Not really a beginner phone. Review on Xiaomi Redmi 4A

After using the phone for about 3 weeks now, I think its time for a review.

The packaging and experience is just about what I wanted!

I am not going to speak about specs as you can get it from anywhere, summarizing just the experience so far below.

Call/ Reception: 8/10

1. Call quality is clear in general, mute function works as expected(some cheap phones causes noise when you are on mute)

   
   




2. Display in signal strength bars seems fairly accurate, my previous phone will show more bars but when connected will drop down the number of bars(this was kind of deceiving and I like the new one for showing the signal strength as it is).

   
   




3. When attempting to disconnect a call(particularly in weak signal areas) the dallier hanged very rarely(to be precise faced this 2 times till now) not a major complaint though

   
   




4. Call record function is added by default to the dallier UI, this is very nice!

   
   

Battery: 7/10

1. The phone is a battery drainer

   
   




2. With a general usage(playing music for about 1-1.5 hrs with headset, occasional connect to wifi, mobile data) battery lasts 3 days, heavy usage(continuous movie playing/ streaming, using VR, playing heavy games etc) drains battery even upto 40% a day

   
   




3. In Lite mode(where the entire UI changes) and with very optimal settings and less Apps battery lasts long though

   
   




4. One advantage - there is a native app that can set permissions for individual apps from using almost any feature - mobile data, wifi, gps, camera, microphone, sms etc.,

   
   




5. Post applying these settings restricting background usage etc., there was a noticeable decrease in battery usage.

   
   

Messaging: 9/10

1. This requires a special mention as has some cool features

   
   




2. A copy OTP feature, displaying names instead of short SMS codes for Banks, Pizzas  etc, grouping all service SMS under one group and displaying the IRCTC messages look like a ticket are small nifty features, a gesture is well worth appreciating

   
   




3. Comes with option to install three keyboards while setup / Includes Indian languages options by default

   
   




4. Able to pin messages from few senders to the top always

   
   




5. Scroll from the top to activate the private messages area

   
   

Camera: 7/10

1. Photos are good when taken in day light, included filters are more than sufficient

   
   




2. Not a big mention as at this price range

   
   

UI / Apps:  9/10

1. I would have given a 10/10 if there was option to at least disable system apps, though able to uninstall most of 3rd party apps, but not able to uninstall nor disable some system Apps(Eg: GMail, Google Play, MI Picks, Themes etc.,)

   
   




2. Except for the above the apps/ functionalities that are bundled in the stock are very good and one does not have to spend time searching for essential utility apps without ads!

   
   




3. The torch is included by default on the notification placeholder

   
   




4. The stock screenshots app can take scrolling screenshots - this is cool

   
   




5. There is a scanner app that can take pictures of bills etc., by tilting them correctly, and read QR codes

   
   




6. MI Cloud is very nice coming with 5 GB storage and paid options to upgrade for more storage

   
   




7. MI cloud on a browser interface(from PC) looks good too, and is able to push messages to the device

   
   




8. Find your MI device feature is good as well(I use google ADM and lostandroid for this purpose though)

   
   




9. Lite Mode seems for very aged people may be 80+? there could have been some more variations in the Lite mode(with say a 4*8 grid maybe?), but the thought is so good, no phone have had this idea so far!

   
   




10. All apps, messages, explorer etc has a private mode when you scroll from the top of the mobile, so no need to scout for app locker apps anymore(I don't use it anyway but this is a worth mentioning feature),

    
    




11. Set passwords for certain apps(many phones have this though these days)

    
    




12. Frequency to receive patches/ updates seems reasonably well, 2 weeks after I bought the phone it offered to upgrade MIUI8 and I liked it!

    
    




13. Calculator can do unit conversions and currency conversions, quite handy right?

    
    




14. Camera's modes are good(they have  a bw/ sketch hdr mode) but I know I will never use these.

    
    




15. MI remote app is just awesome!

    
    

VFM Feel 8/10

1. Uses Snapdragon(though 425) instead of mediatek that most phones use in this price range(Even Moto C rumoured to have a mediatek)

   
   




2. IR blaster and a MI remote app - this is really worth a mention - I was able to successfully pair my TV, set top box and AC(my wife's Moto G Play cant do this, and it is > 2K more than this phone) - The library of devices that can be paired is really large, if you are using any common brand of TV AC etc., you can be pretty sure it is already there!

   
   




3. Including a compass at this price range is good too - Was able to successfully pair the MI VR(will write a separate review on this later), works with the clicks as expected(though 20-30 mins of continuous usage, and the phone gets heated up)

   
   

Limitations: 6/10

1. Secondary sim slot can be used only for either a sim or for a memory card, so if you are a dual sim user you can not add memory

   
   




2. Only first sim slot if 4G+ Volte second sim is 2G only

   
   




3. Inbuilt available memory is very less

   
   




4. The MI cover fits like a snap just made for the phone, so you wont see know the back cover is plastic, looks good, but it would have been nice if the cover had some raised edges on the front to protect screen also!

   
   




5. MI shipped three screenguards when ordered one! however there were airbubbles that we could not avoid and gathers scratches happily

   
   




6. 3S at only 1K higher price might be a good choice particularly for storage issues.

   
   




7. No sound profiles - a let down for me, you have only silent/ vibrate/ airplane mode, it would have been nice if we had a general. loudspeaker mode choice(may be I am used to this too much with my previous phone)

   
   

Not Used/ Not Rated

These are some features that I dont use but worth mentioning

1. Second space - create a second phone - personal and office

   
   




2. Dual Apps - maintain two whatsapp, fb accounts - go crazy

   
   




3. Reading mode - another nice stock bundled feature

   
   

A note on MI environment: 10/10

1. MI cloud was a unexpected surprise, liking it

   
   




2. Pairing with MI band, MI VR and other accessories were easy

   
   




3. Unlocking with MI band feels good

   
   




4. The audio settings recognize different MI headsets and offers some extra options, this feels good rather than the Apple way of properietory-ness, as you get to  connect generic accessories as well, but get that extra mileage with home brand

   
   

This phone is just fitting my needs - I dont use whatsapp, fb, twitter on phone, all I needed was clutter free calling, office email(mobile iron), some music, occasional booking cabs, maps - and this is just fine for these purposes plus the compass and MI remote is a bonus:D .

As I use Google Photos for syncing my photos storage is not a issue for me, but for a normal user the lack of storage(at cost of a secondary sim) might be limiting.

Overall 8/10

1. Just for the limitation of space am giving it a 8 if this is not a issue for you(like me) then it is a 10/10

   
   




2. Personally to me the video of sri-city facility where they make this phone felt really good, the connect they make to Indian market is appreciable both design and otherwise.

   
   

Its not really a beginner phone, you can get a premium 100 cc bike or a entry level 125 cc bike at almost same price.

Just as this phone is definitely a premium one with cuts on capacity, not quality!