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[i2pc pros_icon=”icon icon-thumbs-up” cons_icon=”icon icon-thumbs-down” show_title=”false” title=”Pros & Cons” show_button=”false” pros_title=”Pros” cons_title=”Cons” ][i2pros]Excellent 120Hz FHD AMOLED display
Good stereo sound.
Good performance
High quality
Good cameras (main and selfie).
NFC, dual SIM & memory expansion
Strong battery life and fast charging speed[/i2pros][i2cons]Camera downgrade (videos and macro)
Hardly any improvements
Big, heavy, and angular
“Sometimes On Display” only
[/i2cons][/i2pc]
The Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G has to follow in the footsteps of the Redmi Note 10 Pro. At first glance, the addition of 5G reception as a new feature will probably not be a decisive advance. The heart of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G is a Snapdragon 695 processor, which has a 6.67-inch AMOLED display and a 5000 mAh battery with a 65-watt quick charge function. I’ve been using the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G daily for over 10 days, but this review is a little shorter than usual. This is mainly because the hardware of the Note 11 Pro 5G is exactly identical to the Poco X4 Pro that we have already tested.
The Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G measures 164 x 76 x 8.3 millimeters and weighs 202 grams. With the camera module at the back, the 108MP main camera, in particular, protrudes a full 3mm from the back and causes wobbling on flat surfaces. The supplied case is thick, but it cannot prevent the wobbling either. The case sits surprisingly firmly on the case and has the plug for the USB-C connection, which is now standard with Xiaomi. This is quite practical and offers additional protection against dust or dirt.
In test use, on the other hand, I find this annoying because I have to keep opening the plug to connect the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G to my PC. But for normal users, I really only see advantages. Officially, the Xiaomi Redmi Redmi Note 11 Pro (like many other Xiaomi and Poco smartphones) is now IP53 certified, which means “protected against dust and splash water”. This has nothing to do with an IP68-certified smartphone that you can wash or submerge in water. Ultimately, this rating is just a marketing-effective confirmation of what you would expect from any well-made smartphone.
You can see and feel on the device that Xiaomi once again attaches great importance to the workmanship. However, the angular and chunky impression in the hand can hardly be denied. The frame is made of plastic, and the back is made of glass. Both are matte in our black version. This not only looks good but also feels high-quality. There are no sharp transitions or other inaccuracies in processing. I like the less sprawling camera module and the matte back much better than they otherwise identical Poco X4 Pro. But that’s a matter of taste.
The USB-C port, a loudspeaker, a microphone, and the SIM card slot are located on the underside of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G. In the latter, either 2 nano-SIM cards or one nano-SIM and one micro-SD fit for memory expansion (hybrid slot). Too bad, with the Note 10 Pro, we still had a real triple slot. The 3.5mm headphone jack, a second noise-canceling microphone, an infrared transmitter, and a second loudspeaker are also located on the top.
The loudspeaker also functions as an earphone and, together with the lower speaker, delivers real stereo sound. In a direct comparison with the Note 10 Pro, the 11 Pro 5G is audibly better. It’s a bit louder, and the sound is better tuned. In addition, Xiaomi offers an equalizer under Dolby Effects, which makes a big difference. So you can adjust the sound individually to your preferences.
The power button, with an integrated fingerprint sensor, is located on the right side of the frame directly under the volume rocker. Fingerprint unlock is fast and accurate. In 9/10 cases it succeeds on the first try and in less than a second you can see the home screen. You can also activate face recognition. This also works quickly and well but is less secure than the fingerprint scanner.
The front is made of Gorilla Glass 5 and the centered punch-hole notch is tiny at 3mm. The edges around the display are also very small at 2.5mm left and right, 3mm above, and 5mm below. The Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G is a modern smartphone with excellent workmanship. However, the bulky and heavy design does not have to appeal to everyone.
The Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G comes with a screen protector already applied. Also included in the box are a silicone protective cover (fits very tightly and securely!), a 67-watt charging adapter, and a USB-C to USB-A cable. The SIM needle and a quick start guide are also included.
Let’s start with the obligatory rumble for the always-on display (AOD). Xiaomi calls it “Always On Display” in Bangladesh, and I think there are no language issues here. But the problem is that the AOD doesn’t always light up. It lights up for a maximum of 10 seconds after touching the device and then switches off.
