Redmi Note 8 Pro in for review

The Redmi Note line has always offered a great balance between affordable pricing and solid performance and that continues with the brand new Redmi Note 8 Pro. This year brings the first time in a while that Xiaomi goes with a Mediatek chipset. In this case, this is the all-new gaming-centric Helio G90T SoC.

Elsewhere, the display has grown to 6.53-inches and comes with slimmer bezels, both the front and rear camera are upgraded and the battery is now 4,500 mAh. Let’s take a look at the key features of the Redmi Note 8 Pro ahead of our full review.

Our review unit comes in the sleek gray color though the phone comes in two other arguably better-looking colors - green and pearl white. Regardless of the color, the design certainly feels up a notch compared to last year’s model. The curves around the back are more pronounced which makes the phone easier to hold. The slimmer bezels also give the device a more modern feel and the larger screen is great for media consumption. While we’re talking about the screen it’s still an IPS panel with FHD+ resolution and a waterdrop notch for the 20MP selfie cam.

Going around the back we see the new quad-camera setup headlined by the 64MP F/1.8 Samsung Isocell GW1 main shooter. Keeping it company is an 8MP F/2.2 ultrawide lens alongside two 2MP sensors for macro photography and depth sensing. Tucked below you’ll find the fingerprint reader.

Under the hood we have the aforementioned Mediatek Helio G90T chipset paired with 6/8 GB RAM and 64/128GB storage. This is our first encounter with Mediatek’s new dedicated gaming SoC and we are eager to see how it compares to the competition. We did a quick run of Antutu 7 to see where it stacks up compared to some other phones we've tested.

AnTuTu 7

Higher is better

• Xiaomi Pocophone F1
  265314
• Google Pixel 3
  233699
• Redmi Note 8 Pro
  224759
• Realme XT
  185193
• Realme 5 Pro
  182765
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro
  180754
• Google Pixel 3a XL
  159110
• Xiaomi Mi A3
  140633
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 7
  139075

The 4,500 mAh battery comes with 18W fast charging support and can be topped up via the Type-C port. Other extras include a headphone jack, IR port and FM radio.

Stay tuned for the full review coming next week.