Xiaomi has officially unveiled the Redmi Note 10 series worldwide, with three phones confirmed to launch in the UK and Europe – including the photography-focussed Note 10 Pro.
The Note 10 Pro is headlined by a 108Mp quad camera, backed up by an ultrawide, macro, and depth sensor. The ultra-high resolution camera uses 9-in-1 pixel binning to maximise the dynamic range of photos, though note that this is a smaller camera sensor than the one found in Xiaomi’s Mi 11 flagship, also headlined by a 108Mp shooter, so don’t expect quite the same results.
The camera is joined by a flat 6.67in 120Hz AMOLED screen, 33W fast-charging for the hefty 5020mAh battery, and a Snapdragon 732G on the inside – the same 4G chipset that powers the Poco X3 NFC, currently our top budget phone recommendation.
The Note 10 Pro will be joined in the UK by the lower-spec Note 10S and Note 10 5G to round out the Redmi Note 10 range.
The Note 10S has a slightly smaller, 60Hz panel and drops down to a 64Mp main camera. It also uses the MediaTek Helio G95 instead of the more powerful Snapdragon chip, making it a more typical budget device.
For those hesitant to commit to a 4G phone in 2021, there’s also the Redmi Note 10 5G. The MediaTek Dimensity 700 handles processing and the 5G networking, and you’ll get a 90Hz LCD panel (instead of AMOLED), while camera specs drown to again to 48Mp, with no ultrawide. You also lose the IP53 water-resistance found on the other devices and drop to slower 18W charging, so you’re giving up a lot for the sake of a 5G connection.
Xiaomi also unveiled a standard Redmi Note 10, which is getting a global release but doesn’t yet have confirmed UK launch plans. It’s pretty much the same as the Note 10S, but swaps in a Snapdragon 678 chipset and drops the main camera to 48Mp, so we’re probably not missing much.
To confuse things a little further, earlier today the company revealed the Redmi Note 10, Note 10 Pro, and Note 10 Pro Max for India, but the spec sheets vary from the global releases. The standard Note 10 seems to be the same everywhere, while the Indian Note 10 Pro Max looks to be a match for the global Note 10 Pro, but the Indian Note 10 Pro doesn’t have an exact counterpart in the global release.
Xiaomi hasn’t yet confirmed UK prices for the phones, but globally the Note 10 Pro will start from US$279 for 6GB RAM and 64GB storage, with the Note 10S kicking off at $229 for the same configuration, and the Note 10 and Note 10 5G beginning at just $199 – though all four are available at cheaper early bird prices from launch, with $20-30 discounts across the board. Though Xiaomi gives prices in USD, these are guidelines only, and the phones aren’t expected to actually launch in the US.
Last year’s Redmi Note 9 series started from £179, so expect something similar when the phones do land here. The Note 10 Pro should arrive in the UK in early April, with the 10S and 10 5G set to arrive over the following few months – though other markets will get those two from April too.
Author: Dominic Preston, Deputy Editor
Tech Advisor's Deputy Editor, Dom covers everything that runs on electricity, from phones and laptops to wearables, audio, gaming, smart home, and streaming - plus he's a regular fixture on the Tech Advisor YouTube channel.