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Redmi Note 14 Pro+ review: Some hits and a few big misses
Summary
Despite the absence of Android 15 and a few other snags, the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ is among the top choices in its price bracket—helped along by its stellar battery performance
The Redmi Note series from Xiaomi is back with its most significant update in a market that is even more crowded than ever. The mid-range smartphone series has been one of the defining launches for the company in India, and has recently witnessed a series of upgrades in hardware, but thankfully, not in its sticker value.
The Redmi Note 14 series aims to build on the legacy of this best-seller brand and capture a new generation of consumers with better cameras, speedier smartphones and a custom operating system, HyperOS. Sadly, before diving deep into the smartphone, I have one big complaint that I need to get out of the way.
Google released the final source code for Android 15 on 3 September. Google’s Pixel 9 series of smartphones got the official Android 15 update on 15 October. Xiaomi launched the Redmi Note 14 Series in India on 9 December and also announced three Android OS updates for the device. The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ features HyperOS 1, which is based on Android 14 and is already out of date. Google has launched Android 15, and Xiaomi has smartphones with HyperOS 2. So, in short, the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ will get only two major Android—Android 15 and Android 16—updates. That’s a big disappointment.
Now let’s talk about the device.
Also read: A 2024 smartphone report card
The Redmi Note 14 Pro+
Redmi Note devices have been very easy to recommend over the years. They’ve packed in the hardware, and with an aggressive price point, they were great value for money. The Note 12 Pro+ and the Note 13 Pro+ witnessed price increases that didn’t sit well with the consumers. Thankfully, the Note 14 Pro+ comes at the same price as its predecessor (starting at ₹30,999 for the 8GB+128GB variant and going up to ₹35,999 for the 12GB+512GB model). There’s an upgraded array of cameras, a boost in hardware, a new design, an updated display, and the latest suite of AI features the company offers on other smartphones. Some can argue that the most significant upgrade is the massive 6200mAh battery, ensuring the smartphone is a battery champion.
Standout design
There’s no doubt that the design language of the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ is one of the best in this category. It’s bold, refreshing, and probably the best in Xiaomi’s current lineup. The in-hand feel, despite the 210-gram weight, is solid. Thanks to its curved edges, the smartphone rests comfortably in the palm. The smartphone comes in three colours—Titan Black, Spectre Blue and a vegan leather back Phantom Purple colourway—and looks fantastic. The Spectre Blue variant, which I have for a review, has a stitched pattern, the camera housing in the top middle, and the subtle Redmi logo in the bottom left.
This time, Gorilla Glass Victus 2 has been added to the front and Gorilla Glass 7i to the back—a much-needed upgrade, as the phone, sans any case, isn’t the grippiest. With an aluminium mid-frame and curved AMOLED display, Xiaomi has made sure to colour-match them with the back. All in all, the smartphone design screams premium.
But because of the elegant camera bump, the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ doesn’t lay flat on the table. There’s a lot of wobble. It comes with an IP68 and IP69 rating, though the company hasn’t clarified the latter's terms (how water resistant it is).
One immediate downside you notice is that the fingerprint scanner, placed lower than usual, is harder to access one-handed. I immediately switched to face unlock, which is fast and far more reliable (even in low-light situations).
Display
While the 6.67-inch display is the same as last year, it has the added protection of Gorilla Glass Victus 2. It features a 2712x1220 resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate. The peak brightness has been increased from 1800 nits to 3000 nits, which is quite noticeable in harsh outdoor sunlight.
It isn’t the most colour-accurate display out there. The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ comes in cooler colours that are out of the box, but thankfully, there are several options to adjust the colours. There’s a good amount of contrast, and the text is crisp.
There’s support for HDR10+ and Dolby Vision. Over the years, I’ve noticed that the ambient sensor on Redmi Note smartphones doesn’t work as advertised. Sometimes, it is slow to adjust the brightness, and sometimes, it doesn’t change as it should. Turning it off and adjusting the brightness is far better.
Streaming cricket matches on the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ was good. There are great viewing angles, and the stereo sound is loud and detailed. Even when listening to podcasts, it is a crisp and clean sound.
