Xiaomi Mi A2 vs Redmi Note 5 Pro vs Honor Play: Top mid-range phones compared

Xiaomi Mi A2 offers a smooth and bloat-free Android experience along with top-end specifications. Here’s how it compares against its closest competitors including the company’s own Redmi Note 5 Pro.

Xiaomi Mi A2 is priced at ₹16,999 in India. (Xiaomi)

Xiaomi's latest smartphone, Mi A2 comes with upgrades under the hood and on the design aspect over its predecessor, Mi A1.

Mi A2 is the second product under Google's Android One partnership with Xiaomi. Other than offering a fluid Android experience, Xiaomi Mi A2 also boasts top-end specifications and features for its budget price. Xiaomi Mi A2 has been compared against the Redmi Note 5 Pro and Honor Play in terms of price, specifications and features.

Design and display
Xiaomi Mi A2 has a similar design language like the Redmi Note 5 Pro. Both phones feature a metal body with curved edges. The dual rear cameras are placed vertically at the top left corner of the phones. There's also the circular fingerprint sensor located at the centre.

The main differentiator between Honor Play and the Xiaomi smartphones is the notch display up front. Honor Play has the same dual camera setup and the fingerprint sensor at the rear. However the smartphone's metal body has a matte finish look.

Xiaomi Mi A2 and Redmi Note 5 Pro both feature a 5.99-inch Full HD+ display with an aspect ratio of 18:9. Honor Play has a bigger 6.3-inch Full HD+ display with an aspect ratio of 19.5:9.

Procesor, RAM and storage
Xiaomi Mi A2 is powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 660 processor. Redmi Note 5 Pro runs Snapdragon 625 SoC under its hood.

Honor Play runs in-house Kirin 970 processor which is claimed to be the world's first AI processor. The smartphone is coupled with GPU Turbo which is said to improve graphics performance for a smoother gaming performance.

In terms of storage, Xiaomi Mi A2 comes with 4GB RAM and 64GB storage. Another variant of Mi A2 with 6GB RAM and 128GB storage will be launching soon. Redmi Note 5 Pro and Honor Play have the same storage configurations of 4GB RAM plus 64GB storage, and 6GB RAM plus 64GB storage. All three phones come with expandable storage, with Honor Play allowing up to 256GB storage.

Honor Play has a dual-camera setup of 16-megapixel and 2-megapixel AI cameras. (HT Photo)

Honor Play has a dual-camera setup of 16-megapixel and 2-megapixel AI cameras. (HT Photo)

Camera
Xiaomi Mi A2 has a dual-camera setup comprising of a 12-megapixel Sony IMX 486 sensor and a 20-megapixel Sony IMX376 sensor with f/1.75 aperture. For selfies, the smartphone features a 20-megapixel front-facing camera along with front flash. The selfie camera is capable of DSLR-like shallow depth-of-field.

Redmi Note 5 Pro also has a dual-camera setup of 12-megapixel and 5-megapixel sensors with f/2.2 and f/2.0 apertures respectively. The dual cameras work together to achieve depth of field effect in photos. The smartphone also houses a 20-megapixel Sony IMX376 sensor with Beautify 4.0, and 'Portrait Mode', for selfies.

Honor Play's dual-camera setup consists of 16-megapixel and 2-megapixel AI cameras with PDAF. The AI cameras powered by the processor's NPU are capable of detecting 22 different scenes from 500 different scenarios. Honor says that the smartphone's AI automatically adjusts settings accordingly for the best results. The smartphone features a 16-megapixel selfie camera.

Battery and OS
Xiaomi Mi A2 is fuelled by a 3,010mAh battery with support for Quick Charge 4+ which will be available later this year. Redmi Note 5 Pro packs a bigger 4,000mAh battery along with Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0 support. Honor Play, on the other hand has a 3,750mAh battery.

On the software front, Xiaomi Mi A2 runs stock Android courtesy of Google's Android One programme. Mi A2 will also be one of the first devices to receive Android Pie as part of the Android One scheme.

Redmi Note 5 Pro runs Android 7.1.1 Nougat with custom MIUI 9 layered on top. Honor Play also has the company's custom EMUI 8.2 with Android 8.2 Oreo.

Pricing and availability
Xiaomi Mi A2 is priced at ₹16,999, and it will be available starting August 16 via Amazon India, mi.com, Mi Home stores and retail stores. The top-end model of Redmi Note 5 Pro carries the same price tag of ₹16,999, while the base variant retails at ₹13,999. Honor Play is the most expensive of the three with its starting price ₹19,999 going up to ₹23,999. The smartphone is available via Amazon.