Xiaomi Redmi 13 review
HyperOS on top of Android 14
The Redmi 13 runs on Xiaomi's relatively new HyperOS - in their words, "A human-centric operating system designed for the "Human x Car x Home" smart ecosystem." We already encountered HyperOS on the Xiaomi 14, and you can read our dedicated article or watch the video below to get a taste.
We can't find any reliable info on how many years of software support the Redmi 13 can expect. However, Xiaomi does advertise a "36 months like-new software experience" for the phone, which is something provided by the improvements in HyperOS compared to MIUI.
The new OS still looks and behaves a lot like the MIUI, and while we don't doubt there are under-the-hood improvements, long-time Xiaomi phone users will be right at home. There are subtle differences to be spotted, though, like the slightly flatter design and more rounded edges for many design elements.
HyperOS on the Redmi 13
Interestingly enough, despite running on HyperOS, the Redmi 13 lacks the new style of quick settings. You don't get a choice to enable or disable the Control Center either. We didn't find an option to do multi-window apps on the Redmi 13 either.
HyperOS on the Redmi 13
There are seemingly few AI features on the Redmi 13, like those found on recent Poco devices like the Poco F6.
Benchmarks and performance
There is no point beating about the bush here - performance is an issue on the Redmi 13. So much so, in fact, that even the UI stutters and slows down while performing trivial everyday tasks.
The Mediatek Helio G91 Ultra isn't a particularly powerful chip to begin with. It has two ARM Cortex-A75 cores, clocked at up to 2.0 GHz and another six Cortex-A55 ones, working at up to 1.8 GHz. The onboard Mali-G52 MC2 GPU isn't particularly powerful either.
However, we think that the eMMC 5.1 storage chips are what's really dragging the performance down. You can get the Redmi 13 with either 128GB or 256GB of storage. That is expandable via the microSD card slot. For RAM, you get 6GB in the base 128GB variant or 8GB with either 128GB or 256GB of storage. Our review unit is the base 6GB/128GB one, and we have Memory Extension set to the default 2GB option.
The Gelio G91 is a relatively new chipset announced in 2024, but at its core, it is not so different than the G85 or G88. It has the same CPU and GPU configuration as those chips and TSMC's 12nm manufacturing process. The G91 has an upgraded ISP with support for up to 108MP main cameras - a feature that the Redmi 13 is taking full advantage of.
Let's get to some actual benchmarks to illustrate just how slow the Redmi 13 is, starting with some CPU runs and GeekBench. The Redmi 13 and its Helio G91 Ultra sit almost at the bottom of the CPU benchmark chart in both single and multi-core scenarios.
GeekBench 6
- Multi-core
- Single-core
Redmi 12 5G
Galaxy A05s
Realme C55
Redmi 12
Tecno Spark 10 Pro
Redmi 13
Xiaomi Poco C65
AnTuTu is a bit kinder to the Redmi 13 but not by a lot. It still sits near the bottom of the chart, only barely outpacing Helio G85 and G88 devices.
AnTuTu
- v9
- v10
Poco X5 Pro
Redmi Note 13 4G
Galaxy A14 5G
Galaxy A15 5G
Galaxy A05s
Redmi 13
Redmi 12
The situation isn't much better in the GPU department. Once again, we find the Redmi 13 near the very bottom of the chart. The Mali-G52 MC2 outpaces the likes of the Adreno 613 and 610, and again, not by a lot.
3DMark (offscreen)
- Wild Life (1440p)
- Wild Life Extreme (2160p)
Galaxy A25
Tecno Spark 10 Pro
Xiaomi Poco C65
Redmi 12
Realme C55
Redmi 13
Redmi 12 5G
We've discontinued GFXBench graphics benchmarking as the app is often banned/blacklisted on the phones we receive for review. The graphics performance ranking in 3D Mark is just as meaningful, so we suggest you refer to that one instead.
Honestly, the performance offered by the Redmi 13 is just abysmal and definitely not adequate for a 2024 phone, even a budget one. To put things in perspective, the Redmi Note 9 from 2020 has effectively the same CPU and GPU configuration.
Thermal-throttling
The Helio G91 Ultra might not be particularly powerful, but on the flip side, at least it doesn't heat up too badly. On the contrary, it runs smoothly with reasonable and gradual thermal throttling.
Thermal-throttling
Reader comments
- Nintenboy01
- 2 hours ago
- sSI
I wonder if it's just poor software or cheaper, more power-hungry OLED panels compared to what Realme uses. Like Realme GT 6 has the same chipset as Poco F6 and only 10% larger battery but it gets way better battery life.
- Anonymous
- 2 hours ago
- sSI
Cortex-A75 really isn't good at all in 2024. Bare minimum is at least 4x Cortex-A76, or better yet A78. Coupled with slow eMMC and subpar battery life it's just a terrible value. Actually the poor battery life is becoming a trend with Xiaom...
- Anonymous
- 29 Jun 2024
- sgj
Battery perf looks pretty bad for a phone that big and heavey and 5000mah. I have a tablet with g99, it is ok, sometimes really annoying sluggish on bad coded sites like Amazon. So I wouldn't go for the weaker g91 i mean.