How does the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ perform?
I won’t dive deep into this because there isn’t much to be said. Xiaomi switched from a MediaTek chipset to Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chip this year. The Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 performs admirably well.
The smartphone hardly stuttered or lagged daily. Multitasking was a breeze, and it rarely got hot (yes, my Google Pixel was constantly heating up). However, it can’t handle the latest games at their highest settings. If you’re a gamer, avoid this smartphone. For casual games, it performs smoothly, though it does throttle, and you’ll notice drops in FPS. Thankfully, like I said above, even while gaming, overheating isn’t an issue.
Xiaomi had to cut corners somewhere with the smartphone to keep the price the same as its predecessors. The Redmi 14 Pro+ uses LPDDR4 RAM and UFS 3.1 storage, which is a huge disappointment. There’s also no Wi-Fi 6E. However, you get a new x-axis vibration motor, which provides good feedback.
Xiaomi has prioritised AI over the latest Redmi Note 14 Pro+ software. That’s a big miss, in my opinion. HyperOS is good, clean and fluid (with some bloatware still attached) and much better than the MIUI of yesteryear. Still, not delivering Android 15 will irk many potential customers.
Battery life: The best!
The Redmi Note 14 Pro+'s battery life is undoubtedly great. The 6200mAh battery (a silicon-carbon battery that can withstand extreme temperatures) gives this phone a leg-up over the competition. The smartphone easily lasted me a day and a half before I had to scramble for the charger.
The box includes a 90W charging brick, which can charge the smartphone from zero to 100 in just 65 minutes. The settings have many battery optimisation options if you want to extend its longevity.
Cameras
There may have been a downgrade (if you think megapixels are all that matters) from the 200MP 1/1.4-inch sensor in favour of the 50MP 1/1.95-inch sensor with a larger aperture (f/1.5). It’s the OmniVision’s OVX8000 (Light Hunter 800). The same sensor is used in the Xiaomi 14 Civi. The biggest upgrade comes with the addition of the 50MP Samsung JN1 telephoto lens (with 2.5x optical zoom). Then there’s the 8MP Sony IMX355 ultra-wide camera. Thankfully, there is no macro camera here.
With the primary camera, you get photos with vibrant colours, lots of details, and warm but realistic colours in good daylight. Thankfully, Xiaomi has fixed the oversaturation issue that plagued some of the Redmi Note smartphones of the past. Low light (thanks to the new sensor) has also gotten a boost. There’s good colour accuracy, and a lot of details are retained. The low-light images have some grain/noise but nothing without pixel-peeping. They will more than suffice for your social media uploads. I’m not a massive fan of the wide-angle lens as it falls short of other smartphones (OnePlus 13R comes to mind) on the market.
Whilst the telephoto lens is a great addition, there’s no OIS (optical image stabilisation) here. So once you go to 2.5x and over, you’ve got to be very stable to get the shot you want. Telephoto shots are usable up to 5x. Beyond that, there’s visible noise. Portraits also get a boost here with good edge detection.
Overall, the cameras are a good upgrade from the Redmi 13 Pro+ but nothing exceptional.
The competition
Three smartphones come to mind almost immediately. The OnePlus 12R ( ₹35,999) may be dated now, but it is still a fast and versatile smartphone. It’s got a brighter AMOLED panel and, overall, is faster than any other smartphone in this price bracket.
Then there is the Nothing Phone (2a) Plus. It has a standout (transparent) design, good cameras, and a unique take on the software, and it is selling for only ₹26,999.
Finally, if you like to play games, the POCO F6 is the one to buy at just ₹29,999. It has better battery life than any other smartphone in this price bracket and looks and feels good in hand.
Verdict
The hardware is excellent, and the cameras (hello there, telephoto lens) are far more useable this time (despite the lack of 60fps video recording at 4K). Still, the software ultimately lets the phone down.
I liked the design, superb display, and battery life (charging speeds are also pretty rapid). However, the imminent launch of the OnePlus 13R (sometime in January) is looming large. This smartphone will also be faster and more fluid.
