Nobody likes to compromise nowadays, especially when it comes to our smartphones. Even if you’re buying a sub-10K phone, you have certain expectations from your budget device. The Indian smartphone industry if flooded with phones that provide great value for money. Xiaomi’s own Redmi Note 4 has been one of the best-selling budget phones in India.
Xiaomi has established itself as one of the top brands in the Indian market and has consistently delivered great phones at an affordable price. One such phone was the Redmi 4A, and one such phone is the Redmi 5A. Launched on the 30th November, the Redmi 5A succeeds one of the most successful Xiaomi phones in the country. By its own admission, Xiaomi claims that the Redmi 4A sold over 4 million units since its launch. hence, Redmi 5A has a huge ask in front of it.
Let’s compare the two phones and see what has changed between the two generations. And, more importantly, if you are a Redmi 4A user, should you upgrade?
Specifications Redmi 4A Redmi 5A Price Rs 5999 [16GB]
Rs 6999 [32GB]
Buy it here
Rs 4999 [16GB]
Rs 5999 [32GB]
Buy it here
Display 5 inch IPS 5 inch IPS Resolution 1280 x 720 px
296ppi
1280 x 720 px
296ppi
Battery 3120 mAh 3000 mAh [8-Day Standby time] Chipset Qualcomm Snapdragon 425 Qualcomm Snapdragon 425 RAM 2GB/3GB 2GB/3GB Storage 16GB/32GB 16GB/32GB Primary Camera 13MP f/2.2 13MP f/2.2 Primary Video 1080P @ 30fps 1080P @ 30fps Secondary Camera 5MP f/2.0 5MP f/2.0 Colours Gold
Grey
Gold
Rose Gold
Dark Grey
Features Dual SIM card slot + MicroSD card slot
At a glance, or even a closer look, you’ll barely be able to make out the difference between the two phones. But, the most important factor in favour of the Redmi 5A is its price. In this world of every successor becoming more expensive, it is astonishing how Xiaomi has reduced the price for the base model while maintaining all the other features of the Redmi 4A.
The only reason you should upgrade to the Redmi 5A if you own a Redmi 4A is if you miss the dual SIM slot and microSD card slot. Other than that, there is barely anything keeping the two phones apart.
Watch Our Redmi 4A Review
Watch Our Redmi 5A Camera, Benchmarks Video
[embedyt] //www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCkus1qD2TQ[/embedyt]
About The Author
Vipul Vij
Always found in a Hooded Shell, Excited by technology, tortured by his eating habits. Handles content at iGyaan.
While the Redmi 5A is identical to the 4A in many ways, Xiaomi has packed in some incremental upgrades here and there. Here's a closer look.
Xiaomi has launched its much hyped and anticipated 'Desh ka Smartphone' in India in the form of the Redmi 5A. The 5A, which has been launched at a mouth-watering starting price of Rs 4,999, has been designed for India and will be made [assembled] in the country as well. Although the Redmi 5A has already been launched in China, the India specific version comes with certain unique features tailored specific for he Indian market.
The Redmi 5A succeeds the Redmi 4A which was launched in India back in March 2017 for a starting price of Rs 5,999. While the Redmi 5A is identical to the 4A in many ways, Xiaomi has packed in some incremental upgrades here and there. Here's a closer look.
- While both the Redmi 4A and Redmi 5A are made out of plastic, the latter has a metallic matte finish on the back that's smooth to the touch. Just like the Redmi 4A, the 5A lacks a fingerprint sensor and comes with a 5-inch HD IPS display with a 720p resolution and a pixel density of 294ppi.
- The Indian version of the Redmi 5A differs from the Chinese variant in a few ways. Firstly, it comes with a dedicated slot for two nano SIM cards and one microSD card. The Redmi 4A in comparison comes with a hybrid card slot that allows either two SIM cards or one SIM card and a microSD card. Secondly, Xiaomi has introduced a variant with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage especially for the Indian market. In China, only the 2GB RAM/16GB storage variant is available.
- There is very little to choose between the Redmi 4A and Redmi 5A in terms of the hardware inside. Just like the 4A, the 5A is powered by the Snapdragon 425 processor paired with the Adreno 308 GPU and 2/3GB of RAM depending on the variant. The battery has seen a slight reduction in size - from 3,120mAh [on the 4A] to 3,000mAh. Both smartphones come with either 16 or 32GB of internal storage that can be expanded via a microSD card [of up to 128GB].
- On the imaging front, there doesn't seem to be much difference between the two smartphones [at least on paper]. The Redmi 5A comes with a 13MP rear camera with an aperture of f/2.2, an LED flash and phase detection autofocus. On the front, the phone has a 5MP shooter with an aperture of f/2.0 for selfies. The Redmi 4A also comes with a 13MP rear camera with an aperture of f/2.2 and a 5MP front camera.
- The Redmi 5A runs MIUI 9 based on Android Nougat out of the box which brings with it a slew of stock Android features such as split-screen multi-tasking and Google Assistant. MIUI has made great strides and MIUI 9 is its best iteration yet. While the Redmi 4A launched with the Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow based MIUI 8, MIUI 9 is available for the smartphone as an over the air [OTA] update.
The biggest area where the Redmi 4A trumps the Redmi 5A is the price. While the 2GB RAM/ 16GB variant of the Redmi 4A was launched at Rs 5,999, the same configuration can be found in the Redmi 5A for Rs 4,999. However, this is an introductory price that will be valid only for the first 50 lakh units after which the price of the 2GB RAM variant will be increased to Rs 5,999. The 3GB RAM/ 32GB variant of the 5A and 4A are priced the same - at Rs 6,999.