Test – Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G: With iPhone design borrowings

Design change in the Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G: It’s more angular. This is reminiscent of the evolution of the iPhone. After having been sucked around, things have become more square again since the 12 iPhones. So you can immediately distinguish the Pro from the rounded Redmi Note 11 at the edges. With a width of 76.1 millimeters, a length of 164.2 millimeters and a thickness of 8.2 millimeters, the Note 11 Pro 5G hardly differs from its predecessor in terms of dimensions. It weighs 202 grams. The front is covered with Gorilla Glass 5, the back is covered with a matte plastic plate that is neatly framed in a matte frame. Matt is apparently the new smooth, because Xiaomi’s current upper class Xiaomi 12X, Xiaomi 12 and Xiaomi 12 Pro also proved to be pleasantly non-slip in the test. Like its siblings, the Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G is only protected against splash water according to IP53. IP53 is a rather low protection class and states that the smartphone is protected from dust and liquids, but is not really tight. Rain is okay, diving is not. The fingerprint sensor is on the side. Alternatively, unlock with face recognition.

When it comes to the display, the Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G doesn’t show any weaknesses, at least on paper. It not only has a sharp, high-contrast OLED with a resolution of 2400×1080 pixels (FHD+) with a diagonal of 6.67 inches, but also a very high screen change frequency of up to 120 Hertz, which enables a particularly smooth display of moving image content ( e.g. when scrolling). Until then, the predecessor Redmi Note 10 Pro can keep up. After all, the new model increases the touch sampling rate to 360 Hertz. The circular “punchhole” for the front camera, which has a diameter of less than 3 millimeters, is located at the top center.

In contrast to the 11 Pro, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 in conjunction with an Adreno 619 GPU handles the calculations in the Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G. The processor is manufactured using the 6-nanometer process. While the Note 11 with the Snapdragon 680 is at the bottom of the Note 11 quartet and only got 1,725 ​​points in the CPU multi-core test in Geekbench 5, the Note 11S and Note 11 Pro get almost 1,900 points from their MediaTek Helio G96 pushed. The differences are larger in 3D benchmarks and the Note 11 falls further behind. The Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G still achieves 2,050 points in Geekbench 5 and surpasses the Redmi Note 11 Pro in 3DMark by 12 to 22 percent, depending on the benchmark. This means that the Pro 5G in the Redmi Note 11 series is still most devoted to demanding games and places itself above a Poco M4 Pro 5G in terms of performance, but significantly below a Xiaomi 12 Pro (Geekbench multi-core: 3,788).

The Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G is available with 64 or 128 gigabytes (UFS 2.2). The device memory can be expanded via microSD, but only if you can do without the dual SIM function in return because the memory and second SIM card share a slot. Depending on the model, the main memory is 6 or 8 gigabytes (LPDDR4X). There is also the obligatory infrared transmitter (e.g. for remote control apps), a jack, NFC for contactless payment, stereo speakers and, as the only model in the Note 11 series, WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2, which can be used to power two headphones or speakers at the same time . The operating system used is MIUI 13 based on Android 11.

In terms of battery size, Redmi Note 11, 11S, Pro and Pro 5G do not differ. All bring it to a capacity of 5,000 mAh. The Redmi Note 11 thus achieved a top value in the endurance measurement in the mobile phone battery test. With the larger display and the more powerful processor, the pros should have a little less runtime, but still enough runtime. We will provide the final comparison value after the laboratory test has been completed. The Pros charge up to 67 watts faster than the smaller Notes (33 watts).

The following applies to the Redmi Note Pro 5G: “If so, then so.” So if you have adjusted to the large format, you should invest the comparatively small surcharge from the Pro to the Pro 5G. With the same memory, you get a better WiFi and Bluetooth standard, 5G and generally the more powerful processor for 20 euros, measured against the RRP. All Redmi Note 11 smartphones offer a great display and good endurance.