Redmi Note 5 vs Redmi Note 5 Pro: What’s the Difference?

BY Rajesh Pandey

Published 14 Feb 2018

Xiaomi today unveiled the Redmi Note 5 and Redmi Note 5 Pro in India. Up until last year, there was no ‘Pro’ variant in the Redmi Note series but Xiaomi has changed things around this year to cater to different needs of customers. So, what are the differences between the Redmi Note 5 and Redmi Note 5 Pro?

Before you jump over to the differences below, you need to know that the Pro is meant for hardcore gamers and heavy users who want a slightly better camera performance on their phone. This does not mean that the regular variant of the Redmi Note 5 is a bad phone by any means though.

Basis of Difference Redmi Note 5 Redmi Note 5 Pro
Dimensions 158.5 x 75.45 x 8.05 mm 158.6 x 75.4 x 8.05 mm
Weight 180g 181g
Display 5.99-inch FHD+ (2160 x 1080), 2.5D curved Gorilla Glass 3 5.99-inch FHD+ (2160 x 1080), 2.5D curved Gorilla Glass 3
Chipset Octa-core Snapdragon 625 chip @ 2GHz Octa-core Snapdragon 636 chip @ 1.8GHz
GPU Adreno 506 Adreno 510
RAM 3/4GB RAM 4/6GB RAM
Storage 32/64GB 64GB
Rear Camera 12MP F/2.2, 1.25um pixel, Dual-LED flash 12MP F/2.2, 1.25um pixel, Dual-LED flash
Front Camera 5MP, LED selfie light, Beautify 3.0 20MP, LED selfie light, Beautify 4.0
Sensors Fingerprint scanner (Rear), Gyroscope, Accelerometer, Proximity, Ambient light sensor, eCompass Fingerprint scanner (Rear), Gyroscope, Accelerometer, Proximity, Ambient light sensor, eCompass
Connectivity LTE, (Hybrid) Dual SIM, GPS, Wi-Fi b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.1, microUSB LTE, (Hybrid) Dual SIM, GPS, Wi-Fi b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.1, microUSB
Battery 4000mAh 4000mAh
Software MIUI 9, Android 7.1.2 MIUI 9, Android 7.1.2
Others Face Unlock

As you can see from the comparison chart above, the Redmi Note 5 Pro comes with a more powerful Snapdragon 636 chipset. In fact, it is the first phone in the world to make use of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 636 chip which features the company’s custom designed Kryo cores. Apart from the more powerful chipset, the Redmi Note 5 Pro is offered by Xiaomi in a 6GB RAM variant as well. The additional 2GB of RAM is unlikely to make any huge difference in performance though unless you are a heavy multitasker. The other major difference between the Redmi Note 5 and Note 5 Pro is the dual-camera setup on the latter. While both phones come with a primary 12MP f/2.2 shooter, the Redmi Note 5 Pro features a secondary 5MP shooter that is used to capture depth information to add a bokeh effect in photos.

The Redmi Note 5 Pro also comes with a higher resolution 20MP selfie shooter at its front compared to the regular 5MP sensor found on the Redmi Note 5. Apart from capturing more detailed selfies, the higher resolution selfie camera on the Redmi Note 5 Pro allows it to offer face unlock which is missing from the regular variant of the handset.


What do you think about the Redmi Note 5 and Redmi Note 5 Pro? Do you think the extra horsepower offered by the Redmi Note 5 Pro will come in handy in your daily use? Drop a comment and let us know.