Xiaomi Redmi Y1 Design
After seeing the Xiaomi Redmi Y1, it can be said with confidence that the impression of the Xiaomi family is clearly visible. If you consider it like Xiaomi Redmi 4 at first glance, there will be nothing surprising in it. Take the phone in hand and you will realize that it is larger than Xiaomi Redmi 4. It has a 5.5-inch screen. In Redmi Y1 you will get a 16-megapixel front camera with selfie flash. Below the screen are capacitive touch buttons for navigation.
This phone is very light at 153 grams and Xiaomi has used plastic to keep the weight down. Chrome accents give the feel of a metal back plate. But the back and sides are made of plastic. The power and volume buttons are also plastic. The 13-megapixel main camera and flash are placed on the top edge, and the fingerprint sensor is placed in the center. The scanner position is convenient. There is a SIM tray on the left edge. You will get 2 nano sim slots. Apart from this, there is also a separate microSD card slot to increase storage.
There’s a microUSB port at the bottom, while the top has an IR blaster, secondary microphone for noise cancellation, and a headphone jack. We liked the build quality of the Redmi Y1. Xiaomi has used good quality plastic which gives it a premium feel. The retail box of the phone is simple. There is a SIM eject tool, a 10W charger and a Micro-USB cable in the box.
Specifications and features of Xiaomi Redmi Y1
To speed up this phone, the company has used the Snapdragon 435 processor. This processor has been used in Xiaomi Redmi 4 (Review). The maximum clock speed of this octa-core processor is 1.4 GHz. There are two variants of Redmi Y1. One comes with 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB of storage. At the same time, the other one is with 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of storage. Whichever variant you choose. You have the facility to use a microSD card up to 128 GB.
The screen of this phone is 5.5 with HD 720×1280 resolution. There’s 2.5D curved Corning Gorilla Glass for protection. The highlight of the Redmi Y1 is the 16MP front camera with selfie flash. There are very few mobiles on the market with this type of sensor on the front panel. The front flash makes the phone more attractive. There is a 13-megapixel sensor with PDAF and F/2.2 aperture at the rear.
The Redmi Y1 battery is 3080 mAh. This is much less compared to the 4100 mAh battery of Xiaomi Redmi 4. For connectivity, Xiaomi Redmi Y1 has Bluetooth 4.2, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, GPS, A-GPS and GLONASS. Accelerometer, proximity sensor, ambient light sensor, electronic compass, hall sensor, and gyroscope are part of it. Both SIM slots support 4G and VoLTE. But only one SIM will be able to use the 4G network at a time.
We have a 3GB RAM and 32GB storage variant up for review. It was running on MIUI 9 Beta based on Android Nougat. There are many new features in MIUI 9. The first Redmi Y1 buyers will get MIUI 8. The stable version of MIUI 9 will be available in the coming weeks. The UI will be updated, but it is not clear whether Xiaomi will update the Android version or not. If you have used MIUI before, the updated user interface will be easily understood. But if you’ve used stock Android or any other skin, it will take some getting used to. The settings interface has changed a bit and MIUI handles app permissions in a slightly different way. As soon as you get familiar with this user interface, you will start to feel MIUI.
You will get new features like dual apps. With its help, you will be able to run two accounts simultaneously on apps like WhatsApp and Facebook on your phone. The phone also has a reading mode that makes the color tone of the screen a bit warmer. Due to this, using the phone at night becomes more comfortable. Many Xiaomi apps will also be pre-installed. Apart from this, the company also has its own store. There is a theme support, with the help of which you will be able to change the appearance of the phone in a few seconds. Tell him we were using MIUI 9 beta. Things may change a bit in the final version.
Xiaomi Redmi Y1 performance and camera
Given the reliable hardware, it’s no surprise that the Redmi Y1 has been a great user experience. The phone unlocks in a jiffy after a quick fingerprint scan. Apps launch quickly too. We liked the accurate color reproduction and viewing angles of the Redmi Y1’s display. You can change the color temperature of the screen according to your choice. The phone also handles multitasking very well. Overall, we liked the combination of software and hardware in this Xiaomi phone.
During testing, we played Clash Royale, Asphalt 8, and Prime Peaks. The phone had no problem running these games. The phone didn’t get too hot even while gaming. However, we found that the battery drained quickly.
The Redmi Y1’s battery is average. The phone lasted about a day in normal use. In our HD video loop test, its battery lasted 9 hours and 45 minutes, which is much less compared to the Xiaomi Redmi 4’s 14 hours and 20 minutes. If battery life is a priority for you, then the Redmi 4 seems to be a better option.
The camera app on the Redmi Y1 is the same as on other Xiaomi phones. It has several modes to choose from such as Panorama, Beautify, and Manual. The app also has quick toggles for HDR and flash, which are useful features. The selfie camera has a quick switch to beautify mode. There was no shortage of detail in photos taken in daylight and colors were pretty accurate too. Camera performance is not very good in low light. The phone manages to keep the noise level down, but the images are not good. You’ll need steady hands to take a usable photo.
The most important feature of this new series from the company is Selfie. We tested the front camera in different conditions. The photos came out sharp in daylight, but zooming in showed a lot of grain. Selfie flash proves to be effective in low light conditions. Portrait shots are good, but grain is still visible in the background. Photos are enhanced thanks to the Beautify mode. But there is nothing to surprise in the front camera.
our verdict
The Redmi Y1 is Xiaomi’s first attempt at making a selfie-focused phone. The hardware is reliable and is fully capable of performing most tasks. MIUI 9 is very smooth and users will get used to it very soon. Camera performance is good in daylight, but average in low light. Speaking of selfies, the flash proves to be useful and the beautification mode also works to some extent. But the output is not always good.
The biggest challenge for the Xiaomi Redmi Y1 is the company’s own Xiaomi Redmi 4 phone. The Redmi Y1 and Redmi 4 are similarly priced and share most of the hardware features. The Redmi 4 has a metal body and a larger battery is available in a more compact body. But the Redmi Y1 also has a larger screen and a front flash. If the selfie is the most important thing for you, you can buy the Redmi Y1. If not, then Redmi 4 is still the leader in this price range.
