Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 5G review

The competition

The Redmi Note 13 is meant to be a pretty affordable device. Its MSRP is set at €280 for a base 6GB/128GB unit, with the 8/256 GB version retailing for just under €300. As per our price tracking system, at the time of writing, these prices are more like €240 and €280, respectively. It's a price segment that sees plenty of competition.

Looking at Xiaomi's own ranks, the Poco X6 instantly springs to mind. It seems to be just slightly more expensive than the Redmi Note 13 at its base tier, but then again, the base Poco X6 offers 8GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage. Unfortunately, the latter is non-expandable on the Poco. However, that's about the only compromise you'll have to make going for it instead.

The Poco X6 would offer you a notably better 6.67-inch, 120Hz AMOLED display with higher resolution, 12-bit color, Dolby Vision support and 1800 nits of peak brightness. Its chipset is also the all-around more powerful Snapdragon 7s Gen 2. Not only does the chip offer more performance, but it also notably supports 4K video capture. Plus, there is gyro-based EIS on the Poco. You also get a stereo speaker setup and a slightly larger 5,100 mAh battery but one with much faster 67W charging.

Xiaomi Poco X6 • Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro 4G • Samsung Galaxy A25

The Redmi Note 13 Pro 4G also seems like a pretty neat deal. Perhaps not as good as the Poco X6, but if you don't particularly care about 5G, you can get an 8GB/256GB unit for right around the €280 mark. In exchange for 5G, you are getting a brighter display, though still no HDR support, stereo speakers, OIS on the main 200MP camera and much faster 67W charging.

Over in camp Samsung, there are at least a couple of good options. If ingress protection is important to you, then you can consider the Galaxy A34 and its IP67 rating. However, you will have to settle for a slightly older device, and the A35 should be right around the corner. The Galaxy A25 is quite comparable to the Redmi Note 13. It, however, offers 4K video capture on the main camera and stereo speakers. If you don't particularly care about that and don't mind a 90Hz display, you could step down to a Galaxy A15 and save some money, too. We found its battery life to be quite impressive in our testing, which is a plus.

Our verdict

We generally enjoyed our time with the Redmi Note 13 5G. It is a solid device overall that does not disappoint, given its reasonable price point. It looks and feels good, runs mostly smoothly, and its main and selfie cameras are very dependable.

However, for one reason or another, it seems Xiaomi made too many compromises with the specs sheet for its own good. We don't get why there are no stereo speakers. The same goes for HDR video support on the display. We can't quite get over the 1080p video capture cap as well. Having tested the phone extensively, we can't say we are totally satisfied with its battery endurance either.

The thing is that Xiaomi appears to be working against itself in this particular instance. As we mentioned, you could easily get something like Xiaomi's own Poco X6 and enjoy a much more rounded experience.

All things considered, the Redmi Note 13 is not a bad phone in any particular way but is arguably not the best value package at its price point.

Pros

• IP54-rated no-nonsense design, nice colors, Gorilla Glass 5 front.
• Bright OLED with razor-thin bezels, 120Hz.
• Competitive fast charging solution.
• Adequate performance, little to no throttling.
• Great main and selfie camera performance.

Cons

• No HDR video support, which is otherwise common for Xiaomi devices.
• No stereo speakers and unimpressive speaker quality.
• No under-display fingerprint reader.
• Ambient light and proximity sensors are slow to react.
• Battery life could be better.
• Video capture is limited to 1080p and there is no OIS/EIS.