But now to the positive part of the display. The 6.67-inch AMOLED of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G is beyond any doubt. The resolution of 2400 x 1080 pixels ensures pin-sharp content. At 395 pixels per inch, you simply can no longer see individual pixels. The refresh rate of 120Hz ensures perfectly smooth animations and, depending on the app, can also switch down to an energy-saving 60Hz.
This is one of the few differences between modern LTPO displays that can freely switch between 1 and 120Hz. However, there are no such displays in this price range anyway. Unfortunately, there is no DC dimming for sensitive users, but otherwise, the usual settings for color and contrast are included. With automatic brightness, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G boosts to a strong 1200 lux, and in manual mode, you can switch continuously from 3 to 760 lux. The popular dark mode (black/white inversion) and reading mode (reduction of blue light) are also included. Both can be controlled by time.
The touchscreen doesn’t show any problems with input, and everything works without delays. The case nestles a little far over the edges of the display and bothered me when using the swipe gestures. Without the context, however, the gestures work without restrictions. If you have similar problems: It is best to buy a different case from Aliexpress or just use the alternative Android onscreen buttons. Of course, like every Xiaomi smartphone, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G is Widevine L1 certified. This ensures full HD streaming with almost all providers. Only Amazon is occasionally an extra sausage here and you only get HD quality with this short guide.
More display is currently not possible in this price range, and points are only deducted for the SOD (Sometimes On Display).
The Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G uses the modern 6 nm processor, Snapdragon 695, in this country. The octa-core processor consists of two Kryo 660 Gold cores with a 2.2 GHz clock in the performance cluster. Another six Kryo 660 silver cores with a 1.8GHz clock work energy-saving for less demanding tasks. The Adreno 619 GPU is hardly an improvement over the 618 from the Redmi Note 10 Pro.
So all in all a minimal upgrade would definitely not justify a change from the predecessor to the new model. At 415/84 MB/s, the internal UFS 2.2 storage delivers noticeably low values, which definitely do not indicate UFS storage. The DDR4 RAM, on the other hand, delivers the expected 30GB/s. However, we have the 6/64GB version, and I would assume that no UFS storage is installed here.
With the 128GB version, this could look different. Even after stress tests or benchmarks, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G does not show any heat problems, and the device finishes the wildlife stress test with a stability of 99% and no noticeable heat development. After 30 minutes of CPU Throttle Testing, the performance is still a solid 80%. So you don’t have to worry about heat problems when gaming.
Regardless of the synthetic benchmarks, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G runs just as smoothly as other smartphones in this price range. But in the end, there is not really a lot of performance with certain future security here. Given Xiaomi’s asking price, I would have expected a noticeable increase in performance compared to the Note 10 Pro.
MIUI 12 is currently only available on the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G in combination with Android 11. This does not affect the functions and features, but the other manufacturers ultimately get it baked too. Xiaomi has so far refrained from promises of updates, with the Xiaomi 11T series being an exception. Basically, you can count on 2 Android versions and 3 MIUI versions. I wouldn’t count the step from 11 to 12 anymore, so an Android 14 base should be in there. Xiaomi has security updates for the middle class every 3 months.
I have already mentioned MIUI 13 in many reports and after MIUI 12.5 there is hardly anything new. A lot has probably been improved under the hood and yes, everything really runs smoothly and stably on the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro. Nevertheless, I would have been happy about a few design adjustments from MIUI 12 to MIUI 13. If you know MIUI, you don’t have to shy away from the latest version and you’ll find your way around immediately. Incidentally, advertising is part of the system and can be deactivated with these instructions. Some bloated apps are also pre-installed and can be easily uninstalled.
For a detailed camera test, please have a look at the Poco X4 Pro test report. There will also be some camera comparisons. The camera setup of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G is as follows:
In contrast to the Note 10 Pro, we lose the usable 5-megapixel macro sensor. Otherwise, everything stays the same, only videos no longer have a 4K resolution. That’s because the Snapdragon processor just doesn’t support it and you’re looking for 60FPS in vain. At least all Full HD recordings (1080p) from the main, ultra-wide-angle, and selfie cameras are stabilized (using EIS) and the sound quality is excellent. However, the stabilization has not yet been satisfactorily optimized.
For around 30,000 Tk, you still get rock-solid recordings day and night. The ultra-wide-angle camera is also acceptable.
