Xiaomi is back in PH officially, and to correct their shortcoming when first touched down, they came back with a bigger plan. They are opening physical stores and expanding even their online presence. Their two (2) introductory smartphones were the Redmi 5A and the Redmi 5 Plus. Plus they already named their official distributor in the country, its Grimalkin Corporation.
Now let’s move on to the topic: Let’s show you aggressively priced Redmi 5A.
The 5-inch device is a well-built unibody device wrapped in a plastic case with metal finish. The back curves towards the edge with the speakers right down below. You’ll find the rear camera on the upper side and the LED flash.
On the sides are the power button & volume rocker on the right, while the two (2) slots for SIM & microSD is on the opposite side.
On the front are the front camera, the loudspeaker, and the sensor. Down below the chin is the capacitive buttons without backlights.
At the bottom, you’ll find the micro USB port and a noise-canceling mic. And at the opposite side is another mic, the 3.5mm audio port, and the HR blaster. We’ve haven’t seen an HR blaster for a while, so we see an added attraction by now.
Redmi 5A unboxing video
Redmi 5A Specs
| Display | 5-inch IPS HD (1280 x 720) touchscreen display |
| OS | Android 7.1 Nougat with MIUI 9 |
| CPU | 1.4GHz 64-bit quad-core Cortex-A53 CPU, Adreno 308 GPU, Qualcomm Snapdragon 425 chipset |
| Dual Nano SIM, dual standby, supports LTE connectivity | |
| RAM | 2GB of RAM |
| ROM | 16GB of ROM, expandable up to 128GB via microSD card, uses dedicated slot |
| Camera | 13MP f/2.2 PDAF main camera with LED flash |
| 5MP f/2.0 front camera w/ LED flash | |
| Multimedia player | |
| FM radio | |
| 3.5mm audio jack | |
| Micro USB 2.0 with OTG function | |
| IR blaster | |
| WiFi 802.11 b/g/n | |
| Bluetooth 4.2 | |
| GPS with A-GPS | |
| Sensors | Accelerometer, proximity, light |
| Battery | Battery: 3000mAh Li-Ion, non-removable |
| Colors | dark grey, gold, rose gold |
| Dimension | 140mm x 70.1mm x 8.35mm |
| Weight | 137 grams |
Our initial review
It’s quite a good build considering the aggressive pricing of only P4,590. Xiaomi is known for aggressively pricing their devices, so we are not surprised.
What powers the Redmi 5A is a 64-bit Snapdragon 425 quad-core processor coupled with a 2GB RAM and 16GB (7GB usable) of internal storage. You still have the MicroSD slot for additional storage if you wish. These specs, if found on another brand, might have a price point of already P6,000 more or less.
On the inside, the Redmi 5A can’t be left out. It has Android 7.1 Nougat and its own UI known as the MUI. Version 9.1 is what is pre-installed.
The overall build is quite nice and it feels sturdy. Colors are bright and clear. Audio playbacks are solid. What we lack right now are the camera test and benchmarks. But Gizguide was able to pull 43,648 Antutu score out of their review unit.
