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The budget smartphone market in India is heating up now that 5G networks are rolling out across the country. After a pretty dull 2022 for budget phones, companies are eager to tap into pent-up demand among cost-conscious Indian consumers who want faster connectivity without breaking the bank.
Sensing a big opportunity, Chinese phone giant Xiaomi has flooded the market with not one but two new cheap 5G handsets – the Redmi 12 5G and now the very similar Redmi 13C 5G. I’ve been testing out the Redmi 13C for over a week now, and in this review, I’ll give you the lowdown on whether Xiaomi’s latest attempt to dominate the budget 5G space is a winner or just more of the same old stuff.
As someone who’s reviewed the Redmi 12 5G, I wasn’t all that surprised to see virtually the same design reach my hands once again. Xiaomi seems to be embracing minimalism lately, so there isn’t much to tweak design-wise. You still get the dual camera array on the back flanked by the flash on the right. Upfront, the punch hole has been replaced by a waterdrop notch and the bezels seem to have widened.
However, the flashy plastic back panel offsets the minimalism factor. Seriously, it’s got so much going on that you’d be overwhelmed – there’s glitter, there are horizontal lines, vertical lines, and even diagonal lines. Depending on the angle you’re holding the phone, you’ll likely see just a couple of these elements at the same time. It’s visually interesting but far too flashy for my taste. Although I’m positive many will dig the extravagance.
Beyond these bits, the Redmi 13C 5G feels sturdy and solid in your hand. It’s fairly slim at 8.09mm, which is commendable. And weighs 192 grams, which isn’t exactly featherweight but not too heavy either considering the size. I do wish Xiaomi had curved the edges though, since the squared-off sides dig into your palm during lengthy phone sessions. Of course, slapping on a case solves this minor gripe – and we all use cases anyway.
The LCD pops nicely with vivid colours and ample brightness, but the 720p resolution is a bit underwhelming. Xiaomi clearly cut corners here to hit that tantalising price point below the Redmi 12 5G. Thankfully, the 90Hz refresh rate delivers smooth scrolling and animations and is still a major upgrade over jittery 60Hz panels.
MediaTek and Qualcomm are the big dogs when it comes to smartphone chips, and they tend to have pretty comparable offerings. The Redmi 13C 5G packs MediaTek’s Dimensity 6100+ chip, which is a solid match for the Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 in the Redmi 12 5G. It’s not the speediest processor out there, but it runs smooth and cool for the price point. Day-to-day use is mostly jitter-free, scrolling is fine, and apps open quickly.
It’s impossible to fully test the chip’s capabilities in the UI department though, since the 13C 5G runs the same toned-down MIUI software Xiaomi uses on its other budget phones. The animations are stripped down and there’s no blurring or flashy effects, likely to conserve processing power. For instance, the notifications panel is a rather ugly grey. I’ve always felt Xiaomi goes overboard toning things down, and with a decent chip like the Dimensity 6100+, that feeling is even stronger.
For gaming, the Dimensity 6100+ performs a lot like the Snapdragon 4 Gen 2, and therefore makes for a compelling alternative if you’re not a big fan of Qualcomm. BGMI maxes out at Smooth + Ultra framerates (~40 FPS), with no Extreme (60 FPS) option.
Xiaomi recently unveiled its brand new HyperOS skin with enhanced performance and some UI changes, but it’s barely made it to any devices yet. So, it’s no surprise the Redmi 13C 5G doesn’t have it. What does bother me is that it ships with Android 13 even though Android 14 has been out for months now. Stuff like this cuts into the software update support, whenever Xiaomi gets around to saying how many the 13C 5G will get. We hope that HyperOS’s improved optimisation promise also translates to a more complete user interface.
With 5G chips still being pricey, some cutbacks had to be made elsewhere to keep costs down. The Redmi 13C 5G boasts a 50MP main sensor and it performs decent for the price. There’s also a 0.08MP auxiliary camera (no ultrawide here), although your guess is as good as mine about what Xiaomi intends it to do.
Shots under the sun turn out fair, albeit with colours that are warmer than natural. These photos aren’t winning any contests, but they get the job done for social media. You do need to keep a steady hand when shooting and when you get that right, the Redmi 13C 5G can occasionally surprise you with some pretty decent shots in daylight – like the one of the flowers above.
Cropping or zooming in shows a lack of fine details, which is understandable for a budget 5G phone. I’ve seen worse, though. The selfie camera struggles is just passable overall.
In low light, details take a significant hit across both front and rear cameras as noise creeps in – again, not surprising given the price point.
For what it costs, the Redmi 13C 5G isn’t a bad phone. The design’s decent and the performance gets the job done. There are some corners cut to keep it affordable, which I think makes sense since lots of young people want a taste of those zippy 5G speeds. The camera could definitely be better but again, this phone’s main goal is getting 5G into more folks’ hands. For basic stuff like calling and apps like WhatsApp, it works perfectly fine.
The one real issue is that at Rs 10,999, it’s just Rs 1,000 cheaper than the Redmi 12 5G. That phone’s got a better display, a Qualcomm processor that many prefer over MediaTek, a more premium glass back, and better cameras front and back. It’s tough to justify the 13C’s price when you can get better specs for barely more money. And to make matters worse, there’s also the Poco M6 Pro 5G, which has the exact same price as the 13C 5G at Rs 10,999.
I don’t have any complaints about the Redmi 13C 5G – it’s a fair offering on its own. It’s just hard to recommend over the other two better values. So unless out of stock, you’d be smarter to grab one of those instead.
