Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro+ Review: So Near, Yet so Far

Xiaomi’s Redmi sub-brand is known for its affordable yet powerful handsets, and that’s no different with the Redmi Note 13 series.  

Five phones launched in the UK and Europe in January 2024 – the Redmi Note 13 4G, Note 13, Note 13 Pro 4G, Note 13 Pro and Note 13 Pro+. 

It’s the top-of-the-line Pro+ that’s our focus here, which, despite sounding like a rival to the iPhone 15 Pro Max, costs just £450/€499 at launch. 

Based on specs alone, it looks like incredible value for money, but does that make it a great phone for day-to-day usage? I spent a week using the Note 13 Pro+ as my main device to find out.   

Design & Build

• Attractive two-tone design
• Premium build quality
• IP68 rating

The Note 13 Pro+’s design is one of my favourite things about it. The phone feels very premium, and no corners have been cut in terms of build quality. 

Despite also being present on the cheaper Note 13 Pro, a glass back feels luxurious. It gives the phone a satisfying weight in the hand, but at 204.5g, it’s still comfortable to hold for long periods of time. 

Another thing I really like is the two-tone design on the back. A glossy coating around the cameras and flash means it shimmers as it catches the light, while a matt finish elsewhere limits the build-up of fingerprint smudges and other dirt. It’s the perfect hybrid. 

This contrast is particularly eye-catching on the Moonlight White model I tested, though it looks to be similar on Midnight Black and Aurora Purple, your other colour options. 

The phone is grippy enough to use case-free, and it feels like a shame to cover up the design. But the rubber one included in the box is much better than I was expecting, combining a minimalist aesthetic with solid protection.  

It completely covers the aluminium frame, but leaves the curved edges of the display exposed. The 13 Pro+ is the only Redmi Note 13 phone to not have a flat screen. 

The Note 13 Pro+’s design is one of my favourite things about it

Durability is clearly a top priority, though. The screen is equipped with Corning’s tough Gorilla Glass Victus, making it scratch resistant and able to survive drops of up to 2m. Alongside an IP68 rating for water and dust resistance, it’s well protected against the elements.  

As usual, there’s a USB-C port for charging, but the 3.5mm headphone jack from all the cheaper Note 13 handsets is missing here. This is something you see on almost all flagships, but I don’t understand why Xiaomi didn’t just leave it in. 

The very good vibration motor is definitely worth mentioning, though. Its subtle haptics deliver a nice hit of feedback while typing, navigating between apps and gaming. It’s a step down from the Galaxy S24 Ultra in this regard, but still impressive. 

Screen & Speakers

• Excellent 6.67-inch AMOLED
• In-display fingerprint sensor
• Decent stereo speakers

Xiaomi knows how to make a great phone display, and that’s no different on the Note 13 Pro+. It’s equipped with a gorgeous 6.67-inch AMOLED panel that looks and performs just like a flagship.  

A 2712×1220 resolution isn’t quite the 1440p you’ll see on some phones, but clarity and detail is still excellent. Alongside vibrant, punchy colours and deep blacks, the Note 13 Pro+ has a superb screen for content consumption and gaming. 

The 120Hz refresh rate is another touch of class, making scrolling and transitions silky and responsive. It’s just a shame there’s no LTPO tech here, so it can’t dynamically adjust down to 1Hz to save battery life.  

Instead, the default mode automatically switches between 60- and 120Hz, or you can manually set either. This is the same as the Redmi Note 13 Pro. 

Xiaomi advertises 1800 nits of peak brightness, though the 531 nits I recorded is impressive. Alongside a dedicated ‘Sunlight mode’ (available once you turn off auto brightness), outdoor visibility is excellent. Even on a bright sunny day, you’ll have no problem making out what’s on screen. 

The curved display doesn’t interfere with the viewing experience at all, while a small hole-punch selfie camera and razor-thin bezels means the front of the phone is basically all screen. 

The Note 13 Pro+ has a superb screen for content consumption and gaming

Within it is an optical fingerprint sensor, as opposed to the side-mounted physical version on some of the cheaper Redmi Note 13 phones. It was frustratingly temperamental initially, but improved a lot when I set up the same finger twice. I’d recommend you do this too, as the face unlock is much less secure. 

With above-average audio, the experience of watching movies or gaming is very good. A downward-firing grille combines with the earpiece for a stereo setup, delivering punchy sound with a nice amount of depth. Bass is relatively limited, but that’s not a big surprise. 

Specs & Performance

• MediaTek Dimensity 7200 Ultra and 12GB RAM
• Impressive everyday performance
• Suitable for demanding gaming

The Note 13 Pro+ is powered by the Dimensity 7200 Ultra, an upper mid-range chipset released in September 2023.  

It’s not quite MediaTek’s most powerful, but based on my testing, it’s plenty capable enough for most people. Xiaomi couples it with a generous 12GB of RAM on the only version available in Europe, performance is strong, and better than I was expecting. 

Performance is strong, and better than I was expecting

The Note 13 Pro+ powered through all my regular tasks, such as web browsing (with dozens of tabs open), messaging (with multiple active conversations) and taking lots of photos. Even when I wanted to quickly switch between them, there was no sign of any hesitation or slowdown. 

