapdragon processor, we’re at least getting a more efficient MediaTek processor specifically customized for the Note 13 Pro. The G99 Ultra is not significantly different from the regular G99, so expect no major performance boost.

With that said, the G99 Ultra is still probably more efficient as it has been customized to specifically work on the Redmi Note 13 Pro. I’ve had zero performance concerns using the device so far. At the price this phone currently retails at, the 5G is not too much to ask; Samsung’s A25 is a device in the same price category, and that supports 5G.

If you intend to game with the Redmi Note 13 Pro, while you won’t be doing that at high graphics settings, it is capable of giving you consistency in the gameplay on the recommended medium graphics settings.

Call of Duty Mobile allows you to play at medium graphics settings and no more than high frame rates; PUBG allows HD graphics and high frame rates. If you reduce the graphic settings to smooth, it allows for ultra frame rate.

The gameplay on both games from my experience is consistent and lag-free. For a few hours of gaming, I never tried it past two hours on a single session, but I believe it should be fine. I did not experience any abnormal heating in my few gaming sessions.

Camera & Video Recording

The Redmi Note 13 Pro sports a 200-megapixel camera for its main sensor, and a lot of people have questioned how it was supposed possible since the Helio G99 does not exactly support more than 108 megapixels.

I think it’s one of two things: either Xiaomi tweaking of the G99 Ultra allowed it to support 200 megapixels, or it’s actually not a 200-megapixel camera, but it’s able to achieve 200-megapixel images with pixel binning.

I’m not exactly an expert on camera sensors on smartphones, and we’ll probably need to split this device open to confirm which is the case, but I’m no Jerry Riggs.

Regardless of your questioning of the possibility of a 200-megapixel camera on the Note 13 Pro, the results of the camera are what matter the most, and I say you find the images from this rear camera quite impressive. The colours come out great; photos are sharp even in the default mode, and when you switch to 200-megapixel mode, it gives even more detailed photos, although you can only get the best out of that 200 megapixels if you have the most ideal lighting conditions.

The selfie camera is where I have some inconsistencies; you can take good looking selfies and sharp ones if you disable the default beauty filter. Sometimes, though, you get distorted selfies like this. My hands were not shaking when I took these photos. The Red Note 13 Pro is capable of shooting videos at a max resolution of 1080p 60 frames per second; you also get the 30 FPS option.

There is OIS on the main camera, and you get some good-looking videos. Not being able to record videos at 4K might be a deal-breaker for some, especially since the Note 12 Pro from last year can actually do 4K recording, but this is what we get. The Redmi Note 13 Pro is a solid device; it is recommendable, but I think it would have benefited more from a better processor rather than a modified Helio G99. But I guess it gets the job done.

If you’re not an enthusiast, you probably won’t notice it, as the device handles itself just fine. Also, at this price point, we really should be able to shoot 4K videos; while you could excuse it since the G99 does not actually support 4K, the Note 12 Pro from last year shoots 4K videos.

Again, probably not a deal-breaker for the average user. That is all from me on the Redmi Note 13 Pro. You can check out my review of the Tecno Spark 20 Pro Plus, which also runs a custom version of the Helio G99, but Tecno C has the G99 Ultimate.”

Battery Life & Charging

Its battery life is great, and I have no complaints whatsoever. It has a standard 5,000mAh battery, and it supports fast charging up to 67 watts; that gets you a full charge from 0 to 100 in about 15 minutes.

Conclusion

That is all from me on the Redmi Note 13 Pro. You can check out my review of the Tecno Spark 20 Pro Plus, which also runs a custom version of the Helio G99.