Redmi Note 14 Pro+ Review: The New Benchmark for Note Series

Mobile

If Xiaomi is Stan Lee, then the Redmi Note series has to be Jack Kirby. Well, that’s how the company’s India journey has been. The Note series has been right in the centre, fueling Xiaomi’s growth in India over the years. In early 2024, the company introduced the Redmi Note 13 series, and before the year ended, we have the successor already – the Redmi Note 14 series. In the product briefing, Xiaomi executives stressed how Redmi Note 14 is a big leap even for the Note series. The company claims to have sold over 420 million Redmi Note devices globally. Again, this time, we get three units – a base

Redmi Note 14 Pro+ primary camera samples (tap image to expand)

The 8-megapixel ultrawide camera does the job but isn’t as good as the primary sensor. In some of our samples, we could see some details missing; however, the dynamic range is fine. The colours are on point mostly.

Redmi Note 14 Pro+ primary ultrawide camera samples (tap image to expand)

This time, Xiaomi has introduced an additional multifocal camera setup of 2.5x apart from the regular 0.6x, 1x, 2x, and 5x. This is great for framing shots the way you want. On 2x zoom, the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ has decent zoom levels with no visible loss in image quality. The detail levels are amazing, and the images come out well overall.

Redmi Note 14 Pro+ sample with 0.6x lens (tap image to expand)

Redmi Note 14 Pro+ sample with 1x lens (tap image to expand)

Redmi Note 14 Pro+ sample with 2x lens (tap image to expand)

Redmi Note 14 Pro+ sample with 2.5x lens (tap image to expand)

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Redmi Note 14 Pro+ sample with 5x lens (tap image to expand)

Jumping to portraits, the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ can click some nice bokeh shots. It’s a good point-and-shoot camera for all your portrait shots.

Redmi Note 14 Pro+ portrait camera sample (tap image to expand)

Redmi Note 14 Pro+ close-up sample (tap image to expand)

Redmi Note 14 Pro+ close-up sample (tap image to expand)

Redmi Note 14 Pro+ slightly lacks in the selfie department, where I noticed skin softening despite turning off the beauty mode. This, however, may work for your social media uploads. After multiple shots, I also observed inaccurate skin tones in selfies, which is something Xiaomi can fix with an OTA update.

Selfie taken on Redmi Note 14 Pro+ (tap image to expand)

When it comes to low-light samples, the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ can click on some good night shots with decent colours and accurate details. The phone packs a night mode that’s suggested to users when clicking in low-light conditions. I could capture good low-light samples with challenging lighting around. The details take a hit in extremely low light while noise crops in. But this shows that Redmi Note 14 Pro+ can navigate through difficult low-light situations.

Redmi Note 14 Pro+ low-light samples (tap image to expand)

Videos are still something Xiaomi needs to work on. Redmi Note 14 Pro+ can click decent videos for your Instagram Story uploads, but quality-wise, there’s scope for improvement. It can record 4K videos at 30fps.

Overall, the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ packs a good set of cameras for most scenarios.

Redmi Note 14 Pro+ Performance: Solid package

  • SoC – Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 Mobile Platform
  • Variants – 8+128 | 8+256 | 12+512
  • Software update – 3+4 years

The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ offers incredible performance credentials for a phone in this price range. Whether browsing, gaming, streaming, using AI features or editing photos on the go, the Note 14 Pro+ handles these and more tasks smoothly. Opening multiple apps and switching between tasks is also snappy on the device.

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It runs on Android 14-based HyperOS

All thanks to Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 7s Gen 3, the 4nm chip, powering the device, day-to-day performance is handled smoothly. The Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 was launched in August this year and is a successor to the 7s Gen 2. It delivers 20 percent better CPU performance, 40 percent faster GPU, and 12 percent overall power saving than the 7s Gen 2. And can handle AI performance with ease. Thanks to dedicated NPU, the 7s Gen 3 can handle on-device generative AI capabilities.

The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ comes in three SKUs – 8+128, 8+256 and 12+512. I got the top trim variant for review and didn’t encounter any memory-related issues. But one thing definitely disappoints – UFS 2.2 on the 14 Pro+ vs UFS 3.1 on the 13 Pro+. It’s like a downgrade, as UFS 3.1 is way faster than UFS 2.2 for read and write speeds, making you future-proof. Well, this can be attributed to cost cuts.

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The sunlight legibility is good

During my review, the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ never got hot under stress but did get slightly warm. The Note 14 Pro+ could load BGMI at HDR graphics and High frame rate settings. I did not face frame drops or stutters during gaming sessions with COD Mobile, BGMI, and Genshin Impact—all thanks to the new Adaptive Performance Engine 3.0 and Adreno HDR Fast Blend on 7s Gen 3.

Benchmark Redmi Note 14 Pro+ Redmi Note 13 Pro+ OnePlus 12R
Chipset Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 Dimensity 7200 Ultra Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
AnTuTu v10 724,770 721,512 1,318,278
PCMark Work 3.0 14,198 12,910 13,210
Geekbench Single 1,168 1,122 1,987
Geekbench Multi 3,238 2,598 4,527
GFXB T-rex Couldn’t run 115 119
GFXB Manhattan 3.1 Couldn’t run 53 98
GFXB Car Chase Couldn’t run 31 88
3DM Slingshot Extreme OpenGL Maxed Out Maxed Out Maxed Out
3DM Slingshot Maxed Out Maxed Out Maxed Out
3DM Wild Life 4,599 4,255 Maxed Out
3DM Wild Life Unlimited Maxed Out Maxed Out 15,897

Jumping to UI and software. The Redmi Note Pro+ runs Android 14 with HyperOS 1.0.2, and Xiaomi promises 3 years of major OS updates and 4 years of security patches. Considering that the device runs Android 14, it should get 15 very soon and will get up to Android 17. Compared to the competition and benchmark set by some brands, this is on the lower side, and Xiaomi should have offered at least 4+5 years of support. The UI looks and feels familiar, and that’s fine unless it impacts the entire user experience.