As the name suggests, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G also comes with the latest mobile communications standard. The following 4G (LTE) and 5G frequencies are supported:
So you have all the important LTE & 5G bands on board in Asia. The SAR values are 0.6 W/kg (head) and 0.96 W/kg (body). The reception was consistently stable, and thanks to DSS 5G, I also had the 5G symbol in the status bar all the time. The call quality is excellent using VoLTE (telephony via the LTE network) and VoWiFi (telephony via WLAN), and the proximity sensor reliably darkens the display during a call. The auricle also serves as an additional loudspeaker and can be very loud when making a call if desired. However, it is also so quiet that you only understand the caller and cannot overhear the environment.
With Bluetooth 5.1, a modern standard is on board, and aptX is supported for high-resolution music enjoyment. What is unfortunately missing is LHDC support, which the Redmi Note 10 Pro already had The Bluetooth connection was always stable with different devices, and only my Seat Mii Electric danced out of line again. In the WLAN, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G moves in the WiFi 5 network and delivers solid, but not outstanding values there.
After 2 walls and 10 meters, I still get almost 50/50 MBit/s. 350/50 Mbit/s is the limit right next to the router. Of course, that’s easy enough for all tasks, but other devices get significantly more out of my gigabit line. Dual GPS is not supported, but the location can be determined within seconds with an accuracy of 3 meters. In addition to GPS, Glonass, Galileo, and Beidou are also used.
Thanks to the 3.5mm headphone jack, real FM/VHF radio reception is possible with the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 5G when headphones are connected. Otherwise, the sound quality via the connection is excellent. The stereo speakers are also fully convincing, I wrote a little more about this in the design and processing section above. Finally, the 3 standard sensors (acceleration, proximity, and brightness sensors), a gyroscope, compass, and infrared transmitter are on board. You don’t have to do without NFC for mobile payments via Google Pay with the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G either.
The 5000 mAh batteries are standard in the Note series and once again ensure long battery life. In the PC Mark battery test, that’s a solid 13 hours of runtime, and at 60Hz it even becomes 17 hours. These are both strong values, and their practical use is also fully convincing. I got a full 2 days of runtime with 3-4 hours of DOT (time with the display on) and by the evening of the second day, I even had 10-20% left in the battery. We had already noticed the significant extension of the runtime by almost 4 hours at 60Hz with the X4 Pro.
The new Xiaomi RedmiNote 11 Pro 5G charges from 1 to 99% in just 50 minutes and is therefore fully charged 20 minutes faster than its predecessor. Interestingly, the identical Poco is 7 minutes faster. The colleagues from GSMArena, on the other hand, measured 45 minutes with the 11 Pro 5G. After 24 minutes, the Redmi smartphone has 60% of the battery again, and that’s easily enough for the rest of the day. The loading time and runtime of the Xiaomi RedmiNote 11 Pro 5G can definitely convince you.
As long as the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G does not fall below the price mark of 30,000 T, there is actually no reason to buy this device. The 30,000 Tk price tag brings in competitors like a Samsung Galaxy A52S, a OnePlus Nord 2, and a Realme 9 Pro+on the plan.
However, Xiaomi has little to offer to counter these devices with the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G. Then there are the obvious steps backward compared to its predecessor, the Note 10 Pro. Suddenly, we no longer have 4K videos, and the at least usable 5MP macro sensor is now just a 2MP gimmick. The angular design may be a matter of taste, but Xiaomi definitely won’t pick me up with it.
The Note 10 Pro just feels a lot better in my hand. The Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE should also be mentioned as a chic and thin alternative, also with good overall performance in the test. Unfortunately, the camera and performance remain at an acceptable level and do not trigger the typical Xiaomi hype surrounding the obese Note smartphones. Compared to the Note 10 Pro, the camera is also a bit weaker.
But there are also things on the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G that are just really good. First of all, the uncompromising AMOLED display with 120Hz should be mentioned. The battery life is really excellent, and in 50 minutes the battery is fully recharged at 67 watts. Even if the processor performance has only been slightly increased compared to the predecessor, the Redmi smartphone is definitely fast.
For the sake of completeness, 5G should also be mentioned, but that is unlikely to attract buyers. Ultimately, you just have to see whether the Poco X4 Pro 5G or the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G tested here is currently cheaper. If one of the two is below the 25,000 Tk mark, you can strike without hesitation. For all Redmi Note 10 Pro users, there is no reason to upgrade. But this is normal for Redmi devices after a year.
