Xiaomi Redmi Smart TV X65 Review: Big-Screen TV Experience On A Budget

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Xiaomi has enjoyed immense success in the Indian Smart TV market since its first Mi TV launch in 2018. The Chinese brand alone managed to democratize the 'Smart TV' category within three years. Being someone who has tested most of the Mi TVs and their rivals, I can vouch that the Xiaomi TVs offer a blend of features and performance at very aggressive prices, something that was missing from the Indian market since a long time.

 

Rating:
3.5/5

Xiaomi Redmi Smart TV X65 Review

As per the recent reports, Xiaomi holds over 55 percent market share in India and leads the space with its affordable big-screen flat-screen LEDs. And while the Mi TVs were doing pretty good in India, Xiaomi believes there is more room for growth with a new Smart TV series. To further penetrate the Indian smart TV market, Xiaomi has now introduced its budget Redmi Smart TV range.

Touted as an entirely 'Make in India' product line-up, the new Redmi Smart TV X-Series comes with a promise of matching the Mi TV-viewing experience at a slightly lower price-point. The series offers three models- X50 (Rs. 32,999), X55 (Rs. 38,999), and the top-of-the-line X65 priced at Rs. 57,999.

Today we will talk about the 65-inch variant in detail. The big-screen Smart TV is priced slightly higher than the 65-inch Smart TVs from Nokia and Motorola's 65-inch Smart TVs. The Redmi X65 flaunts a 4K HDR10+ panel with Dolby Vision support. It also comes equipped with Reality Flow and a vivid picture engine to enhance the overall picture quality. For audio, the 65-inch Smart TV has a 30W speaker setup with DTS Virtual: X, DTS-HD, and Dolby Audio.

It is quite a promising spec-sheet for a 65-inch Smart TV priced under Rs. 60,000. But how does the big-screen 4K TV performs in real-life? Let's find out.

Redmi Smart TV X65 Design- Basic And Functional

Redmi Smart TV X65 Design- Basic And Functional

The Redmi X65 follows the same base design language that we have seen on Xiaomi's Mi branded smart TVs, i.e. basic yet functional. The overall look and feel and the material quality aren't going to blow your mind and could have been better. You can either mount the 65-inch TV on a wall or place it on a cabinet, provided that the TV unit is big enough to hold the two stands as they are positioned almost at the edges of this massive TV. The hard plastic table-top stand is bundled in the package, but Redmi hasn't included the wall-mount in the box. Why Redmi?

I have a universal wall-mount that I use for 55-inch panels, and it worked with the Redmi X65 without any technical issues. If you don't have a universal mount and a table big enough to hold the TV, you must not think twice about buying the wall-mount from the market.

Noticeable Thicker Borders
 

Noticeable Thicker Borders

The glossy back borders around the 65-inch panel are noticeably thicker, but since a TV as big as 65-inch is supposed to be at a fair distance, you won't find them hampering the viewing experience. The TV's frame and back panel are also made of hard plastic that seems durable. There's a big REDMI branding at the backside, and all connectivity ports are positioned at the back panel. Let's have a closer look.

Ports And Connectivity

Ports And Connectivity

The most used ports are easily accessible even if you have mounted the TV on the wall. These include- three HDMI 2.1 ports, USB 2.0 ports, and the 3.5mm audio jack. Other important ports such as- Optical Out, Cable TV Antenna input, the Ethernet port, and the AV ports are placed at the back, closer to the edge facing downwards, and are not easily accessible in the wall-mount formation. You should plug in all necessary wires before mounting the big TV.

The inclusion of HDMI 2.1 is much appreciated at this price-point, especially for gamers looking for a big screen 4K TV with ALLM on a decent budget. While I haven't tested the performance by connecting a console, it should auto-enable the game mode for a smooth, lag-free, and uninterrupted gaming experience. Moving on, the Redmi X65 also gets the latest eARC standard on one of its HDMI ports.

The 'Enhanced Audio Return Channel' standard boosts the bandwidth and speed to allow for higher-quality audio transmission from TV to a soundbar or an AV receiver. If you have the latest high-end external music setup, you can experience immersive Dolby Atmos Pass via the Redmi TV's e-ARC port. This helps in creating a cinematic viewing experience where the big 65-inch 4K panel is complemented by immersive audio delivery.

The Redmi X65 has a built-in Chromecast and works on Bluetooth 5.0 and Dual-Band Wi-Fi for wireless connections.

Redmi X65 TV Picture Quality

Redmi X65 TV Picture Quality

Let's talk about the massive 65-inch panel. It is a 4K display (3840 x 2160 pixels) with Dolby Vision support and HDR 10+ certification. Xiaomi has also added the 'Reality Flow' and 'Vivid Picture Engine' to improve graphics and color reproduction. The IPS panel offers great viewing angles and a decent contrast ratio if not excellent. The colors look vivid but blacks could have been a bit deeper.