It always seemed as if the phone had plenty of power in reserve, and it got an opportunity to use some of that while gaming. While playing Call of Duty: Mobile, PUBG Mobile, Asphalt 9: Legends and EA Sports FC Mobile, it felt like I was using a high-end phone.

The only indication that it was working hard was the back of the phone getting slightly warm to the touch, but this never became uncomfortable. 

Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro+ benchmarks

In the UK, the phone is only available with one storage capacity, and with no Micro-SD slot there’s no support for expandable storage. But with 512GB on board, even power users should have plenty of space to play with. 

The Dimensity 9200 Ultra supports 5G, and it’s joined in the connectivity department by Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.3 and NFC for mobile payments. Unless you have a router that supports Wi-Fi 6E or Wi-Fi 7, this is totally fine. 

Cameras

• Decent 200Mp main sensor
• Underwhelming 8Mp ultrawide, no telephoto
• Solid 16Mp selfie lens

The Note 13 Pro+ has a total of four camera lenses, but their quality varies significantly. 

Its 200Mp main sensor is the most impressive. Despite a process known as pixel binning combining 16 pixels into one for a 12.5Mp image by default, you can still take 200Mp photos. However, they take up lots of extra space for only a slightly better image. 

Provided the lighting is good, you can get some excellent photos in the default points and shoot mode. Detail and dynamic range are both strong, and it handles the exposure of some complex skies very well. As a result, I was consistently getting flagship-quality images of the beach using this phone. 

Like most Xiaomi phones, colours aren’t quite true to life. There’s some quite aggressive colour saturation boosting happening in some environments, though I found this matched how most people would usually edit their photos. 

A software-based night mode brightens low-light photos, but often introduces noise or makes photos look artificial. I preferred to leave it off and experiment with editing later. 

Of course, in some environments the 8Mp ultrawide makes more sense. It increases the field of view to 120˚ , but there’s a noticeable drop-off in image quality. Where possible, I preferred to stand further back than rely on it. 

Got a clear subject you want to take a photo of? Be prepared to be patient. Portrait-style photos are frustratingly hit-and-miss, with the phone often struggling to determine where a dog’s fur ends and the background begins.  

Only around half of the photos I took delivered a convincing background blur. If the subject is moving around, it becomes even more challenging. 

I was consistently getting flagship-quality images of the beach using this phone

The third rear lens, a 2Mp macro, is pretty much useless. All the close-up shots I took were totally out of focus, so I recommend you don’t bother with it. 

However, there’s no telephoto camera of any description. It means all the zoom available in the camera app (up to 10x) is digital, with a big decline in quality once you go past 4x. Cropping in on a 200Mp photo would be the main reason to use the full resolution. 

With an underwhelming ultrawide and no telephoto, the Note 13 Pro+ works best when you want to take a photo of what’s directly in front of the phone or yourself. 

Selfies from the 16Mp front-facing lens are solid, combining decent detail with a well-exposed background. The portrait-style background blur arguably works better here, though it’s still not perfect. 

The phone can capture video in up to 4K at 30fps, though the default 1080p at 30fps is fine for casual home videos or social media. But despite OIS (optical image stabilization) on the main lens, footage gets very wobbly with any significant movement. 

Battery Life & Charging

• 5000mAh
• Impressive all-day battery life
• 120W fast charging

Xiaomi has equipped the Note 13 Pro+ with a 5000mAh battery. That’s actually slightly smaller than the 5100mAh cell on the Note 13 Pro, but the PCMark battery test suggests battery life is almost identical.  

A score of 11 hours and 55 minutes is just a couple of minutes less than its cheaper sibling. Both are above average, and pretty much guarantee all-day battery life.  

That includes on long days with high brightness, lots of mobile data usage and GPS. With lighter usage and reliance on Wi-Fi, I was going more than two full days between charges. The only scenario where it could die on you by nighttime is if you plan on gaming for several hours. Otherwise, you’re in safe hands. 

With lighter usage and reliance on Wi-Fi, I was going more than two full days between charges

And when you do run out of battery, the 120W fast charging offers great peace of mind, especially with the necessary charger included in the box. In testing, it went from 0-73% in just 15 minutes, with a full charge in under half an hour. 

There’s no wireless charging, but the combination of great battery life and fast wired speeds more than makes up for it. 

Software & Apps

• MIUI 14 over Android 13
• No word on Android 14 update
• Three years OS updates, four years security

Unfortunately, software remains the main weakness of the Note 13 Pro+. 

The first disappointment is that’s it’s still running the MIUI 14 skin at launch, which is based on Android 13 rather than the latest Android 14. And there’s no word on when the phone will be updated to Xiaomi’s new Android 14-based HyperOS – the new name for MIUI 15. 

But even when it does, there won’t be any huge changes to the core user experience. And as capable as it is, Xiaomi’s Android skin still leaves me cold. 

As capable as it is, Xiaomi’s Android skin still leaves me cold

The biggest frustration is the sheer amount of bloatware, with dozens of annoying extra apps pre-installed on the phone. These include casual games, shopping apps, music streaming services and social media, plus Xiaomi’s own versions of many stock Google apps. 

Most of these can be uninstalled, but your best alternative for some others is to disable or hide them. Eventually, I…