We Unbox the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5A Prime!
While we’re still waiting on Xiaomi’s take on an Android One smartphone to arrive at HQ and for the full review of the Xiaomi Mi MIX 2, this budget alternative from the Chinese brand arrived at our doorstep. Like all Xiaomi phones, the Note 5A Prime offers a good price to performance ratio with looks and a familiar processing package that fans of the brand may be familiar with but this time they’re taking aim at the folks who love taking selfies. Before we show you what’s inside the box, here’s its spec sheet.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 5A Prime
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 435 octa-core processor
- Adreno 505 GPU
- 3GB of RAM
- 5.5-inch HD IPS LCD Display; 720 x 1280 resolution
- 32GB of expandable storage
- 13-megapixel rear camera, f/2.2 aperture, PDAF, LED flash
- 16-megapixel front camera, f/2.0 aperture
- 4G, LTE
- WiFi, Bluetooth
- GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS
- Fingerprint scanner
- Android 7.0 Nougat w/ MIUI 8.5
- 3080mAh battery
What’s Inside the Box?
Xiaomi has always been known to have a minimalistic take when it comes to packaging their lower tiered device, and that hasn’t changed with the Note 5A Prime but then again what more do you need than the actual contents of the box. Lift up that bright red lid and you’re greeted by the Xiaomi Note 5A Prime with its accessories on the bottom, which include: USB wall charger, micro USB cable, earphones, and some documentation.
Initial Impressions: A Focus on Selfies
If you think that the phone looks familiar, we can’t we’re surprised. After all, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5A looks exactly like another Xiaomi fan favorite, the Xiaomi Redmi 4x or like most mid-range smartphones coming out of China for that matter. That’s not necessarily a bad thing though because we are getting a unibody build but it is made out of plastic. The phone has nicely rounded corners and just enough curves on its edges before it gets to the flatter frame to give you a bit more to hold on to.
In terms of button and port placement, as usual, you have the power button and volume rocker on the right side of the device.
Access to the SIM tray is on the left.
You’ll find a 3.5 mm audio jack and an IR sensor up on top.
On the bottom are the micro USB port and what looks to be two speaker grilles but only one of them actually houses a speaker.
You have the 5.5-inch IPS LCD display. At 720p resolution, you’re not getting the sharpest images but it is a budget device so we really can’t complain. Like all IPS LCD panels, you’re getting a decent quality, good viewing angles but you may have trouble using the device when you’re out and about. Below the screen are the capactive navigation keys that, sadly, do not light up so that may irk a few folks who like to use their phones before tucking in for bed at night.
Above the screen is the phones, 16-megapixel selfie shooter with an aperture of f/2.0, coupled with a front facing flash for those selfies in low-light conditions.
Behind the phone is its 13-megapixel rear camera that’s equipped with PDAF and has an aperture size of f/2.2. While most budget devices do away with the fingerprint scanner, we’re glad to see that you can unlock the Note 5A Prime via your bio-metrics.
Under the hood of the Xiaomi Redmi 5A Note Prime is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 435 octa-core processor that has been paired off with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage. The phone runs on Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box with MIUI 8.5 on top of it and is juiced up by a 3080mAh battery. There’s a higher configuration for the device, but we’re not sure if that’s going to make it onto our shores.
That’s pretty much it for this unboxing and quick review for the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5A Prime. Expect a full review in a couple of days as we take this device through the wringer.
The Xiaomi Redmi Note 5A Prime has been priced at Php 8,200 and is available through our friends at Widget City.
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