Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 vs Redmi Note 3

Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 vs Redmi Note 3

should you upgrade?

The Redmi Note 4 is a (slightly) better phone than the Redmi Note 3 in almost all the departments. But, it's still not so big an upgrade that should compel Redmi Note 3 users to make a switch, unless of course, they really want to. Then there is the fact that the Redmi Note 3 is still the (best) phone for power users at under Rs 10,000. The Redmi Note 4 has better cameras and better battery life. But, you should know, the Redmi Note 3 isn't much of a slouch either.

• The Redmi Note 3 was one of the best-selling phones of 2016 in India. 

Both phones run MIUI 8

Hardware :


There are minor design variations between the Redmi Note 3 and the Redmi Note 4. Both phones offer great metal designs with excellent build quality, but the overall finish is more polished on the newer device. The Redmi Note 3 has a matte back, while its successor sports a smoother texture. The back of the Redmi Note 4 is contoured as well, resulting in a better in-hand feel. 



The Redmi Note 4 has great hardware and a premium design. Both phones look very similar from the back, with the camera sensor, LED flash, and the fingerprint sensor aligned in a straight line. The major difference is the position of the speaker, which is located at the bottom of the Redmi Note 4. Xiaomi has speaker grilles on either side of the microUSB port, but the phone comes with a single speaker. The grille on the left is purely for aesthetic reasons. The position of the speaker means that you can hear incoming calls, and there's a noticeable improvement in audio quality as well. The speaker gets very loud, and audio isn't distorted at high volumes. 


Camera :



One of the main areas of focus for Xiaomi with the Redmi Note 4 is the camera quality. The Redmi Note 4 has a 13-megapixel camera sensor that's sourced from Samsung and Sony, while the Redmi Note 3 offers a 16MP camera. Although the resolution is less, the camera sensor is of a higher quality on the Redmi Note 4, leading to much better images. The Redmi Note 4 wins out over its predecessor in camera quality. Both phones have PDAF and dual-tone LED flash and are limited to 1080p video. On the front, both sport 5MP shooters. Images from the Redmi Note 3 are washed out and lack accurate colors, and in this regard, the Redmi Note 4 fares much better. Focusing is also an issue on the Redmi Note 3, as the autofocus tends to take a while to dial in on a subject. The situation is even worse in low-light conditions, with images coming out lacking detail and full of noise. 


Software :



Both the Redmi Note 4 and Redmi Note 3 run a Marshmallow-based build of MIUI 8, which continues to be highly customizable. While there are niggles on both phones, the feature-rich interface overshadows the few drawbacks. 
You get a host of features including Dual Apps, Second Space, scrolling screenshot, built-in video editor, currency converter, and so much more. Xiaomi has done a great job of rolling out monthly updates, with the Redmi Note 4 on the December patch and the Redmi Note 3 on the November update. The fast release cadence of MIUI updates allows the manufacturer to bundle security patches with maintenance fixes. 


Both phones run MIUI 8, but the Redmi Note 4 will receive Nougat first. There isn't much to differentiate between either device when it comes to the software, but that changes when we talk about the update situation. The Redmi Note 4 is slated to pick up the Nougat update shortly, with Xiaomi offering a preview build for download. The Nougat update is based on MIUI 8, and as such there won't be a lot of difference visually over what's already available. That said, the update will include a retooled notification area with inline replies, multi-window mode, and mush more. The Redmi Note 3 should also pick up the update in the coming months, but as of now there's no mention as to when it will be available for the device. 


Battery life :



Battery life on both phones is stellar on account of the large batteries and MIUI's aggressive memory management. You'll easily get a day's worth of battery on either handset, and overall, the Redmi Note 4 has a slight edge over its predecessor due to the larger 4,100mAh battery (versus 4,050mAh) and the 14nm SoC. It isn't hard to get over 7 hours of screen-on-time on the Redmi Note 4, and if your usage involves a few hours of browsing and streaming videos, you'll easily be able to eke out two days' worth of usage from a full charge. The downside is that you don't get any fast charging options. Both phones top out at 5V/2A, which is equivalent to Quick Charge 1.0 speeds. As such, it takes up to 2 hours to fully charge either phone.


Performance:


Well, here the things take an interesting turn. Starting with the Redmi Note 3, the Indian version of the device comes with a 1.4 GHz Hexa-Core Qualcomm Snapdragon 650 chipset with Adreno 510 GPU for graphics. Picking up the 3GB RAM variant, the device comes with 32GB of internal storage which is further expandable up to 128GB via microSD. Now, on the other hand, the Redmi Note 4 comes with a 2.0 GHz Octa-Core Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 chipset with Adreno 506 GPU. The variant we have chosen here comes with 3GB RAM and 32GB of internal storage which is further expandable up to 128GB. Although both the devices are similar in terms of internal storage and RAM specifications, the CPU is an interesting choice here. Snapdragon is slightly less powerful than the SD 650 lineup but it is based on Cortex A72. 


Further, the chipset is built out on 14nm FitFET technology raising the battery efficiency of the device. Day-to-day performance on both the devices will be pretty similar and you won't be able to differentiate. Heavy gaming for longer time periods can result in minor hiccups on the Redmi Note 4 but that will be as rare as possible. However, the Redmi Note 4 will take a bit longer to load apps and games. Other than this, both the smartphones currently run on Android 6.0 Marshmallow with MIUI 8 on top. However, the Redmi Note 4 users will soon be able to use Android 7.0 preview before the company rolls out the stable update.


PRICE :


Note: The price of the Redmi Note 4 is converted approximately from its price in China which stands at CNY 899 (roughly Rs 9,000) and CNY 1,199 (roughly Rs 12,000) respectively.One hardly sees any major differences there except for the processors. But having said that the Redmi Note 4 comes with a USB Type-C for fast data transfers.So, tell us what you think about the new Redmi Note 4. Will it be as successful as the Redmi Note 3? 


In India, Redmi Note 3 is priced at Rs 9,999 for the 16GB variant and Rs 11,999 for the 32GB variant. And while the Redmi Note 4 price in India is not known as, considering its price in China, it should roughly ber Rs 9,000 for the 16GB variant and Rs 12,000 for the 64GB variant, exclusive of tax.




Verdict:


     Xiaomi is already testing Android 7.0 Nougat update for the Redmi Note 4, and we’ve already installed the preview version on our review device. So far this look pretty smooth, a few minor bugs are there though, but Xiaomi is expected to release the final public version for the Redmi Note 4 soon.


To sum up, the Redmi Note 4 does not come with any drastic changes, but it brings in some incremental upgrades. For someone who is already using a Redmi Note 3, there isn’t much on the table. The Redmi Note 4 offers a similar battery life and overall performance, the addition of 2.5D glass is something that one can make do with as it doesn’t bring much of a difference. The camera quality is slightly better, but not the best.


Considering all these points, the Redmi Note 4 fills in with the shortcomings that the Redmi Note 3 had. However, these additions doesn’t really create a need to upgrade. You can make do with the Redmi Note 3 and wait for some interesting and worthwhile changes in the Redmi Note 5. And for those who still want to buy the latest, getting a Redmi Note 4 is a no brainer.