HyperOS brings some new features and refreshes some existing ones. The list includes Control Centre, which gets a complete refresh, and the new AOD feature, which has new animations with lock screen customisation. HyperOS also allows you to work seamlessly across devices and pin apps across devices for easy access.

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The phone comes with an IP68 rating

Xiaomi has seen the transition from MIUI days to HyperOS now, but what has not changed is bloatware and app notifications from GetApps. Yes, the number of applications has slightly decreased, but I have received notifications without even touching GetApps. This has been a recurring issue on Xiaomi devices for years. The problem isn’t just with GetApps but also with other preinstalled apps like Themes. I hope that an OTA update fixes this for Redmi Note 14 Pro+.

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A screenshot from preinstalled apps

The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ speaker is loud and can fill a medium-sized room. It is also excellent for your multimedia needs. The phone can latch onto mobile networks in patchy zones. I tested Airtel 5G and Jio 5G networks, and Redmi Note 14 Pro+ impressed me. The call quality was top-notch.

Overall, the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ is a leap forward in performance in its current price range.

Redmi Note 14 Pro+ AI Features

AI has been the biggest buzzword for smartphone manufacturers this year, and I don’t see this changing next year, either. The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ is touted to pack over 20 AI features, more than any competition offers. The list of AI features is more or less the same on the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ that I have seen on comparable devices. There’s an AI summary, AI layout, AI proofreading, and AI translation integrated into the inbuilt Notes app. It worked well most of the time during my review.

Next up, AI Image Expansion, AI Erase Pro and AI Film are packed within the Gallery app. The AI Image Expansion can make your image bigger with proportional scaling, free scaling, and automatic composition. The AI Erase Pro, as the name suggests, can help you remove unwanted objects, people or other elements from your pictures. Lastly, the AI Film converts your photos and videos into short videos or vlogs – something that Google’s Photos app has been doing for years.

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The AI tool Erase Pro is a hit and a miss

The Recorder app also has AI features like speaker recognition, AI translation, and AI summary. This one was more of a gimmicky feature, as it didn’t give me perfect results. It missed words and speaker recognition in multiple recordings I tested. The AI subtitles also need polish as it couldn’t offer the ideal real-time transcriptions. I couldn’t test the AI Interpreter, but it is meant to interpret face-to-face conversations and call audio. Lastly, there’s Circle to Search, which has finally landed on Xiaomi devices.

Overall, the addition of AI features is nice and good to have, but some of these feel gimmicky at the moment and may need more polish.

Redmi Note 14 Pro+ Battery: Indeed, big leap

If there’s one department where the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ has taken a giant leap, then it has to be the battery. From 5000mAh on the Redmi Note 13 Pro+ to a massive 6200mAh battery on the 14 Pro+ is just bonkers. And this doesn’t just look huge on paper but in real-world usage, too.

The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ easily lasts over a day with almost 25 percent charge left with intense use, which includes a couple of hours of gaming, camera use, full-movie streaming on Netflix, a few hours of music streaming on Spotify, and regular work-related apps like Outlook, Canva, Gmail, Slack, Chrome, and more open in the background for the full day alongside apps like WhatsApp, Instagram, X, and Telegram. The 14 Pro+ can last up to two full days with medium usage, which means without too much camera time.

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The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ packs a 6200mAh battery compared to 5000mAh seen on the Redmi Note 13 Pro+

In our HD video battery loop test, the Note 14 Pro+ ran for 33 hours and 51 minutes, which is impressive.

The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ comes with 90W HyperCharge support for fast charging, and the charger is included in the box. Compared to Note 13 Pro+, which came with 120W HyperCharge, it’s a downgrade but not a huge number difference in the real world.

Additionally, Xiaomi has packed other battery health-related features like Voltage Booster Chip, Low-Temperature Charging, Short-Term Multi-Charge Optimization, and Safe Charging Control – necessary additions in a market like India, where some areas still experience voltage fluctuations.

Redmi Note 14 Pro+ Verdict

Redmi Note 14 Pro+ price in India starts at under Rs. 30,000 (8GB + 128GB) – at least that’s what the company announced during the launch, while the 12GB + 512GB storage is set at Rs. 34,999. At this price, the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ is still an easy recommendation for anyone looking for a smartphone that is packed to the brim. However, I’m not too sure about the post-launch offers pricing for the smartphone as the company has yet to come back to me with a response to my query on pricing. It is the only phone in the market right now with durability credentials, including passing a 1.5-metre drop test onto marble and also packs an IP68 rating. It packs a fantastic display, can handle performance like a pro, and packs decent cameras. 

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Redmi Note 14 Pro+ goes up to Rs 34,999 (net effective price) for the top trim 12GB+512GB model

Yes, there are certain areas with scope for improvement, like the software support for the Redmi Note 14 Pro+, which feels on the lower side compared to the competition, especially considering this is still running on Android 14. Then, the UFS 2.2 for a phone priced around Rs. 30,000 is disappointing. Then, the bloatware problem still remains. Though it is now less distracting and throws fewer ad pop-ups, it is still part of the overall package. 

Talking about alternatives at this price, the OnePlus 12R (Review) is a decent device. Then, the Xiaomi 14 Civi (Review) is also available at under Rs. 40,000.