Redmi Note 12 Pro+ Pros Cons and Review

PROS

• Great ergonomics
• Sharp 200 MP primary camera
• Great Display
• Long-lasting battery with a 19-minute recharge time

CONS

• Mediocre MediaTek processor
• Ships with older Android 12
• Generic rear panel design

Xiaomi is back with its legacy Note series in the sub-30k price segment with its Redmi Note 12 Pro+, also known as the SuperNote. The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ not only continues the precedent of constant innovation set by its predecessors in the past eight years but also introduces a 200MP camera in this segment for the first time. This brings us to the question-is the Redmi Note 12 Pro all about its camera, or does it have more to offer? Let's find out.

Design and Display

Despite the phone's bulky build, thanks to its massive battery and a huge camera module at the rear, it still feels very comfortable to hold. The curved edges at the rear provide an ergonomic grip which allows longer use. Moving on from ergonomics to aesthetics, the Note 12 Pro+ bears a pretty generic design, especially with its uninspired camera module. The smartphone boasts of a tough exterior on the front with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection, which is complemented by a premium glass back. Additionally, the IP53 protection makes it resistant to light splashes of water.

The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ also incorporates a 3.5mm audio jack. This is a welcome change, especially since this generation of phones has removed the users' ability to opt for cheaper (and often better sounding) wired earphones. The top placement of the jack is perfect since it prevents the cable from being bent. The audio jack is flanked by the speaker grill, which delivers stereo output with Dolby Atmos support. The list of uncommon features continues with the inclusion of the IR blaster placed next to the speaker.

At the bottom is the speaker grill on the right-hand side of the type-C charging port. This placement is great because it keeps the speaker well above your palm when the phone is held in landscape mode. In other words, the sound doesn't get muffled when watching movies or playing games. The power button and volume rocker buttons are placed on the left edge, which works well for both right and left-handed users.

As far as the display is concerned, Redmi is consistent with what it already offers with the Redmi Note 11 Pro Plus. Like its predecessor, the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ provides a mammoth 6.67 inches FHD+ display with an AMOLED panel, 1080x2400 resolution, and 120Hz refresh rate. Overall the phone's display works well for either viewing content or gaming. It also comes with Dolby Vision which boosts the quality of images on any streaming platform.

Camera

In a segment first, the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ continues Xiaomi's tradition of pushing the envelope of value by incorporating a 200MP sensor at this price point. The obvious question that comes to mind here is: Is the 200 MP sensor a gimmick? The Redmi Note 10 Pro+ offers a 200MP Samsung ISOCELL HPX sensor. This sensor enables the phone to capture details with remarkable sharpness. On the flip side, the excellent primary camera is hobbled by lackluster 8-megapixel ultra-wide and 2-megapixel macro cameras. That's a bit like pairing butter chicken with cold, dry chapatis. It looks like Xiaomi has blown its entire camera budget on the 200MP sensor. Come on Xiaomi, you can do better.

Even with the 200-megapixel sensor, it's an absolute chore since you have to first tap on the More option, then Ultra HD, followed by selecting the 200MP mode at the top. Snapping a true 200MP picture requires this elaborate nuclear launch procedure every single time. After an initial week of excitement, you are bound to give up on this long, arduous process and resort to clicking pictures like Xiaomi intended-without rapidly clogging up your non-expandable storage with photos. Having said that, the 200MP sensor takes stunningly sharp pictures, as seen below. Zoom in, and you can easily read "Indian Oil" and "200 crore tikakaran", provided you can read Hindi.

The ultra-wide sensor is surprisingly good too, considering the price. The macro sensor also surprised me with its color accuracy and detail, despite the 2MP sensor. However, there's a stark difference in image quality and clarity between the primary and secondary cameras.

The 16MP front camera is great at maintaining color accuracy and captures skin tones faithfully. However, the front portrait mode, unfortunately, makes a mess of exposure, which manifests as high-contrast images appearing blown up, or overexposed.

Overall, the phone does a great job of clicking pictures during the day. Even in low-light conditions, it gets colors right. The Night Mode, however, needs help nailing down the correct exposure values. The low-light woes extend to the selfie camera, which imbues skin tones with a reddish tint.

Performance

The MediaTek Dimensity 1080 SoC on the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ is the secret sauce behind the phone's excellent primary camera. After all, it is one of the few processors that can handle a 200MP sensor. The Note 12 Pro+ also makes short work of day-to-day functions and heavy gaming, even when it isn't necessarily a "gaming phone". Although it is not the best processor in its price segment, the benchmarks below prove that the MediaTek Dimensity has improved over its predecessors. However, it doesn't matter much because the Snapdragon 870 SoC in its segment competitors, such as Poco F4 and iQOO Neo 6, offer better performance and price-to-performance ratio. It's a case of too little, too late for the MediaTek SoC in this phone.

Software and OS

The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ comes with the MIUI 13 skin with Android 12. Yes, you read that right, Android 12, not 13. What a bummer! Although MIUI 13 comes with significantly less bloat than it did in the last few years, it is still not devoid of it. This isn't the phone for you if you are a fan of the stock Android experience. Finally, for audio, the smartphone comes with Dolby Atmos-supported dual speakers, which do a decent job of delivering coherent dialogues in movies and keeping up with the audio cues in video games.

RAM and Storage

The Redmi 12 Pro+ comes in two storage variants: 8GB RAM, 256GB ROM, and 12GB RAM, 256GB ROM. I'd recommend the 8GB RAM variant over the 12GB RAM one. Although 12GB RAM would've been more beneficial for gaming, with full graphics and max frame rate settings, the mediocre processor is the weakest link here. Just save your money and opt for a gaming-centric phone if that's your priority. Memory management in modern Android phones is good enough to run well on 8GB of RAM.

Battery

Xiaomi claims that the phone can go from 1% to 100% in 19 minutes. I tested this claim out, and I'm happy to report that it does stand true. That is when you turn on the Boost Charging Speed feature. Credit also goes to the 120W charging brick which easily recharges its massive 5000mAh battery. Due to the big battery, you can trust the device to keep you company for a whole day, unless you go crazy with gaming.

Verdict

Despite a few rough ends here and there, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 Pro+ is a solid device for its price range. This applies in particular to the 8GB RAM (256GB ROM) variant retailing at ₹29,999. The 12GB (256Gb ROM) version costs a bit higher at ₹32,999, which puts it dangerously close to better alternatives such as IQOO Neo 6 and Nothing Phone 1. It most definitely delivers on all fronts.

As a gamer, I wish Xiaomi had opted for a Snapdragon 870 SoC for better performance, even if that meant giving up on the 200MP sensor. Having said that, the story changes significantly for photography enthusiasts. The Note 12 Pro+ is the phone to beat in the camera stakes thanks to the numerically superior sensor.