Photos taken with the main camera during the day are rich in detail and have good depth of field, but exposure isn’t always accurate and colors can sometimes appear oversaturated. The warm pink hue is evident in a few of the photos I took. You can use the main camera to get a natural bokeh effect if you tap to focus on your subject, or use Portrait mode if you want the background to have a more pronounced blur. When the sun goes down, noise begins to creep in and bright areas may be obscured. But stay put and night mode works well.
Disappointingly, the main camera is flanked by a mediocre 8 MP ultrawide lens and an almost useless 2 MP macro lens. The ultra-wide-angle lens can take photos with slightly cooler colors, but it’s much noisier than the main camera and doesn’t perform well in low-light conditions. I don’t see the point of a macro lens at all, as it only seems to produce unfocused, low-resolution footage. The main camera takes better close-ups.
A bad secondary camera probably won’t be that big of an issue since most people will stick with the primary camera. There’s also a decent 16-MP front-facing camera for selfies and video calling. The best quality video option is 4K at 30 frames per second, or you can choose 1080p at 240 frames per second. The video I shot looked pretty smooth and clear.
sorry software
Photography: Simon Hill
Besides the inconsistent camera, the other major compromise is the software. The Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro+ runs Android 13 out of the box, which is overshadowed by Xiaomi’s busy and frustrating MIUI. I prefer Xiaomi’s improved HyperOS to Android 14, as on the Xiaomi Poco X6 Pro (7/10, Wired review). Redmi phones get three years of Android updates and four years of security patches, which is the bare minimum we’d expect.
Bloatware is a problem, and there are a lot of apps and games you might want to uninstall right away. But this phone comes with the Google Play Store out of the box, can easily accommodate your favorite apps, and offers plenty of storage space. The Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro+ does support 5G and works well in the UK, but check the specs page for frequency bands. It also supports Wi-Fi 6, not 6E or 7, but that’s enough for most people.
Ultimately, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro+ is a good value for money option. I think the biggest confusion for consumers buying the Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro+ is that the comparable Xiaomi Poco X6 Pro is almost £100 cheaper. In this price range, you should also consider Google’s Pixel 7A (8/10, recommended by WIRED) and Samsung’s Galaxy A54 5G (8/10, recommended by WIRED). You can find more options in our guide to the best Android phones.