There's no denying the popularity of the Redmi series in India. They sell in the millions while the factories find it hard to keep up with demand, often leading to shortages. To keep that momentum going, Xiaomi is busy launching devices across a wide price range, ensuring that there's a phone with different features at every Rs 1,000 increase in price. The Redmi 7 is the starting point for this strategy - at Rs 8k, it offers things like a large Dot Notch display, high screen-to-body ratio, good performance, premium-looking design, dual camera and large battery.
Looking at the Redmi 7 from the front, you won't be able to easily tell the difference between other new phones like the Redmi Note 7, Note 7S and Note 7 Pro. That's because this is now roughly the same size as the Note series phones. This is in contrast to the Redmi 6 phones that were smaller than the Redmi Note 6 phones. While the Redmi 7 looks sort of similar, there have to be a few things that differentiate it from the more premium Note phones.
For starters, it has what they call the Aura Smoke design - a slightly less premium looking version of the glass back Aura design phones. It is very obviously a glossy plastic back and it picks up small scratches very quickly.This shift from metal (in Redmi 6) to plastic is a step down in our books. Luckily, a soft case is included so you can protect it from day one. The eclipse black is the plain black design while the comet blue and lunar red colours lend a bit of style. Like all the other new series, Redmi 7 also gets P2i protection - a water repellant nano coating that protects against basic water damage (but not immersion). Off to a great start then!
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Performance is from a new mid-range Snapdragon 632 processor which offers a great experience for all kinds of web, apps, basic games and multimedia. Android 9 is included out of the box with the usual MiUI interface. MiUI is loaded with features and customisation options but also shows ads in several of its own apps. Luckily, almost all ads (and personalized recommendations) can be disabled quite easily - a quick online search will show you how.
The display, while the same size as the Redmi Note series, is about half the resolution at 1520 x 720 pixels. It has a pixel density of 269ppi vs 409ppi for Redmi Note 7. Luckily, it is protected by Gorilla Glass 5. Despite from the lower resolution, you get the same brightness (450nits), contrast (1500:1) and colour adjustment settings as the Note phones.
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The screen is right for the price we think, because you can't tell a difference in resolution for basic use. The camera offers better features and performance that we expected at this price point. For stills, you have pro mode, AI mode, beautify, tilt-shift and Google Lens functionality. It shoots good portraits when there's enough light. It also does well with close up photos. You can capture up to 1080p60 video, time lapse and slow motion. The quality is definitely above par. Battery life from the 4,000mAh battery is stellar, lasting a day and a half on many occasions.
The Redmi 7 has a much lower starting price because they offer a 2/32GB variant. At face value, it is a great deal for anyone who can't spend more than Rs8k. You'll be getting a large screen phone, new design with small notch and good all-round performance. If you can spend a little bit extra, you can upgrade to the Note series from Redmi.
Redmi Note 7 starts at Rs 9,999 for 3/32GB. For just a thousand Rupees more (comparing 3/32GB variants of both), you get a Snapdragon 660 processor instead of SD632, a FHD+ resolution screen instead of HD+, thinner bezels (esp. the chin), dual channel LPDDR4X instead of LPDDR3, a more premium glass back and USB type C port with QC4.0 fast charge support.
