Xiaomi's Redmi phones have pretty much established themselves as the de-facto choices at nearly every price point in the budget space. The Chinese brand, once considered a tiny upstart, has consistently launched smartphones that deliver tremendous value for money and make their competitors look overpriced. We've repeatedly wondered how far Xiaomi[1] can push this formula, and whether any other company will be able to come in and steal its thunder.
That has happened to some extent at the upper end of the low-cost market this year, with players including Asus[2], Oppo[3] (and now its spin-off Realme[4]), and Infinix[5] launching disruptive models that have earned praise from us. The bottom end, though, is still where Xiaomi dominates. The brand new Redmi 6 models[6] have been launched specifically to reinforce that position, and the Redmi 6A[7] is the very lowest priced model of them all.
Starting at just Rs. 5,999 — though this is an "introductory price" — the Redmi 6A neatly replaces the Redmi 5A[8] (Review[9]) and brings just enough updates and new features[10] to fend off newer competitors. Let's see what's new, and whether this phone is still the best choice for people on a shoe-string budget.
Xiaomi Redmi 6A design
The first thing you'll notice about this phone is that Xiaomi has brought a fashionable 18:9 screen to the very bottom of its price ladder. The front of this phone is simple and plain, and when it's off, the front camera and earpiece are the only things that will indicate which way is up. The screen has very slightly rounded corners, which is a nice...