If its 14 series, just made official in China, promises to be the star of the months to come, Xiaomi is not abandoning the entry-level smartphone segment. And the objective is probably to occupy the ground, if we stick to the recent announcements of the Chinese firm. While its derivative brand Poco has just made its C65 model official for less than €150, it is under its other brand, Redmi, that Xiaomi returns a few days later.
The just-official Redmi 13C has an air of déjà vu, and for good reason: careful examination of its technical sheet highlights the similarity of the smartphone with the Poco C65. On the menu, therefore, an entry-level model characterized by its large 6.74-inch HD+ (1600 x 720 pixels) LCD screen with a refresh rate of 90 Hz, and under which hides a Helio G85 chip from MediaTek. This includes a 4G modem, without much surprise given the price positioning of the device, accompanied by 4 or 8 GB of RAM.
For the other characteristics of the device, we are faced with a copy/paste of those of the Poco C65, its triple photo module (main sensor of 50 Mpx with a wide angle, 2 Mpx sensor with macro optics and sensor of depth) to its mini-jack socket, including its compatibility with microSD cards. The device is also powered by a 5000 mAh battery compatible with 18 W charging. On the other hand, we note clear improvements if we compare the Redmi 13C to the Redmi 12C to which it succeeds: charging is faster and passes through a USB-C port, the refresh rate is no longer set at 60 Hz and the smartphone has much more RAM. On the other hand, the Helio G85 was already at work on the 12C, with modest performance.
Should we specify, the Poco C65 and Redmi 13C have the same design, with a screen (notch…) and a flat back, only the colored solid surrounding their photo module and their colors allowing them to be distinguished: so While the Poco comes in black, blue and purple, the Redmi 13C comes in black, blue and green. Although the device is accessible to say the least, it displays a price very slightly higher than the C65: count on €159 for the Redmi 13C 4/128 GB, the C65 being €149 in the 6/128 GB version. However, the 13C offers more RAM for €179, with an 8/256 GB version, while the Poco C65 is €169 in 6/128 GB.