Color Spaces, MEMC, HDR10+ And Dolby Vision

Color Spaces, MEMC, HDR10+ And Dolby Vision

The settings menu offers a myriad of picture settings to let you customize the color output as per your liking. I found the 'Movie Mode' with color temperature set to warm and color space set to sRGB to produce the most realistic and lifelike colors. While you can play around with various options in the color space (Auto, Native, DCI-P3, BT.2020, Adobe RGB, sRGB) their effect on the color output is only marginal. The noise control works well and so does the Gamma settings. The TV also has 'MEMC' mode which should be used with 'Sports' mode for best results. While it is not as aggressive as the MEMC on the OnePlus TVs, it does a decent job of making the graphics fluid. The soap opera effect is noticeable to naked eyes but not like I have tested on the OnePlus TVs.

Decent 4K HDR Performance

Decent 4K HDR Performance

The 4K and HDR content look very immersive on the 65-inch panel. You must stream some episodes of Amazon Orignal's Tales from the loop (UHD, HDR), Netflix's Our Planet, Disney's Wanda Vision, etc. to witness the stunning visuals on the big screen TV. Not to forget the much-awaited Zack Snyder's Justice League that looked simply epic on the 65-inch TV even in the odd 4:3 aspect ratio.

The HDR performance is good for the price but I have tested TVs doing slightly better than this in a similar price range. Sadly, most of these TVs are available in the 55-inch format. Xiaomi's very own Mi TV QLED is an excellent entry-level QLED TV but it is also available in 55-inch screen size. If you want a bigger panel in the same price bracket, you have to compromise a bit on the picture quality.

Redmi 65X Sound Quality

Redmi 65X Sound Quality

The sound delivery majorly depends upon two things- the underlying hardware and the placement of the TV. In the Redmi X65's case, the 30W speaker setup gets fairly loud but the sound quality fails to impress. The sound lacks depth and feels not up to the standards of a 65-inch panel that demands a cinematic audio setup to complement the big screen. The dialogues mostly sound muffled despite enabling the DTS dialogue clarity in the settings menu. What disappointed me most is the lack of a volume leveler, which is the reason I got scolded almost every day at home while testing the product. Trust me, the sudden spikes in the sound delivery can be a real pain and can you get you in big trouble if you stay with family.

Redmi TV Software And Hardware Performance

Redmi TV Software And Hardware Performance

The 65-inch TV ran smoothly during our testing period. I did not experience any lags or app crashes during the 10-day usage. The TV also managed to run 4K files smoothly from the external drive. The Redmi X65 is powered by a 64 bit Quad-core A55 CPU and has 2GB RAM and 16GB storage. The Mali G52 MP2 takes care of the graphics performance and does a good job.

As far as the software performance is concerned, the Redmi X65 runs on Android 10 and has the latest version of Xiaomi's in-house PatchWall UI (3.6.3). It can be accessed with the dedicated button on the remote control and opens up a repository of digital content (25+ Partners across 16+ languages) in a very nicely done format. The user interface is very intuitive and works even better than the stock Android version. The home screen offers eight different categories- Home, Movies, Shows, Live TV, Sports, Kids, Music, and Discover section to find new content.

Clean And Easy-To-Use UI

Clean And Easy-To-Use UI

You can just scroll down to access the installed apps, setup box, and connected devices. Further, the UI also shows the trending content, language content, podcast, and even makes it easy to find 4K, HDR 10+, and Dolby Vision content across the platforms. Everything is displayed in an easy-to-access tile format and works without a glitch.

Mi Home App Integration

Mi Home App Integration

You also get some interesting and highly useful features such as Universal Search, Kids Mode, and Mi Home app integration which are hidden under the User Profile section. It allows you to control Xiaomi's IoT devices from your TV screen. It's very smartly implemented and works like a charm. Moving on, the slightly modified remote controller offers better control over the TV's features. You can double press the volume down button to mute the TV and can long-press the PatchWall button to quickly access the most used settings such as picture and sound modes, much appreciated, Xiaomi!

Overall, the PatchWall has evolved into a great user interface. It is clean, feature-rich, and keeps users at the center thus fulfilling all requirements from smart TV software.

Verdict

Verdict

Despite not carrying a disruptive price tag, the Redmi X65 is a good overall product in the entry-level 65-inch Smart TV category. It isn't the most affordable 65-inch Smart TV out there but it is certainly one of the most feature-packed offerings. The 65-inch 4K HDR panel with HDR10+ and Dolby Vision manage to offer a cinematic viewing experience at the comfort of your living room. The latest connectivity standards (eARC and ALLM) and the intuitive and PatchWall UI offer a lot to explore.

What could have been better is the sound delivery, build quality and look and feel. A 65-inch panel is supposed to be placed in a living room and a more premium build and design would have made the Redmi X65 distinctive in the sub-60K price-bracket. Last but not the least, Redmi should also start offering the wall-mount stand in the box, at least for the 65-inch variant to ease up the TV installation process for consumers.

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