Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro: 5 things you need to know before buying new phone

Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro comes with high-end specifications including a 48-megapixel rear camera. Here are five important things you need to know about the new Xiaomi phone.

Planning to buy Redmi Note 7 Pro? Here are five things you need to know. (HT Photo)

Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro is now available in India. The successor to Redmi Note 6 Pro, Xiaomi's latest smartphone has received mostly positive reviews. From gradient design to Sony's IMX586 sensor for 48-megapixel resolution, Redmi Note 7 Pro packs a range of high-end features along with the best-in-class specifications.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro will go on sale in India on March 13. The smartphone is available in two variants - 4GB+64GB and 6GB+128GB, priced at ₹13,999 and ₹16,999 respectively. If you're planning to purchase the new Redmi Note 7 Pro, here are five key things you need to know about the smartphone.

48-megapixel camera

Everyone's talking about the 48-megapixel camera on Redmi Note 7 Pro. Note that the phone by default is set to 12-megapixel resolution. To bump up the camera resolution, tap on the menu button within the camera app and then tap on the 48-megapixel camera.

Does the 48-megapixel camera make any difference? Yes, but it's unlikely that you can distinguish the quality on your phone screen. Move the photos taken in 48-megapixel camera and 12-megapixel sensor to the laptop. You will notice a significant amount of difference in details.

Contrary to myth, photos taken in 48-megapixel resolution aren't really big in size. These photos are about 15-19MB in size. In comparison, 12-megapixel photos are of 6-8MB in size.

A closer look at the dual-camera module on Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro (HT Photo)

A closer look at the dual-camera module on Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro (HT Photo)

Night mode

While the 48-megapixel sensor is the star feature, Xiaomi Redmi Note 7's camera has a special mode for lowlight photos. The dedicated "Night" mode improves the quality for lowlight images. The algorithm-driven mode functions just like OnePlus 6T's Nightscape mode except that Xiaomi's is much better. The image processing is faster than OnePlus' though it requires you to keep the phone steady when shooting a night shot.

Widevine L1 Support

The Widevine L1 support is how streaming applications such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video determine that a phone is compatible with HD streaming. Xiaomi recently added the support to its Poco F1 smartphone. Redmi Note 7 Pro comes with this feature out-of-the-box. However, the phone doesn't support HD streaming on Netflix and Amazon Prime Video yet. Hopefully, these apps will soon whitelist Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro for HD streaming.

MIUI 10

Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro runs on MIUI 10. The latest custom ROM from Xiaomi comes with full-screen optimisation and improved notification panel. The latest software is said to be lighter and faster than the previous iterations. Xiaomi claims the MIUI has been optimised for third-party applications as well.

Water-resistance, sort of

Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro doesn't come with any IP certification for water and dust-resistance. But it does have a P2i nano coating, making it splash proof. Ahead of the launch, Xiaomi conducted a brief tear-down of the phone to show hardware optimisations such as rubberised layering around important modules to make the phone waterproof.