Xiaomi Redmi 14C Review: Budget-friendly Phone with Impressive Features

Dhaka
October 22, 2024, 09:16 AM
by Farhana Afrose Rini

UNB News
Dhaka
Publish- October 22, 2024, 09:16 AM
Farhana Afrose Rini
Update- October 22, 2024, 09:43 AM

Xiaomi Redmi 14C

The Xiaomi Redmi 14C, released in August 2024, promises impressive features for budget-conscious buyers. But does it live up to expectations? Let’s find out.

Key Features of Xiaomi Redmi 14C

Design and Build Quality

The Xiaomi Redmi 14C boasts a sleek and minimalist design with an 8.2 mm slim body, making it comfortable to hold and use. The phone features a glass front, plastic frame, and either a glass or silicone polymer (eco-leather) back, offering a range of tactile experiences.

Weighing between 204 to 211 grams, Redmi 14C feels heavier than the slightly lower-priced options like the Infinix Hot 40i (190g) and Tecno Spark 30C (187g). Each of them is available at the official price of 13,999 TK.

Though both of these phones feature plastic frames and backs, they lack the eco-leather option that the Redmi 14C offers. Xiaomi’s design feels slightly more premium. Overall, the Redmi 14C’s design is practical yet elegant, suitable for smartphone users who prioritize style and durability.

Display Quality

The Redmi 14C comes with a 6.88-inch IPS LCD screen that supports a 120Hz refresh rate. This ensures smooth scrolling and a more immersive viewing experience, whether you are gaming, watching videos, or browsing.

The 720 by 1640 pixel resolution, while not full HD, offers clear and vibrant visuals, enhanced by 450 nits of brightness and 600 nits for high brightness mode (HBM). This makes the phone usable even under direct sunlight, although it falls short in sharpness compared to Full HD displays.

The Tecno Spark 30C and Infinix Hot 40i feature HD+ resolution but lower display sizes than the Redmi 14C. In display performance, Redmi 14C outshines Infinix Hot 40i offering a 90Hz refresh rate.

Performance

Powered by the Mediatek Helio G81 Ultra chipset with an octa-core CPU, the Xiaomi Redmi 14C ensures stable and smooth day-to-day performance. It features two Cortex-A75 cores clocked at 2.0 GHz and six Cortex-A55 cores at 1.8 GHz, making it capable of handling multitasking, app loading, and other common tasks efficiently.

The Tecno Spark 30C, on the other hand, features the Helio G81 chipset, providing nearly identical performance in multitasking and app management. The Infinix Hot 40i, with its Unisoc T606 chipset, offers a slightly lower performance level, particularly when dealing with more intensive tasks or high-demand apps.

Gaming Performance

While the Redmi 14C is not marketed as a gaming phone, its Mali-G52 MC2 GPU and 120Hz display make casual gaming enjoyable. Games like Asphalt 9 and Call of Duty: Mobile run relatively smoothly at low to medium settings, though users may experience minor frame drops in more graphically intense moments. Extended gaming sessions are possible without significant overheating issues, although some heat buildup is expected.

The Tecno Spark 30C offers a similar gaming performance with an almost similar chipset and the same GPU, while the Infinix Hot 40i lags behind due to its less powerful chipset. Gamers on a tight budget might prefer the Redmi 14C or Tecno Spark 30C for a more fluid experience.

Camera Performance

The Xiaomi Redmi 14C has a 50 MP (f/1.8) dual-camera system, a 2 MP (f/2.4) depth sensor, and a 0.08 MP auxiliary lens. This setup allows the phone to capture detailed photos in good lighting conditions, with decent colours and sharpness.

Its front-facing 13 MP (f/2.0) camera performs well for selfies, especially with its built-in beautification features and night mode for low-light conditions.

Redmi 14C can capture maximum of 1080 footage at 30fps with both rear and front cameras.

On the other hand, the Tecno Spark 30C also offers a 50 MP main camera but lacks some AI enhancements in Xiaomi’s camera software. The Infinix Hot 40i also features a 50 MP main sensor but tends to fall short in low-light conditions and photo sharpness.

However, Hot 40i offers a 32MP (f/2.2) selfie shooter which is undoubtedly more powerful than the Redmi 14C’s 13MP and Spark 30C’s 8MP front shooters.

Battery Life

A major selling point of the Redmi 14C is its 5160 mAh battery, which provides excellent longevity. On a full charge, the phone can easily last a full day of heavy use, including gaming, social media, and video playback. The phone also supports 18W fast charging, which gets you back up and running fairly quickly.

The Tecno Spark 30C and Infinix Hot 40i both come with slightly smaller 5000 mAh batteries, but the difference in capacity is minor. All three phones feature 18W fast charging, so the Redmi 14C offers a slight edge in battery life, but not by a huge margin.

Software and User Interface

Running on Android 14 with Xiaomi's HyperOS, the Redmi 14C provides a clean and user-friendly experience. The interface is highly customisable and comes with various features tailored to Xiaomi devices, such as battery optimisations and privacy tools. However, some users might find the bloatware a bit overwhelming, though most of it can be removed.

Tecno Spark 30C sports Android 14 HiOS, while Infinix Hot 40i runs on Android 13 XOS. These skins are feature-rich but can sometimes feel bloated, making the Redmi 14C's HyperOS a more refined and smoother experience for users who prefer a lighter, more responsive UI.

Storage Options

With RAM options ranging from 4GB to 8GB Redmi 14C is equipped to meet the needs of most users.

It offers a variety of storage options, ranging from 128GB to 256GB with expandable storage via a dedicated microSD slot. This provides ample room for apps, photos, and videos, particularly for users who opt for the larger variant.

Tecno Spark 30C and Infinix Hot 40i offer similar RAM and storage options.

Pros and Cons of Xiaomi Redmi 14C

Pros

- 120Hz display ensures smooth browsing and gaming
- 50 MP camera takes sharp images in good lighting
- Long battery life with a 5160 mAh battery
- Expandable storage with up to 256GB
- Android 14 with HyperOS offers a customisable experience.

Cons

- 720p resolution lacks sharpness on a large screen
- Weak low-light camera performance
- Heavier design at over 200g.

Price of Xiaomi Redmi 14C

The Xiaomi Redmi 14C is priced at BDT 14,999 for the 6/128GB variant, while the 8/256GB version is available at an unofficial price of BDT 19,700.

Verdict

The Xiaomi Redmi 14C is an excellent choice for users who need reliable performance, a good processor, a high refresh rate, and a long battery life. It is ideal for casual users seeking a budget-friendly smartphone for daily use. However, it is not suited for heavy gamers or photography enthusiasts who need top-tier performance or low-light camera capabilities. Overall, it offers great value for everyday use at an affordable price.