Xiaomi launched its new budget smartphones today that are the successors to last year’s Redmi 5 and Redmi 5A. The Xiaomi Redmi 6 and Redmi 6A are the new budget phones from the company, priced well under $130. It is good to see that these new phones don’t come with the design language that we have seen on every Xiaomi device launched this year, i.e., notched display and vertical dual camera setup. In fact, the Redmi 6 and Redmi 6A have a slightly different design with a horizontal camera module on the rear, rear-facing speaker grill, 18:9 display and more.
XIAOMI REDMI 6A
The Redmi 6A is the cheapest of the two new phones from the company. Priced under $100 (599 Yuan), this device is impressive when it comes to the specifications and the design. The Redmi 6A has an 18:9 display on the front, but that doesn’t mean the bezels are thin. In fact, the phone has some significant bezels on all four sides, and that seems like a poor use of space. This isn’t something new as we have seen the same thing with almost every Xiaomi device launched with an 18:9 display.
Anyways, there is a single rear camera setup placed horizontally, and there is no fingerprint scanner on the device, just like last year’s Redmi 5A. As mentioned above, the speaker grill is placed on the rear, just like last year’s Redmi 5A. But this time, the speaker grill is much smaller than last year’s device.
The volume rockers and power button are placed on the right side while the SIM card tray is on the left. Unlike last year, there is no dedicated microSD card slot as the phone features a hybrid SIM slot. Both the phones have a micro USB port on the bottom which is kind of normal for sub-$150 phones.
Coming to the specifications, the Xiaomi Redmi 6A has a 5.45-inch 18:9 display with an HD+ resolution (1440×720). The pixel density is 295ppi, and the company hasn’t specified any Gorilla Glass protection on the official site. Powering this device, there is the 12nm Quad-Core (4-core A53 architecture) 2.0Ghz Helio A22 chipset with 2GB RAM and 16GB internal storage. The storage is expandable via microSD card up to 256GB.
On the rear, there is a single 13MP camera with f/2.2 aperture, Phase Detection AutoFocus (PDAF) and the company has also mentioned Software Video Stabilization (EIS) on the official site. Some other camera features include Night Mode, AI Scene Detection, etc. On the front, the Xiaomi Redmi 6A has a 5MP camera with f/2.2 aperture, and the front camera features are AI Portrait Mode, HDR, Face Unlock, etc. MIUI 10 runs out of the box.
Under the hood, the Redmi 6A has a 3,000mAh battery that supports 5V/1A charging (No Fast Charging). The phone only supports 2.4G WiFi, and other specs include Bluetooth 4.2, AI voice assistant, etc. The color options are Rose Gold, Sand Gold, Blue, and Silver.
XIAOMI REDMI 6
The Xiaomi Redmi 6 is quite similar to the Redmi 6A regarding the design. Except for the camera, chipset, and storage, the rest of the specifications remain the same. Comparing Redmi 6 and Redmi 6A side by side, the only difference that you will notice regarding the design is the dual rear camera setup and a rear-facing fingerprint scanner.
Talking about the specifications, the Xiaomi Redmi 6 has a 5.45-inch HD+ display with a resolution of 1440×720 pixels and a pixel density of 295ppi. Again, no mention of any protection for the screen on official site. The 12nm 2.0GHz Octa-Core Helio P22 chipset powers the device, and there is 3/4GB RAM along with 32/64GB internal storage. The storage can be expanded up to 256GB, but there is no dedicated microSD card slot as the Redmi 6 features a hybrid SIM card tray.
The camera is something that makes Redmi 6 different from the Redmi 6A. The Xiaomi Redmi 6 has a dual rear camera setup with a primary 12MP (f/2.2) camera and a secondary 5MP camera. The rear camera features include Portrait Mode, HDR, Night Enhancement, EIS, Scene Selection, etc. On the front, the Redmi 6 has a 5MP f/2.2 camera, and it too comes with Portrait Mode support and AI Face Unlock.
Under the hood, there is a 3,000mAh battery, and just like the Redmi 6A, there is no fast charging support as the phone support only 5V/1A charging. MIUI 10 runs out of the box which is based on Android Oreo. The color options are Rose Gold, Sand Gold, Blue, and Silver.
THE PRICING
Finally, talking about the pricing of both the phones, the Xiaomi Redmi 6A comes in a single variant i.e. 2GB RAM + 16GB ROM. The phone is priced at 599 Yuan or $94. The Redmi 6, on the other hand, comes with two variants and here are the prices –
- 3GB RAM + 32GB ROM – 799 Yuan ($125)
- 4GB RAM + 64GB ROM – 999 Yuan ($155)
There is no word from the company on the launch in other markets outside China. But, since the Redmi 5 and 5A were launched in other markets, we are sure that same is going to be the case this time with the Xiaomi Redmi 6 and Redmi 6A.