Test: Redmi 11 and Motorola Edge

Mobile phone manufacturers want as much as possible for their phones. Not surprisingly. But not everyone can or will pay prices in excess of 10,000 kroner for a new mobile phone.

There is no shortage of options for those who want something much cheaper. Now they also started getting AMOLED screens instead of LCD, which came in handy. We took a look at three new cheap mobile phones and were impressed with the screens that go with them. Even the cheapest Redmi phone, which slips below 3000kr in price, can catch up with many of the higher models.

In addition to having AMOLED screens, it now appears as if a higher refresh rate is becoming standard, even on cheaper models. The Note 11 has a 90Hz refresh on its 6.34-inch screen as standard, and the Note 11 Pro has a 120Hz refresh on its 6.67-inch screen.

The more expensive Motorola Edge 30 varies slightly depending on the need from 60 to 144 Hz on its screen, which interferes with the size of 6.5 inches.

Redmi phones have a fingerprint reader below the start button on the side. Under the Motorola screen.

shrink distance

There is no doubt that the best models are quite impressive. More expensive than Samsung and Apple are technical wonders. But strictly speaking, cheap cell phones do the same thing as expensive phones. Of course, they don’t have good cameras, and they take a lot of bad pictures in the dark, but most of them take quite decent daily photos.

They are not as fast. A cheap phone means a cheap processor. Although Motorola was surprised by the very faster Snapdragon version. It was placed below the much higher models, but it ended up in the middle part.

Now Xiaomi-owned Redmi comes with two new phones; Note 11 and Note 11 Pro. The first at 2363 kr is ridiculously cheap and the second at 3990 kr. It’s cheap so far, but when we look at the specs, it’s actually pretty cheap. However, it may be necessary to stretch the terminology a bit when using the term Pro on such an affordable phone without all the features stretching towards the top.

Opposite the two Redmi models comes the fresh-blooded Motorola Edge 30. Here you have to add just over a thousand dollars on the most expensive Redmi model. But then it also has a lot more to offer. Motorola is really starting to learn about evolution.

It hasn’t been that long since we tested the Edge 30 Pro version, but we might think the Edge 30 impresses more in terms of price. What catches our eye first and foremost is how incredibly thin and light it is. 155g and 6.79mm are really comfortable in the pocket. It has to be the thinnest 5G phone in this category.

cameras

When it comes to cameras, there are trips, ladders, and clogs. You get what you pay for. The two Redmi phones are completely different in terms of the camera. It’s always a good idea to look at the sensor used in the main camera to get an insight into what they’ve handled. At first, all cameras take good photos in good lighting, but when lighting conditions vary, many factors come into play. The cheapest Redmi Note 11 has a 50MP sensor. It looks good, especially when it has bright optics at f / 1.8. But the fifty million pixels are spread over a 1/2.76″ sensor. It produces pixels as small as 0.64 µm. Even when four and four are combined into a 12.5 megapixel image, it relies on a quadruple of tiny 1.28 µm pixels.

Then the older brother a little sharper. It has a 108MP 1/1.52″ sensor with large 0.7µm pixels. Basically not much better on the sensor side, but here are nine and nine pixels integrated into a non-large pixel of 2.1µm.

Neither of the two had optically mounted cameras. This costs money.

Motorola Edge 30 has much better cameras. We found two at 50 megapixels each. Main camera and ultra wide angle. The main camera houses a 1/1.55-inch sensor with 1.0µm pixels grouped together into a 2.0µm quad-pixel. This camera is also optically stable and therefore tolerates more movement when you need longer shutter speeds. As in the dark. The ultra-wide angle is not in the same category, but it has a 1/2.76-inch sensor without OIS.

king of the night

The Motorola phone liked a lot in the night mode. It was actually in the Samsung S22 Ultra range. It brought with it both color and subtlety even though it was quite dark. Much darker than the eye can see.

The two Redmi models don’t come close, and the cheaper ones have a nice little night mode even if you opt for this feature.

The Edge 30 can also shoot in 4K. My Redmi phone can only shoot at 1080p. Motorola can also shoot at 960fps at 720p. It provides the basis for many fun sequences.

performance

What you don’t often get in the cheap part are sharp processors with decent performance. You can’t get that here either, but for many users, there’s not much more to say. If you are not playing and require more price, these are models to take a look.

But having said that, there’s also reason to take a look at the performance numbers we measured. The Redmi Note 11 has a 3D performance so low that we haven’t seen something like this for a very long time. Definitely not the cell phone you want to use for gaming. But we checked if it could be used to display video at all, and he had no problem with it. So the image is not black if you know the limitations and don’t care about them. The Pro model with 5G is more capable, but it’s not a gaming machine either. It still delivers well for the price you pay.

The Motorola Edge 30 is much more straightforward. It has a more expensive processor, the Snapdragon 778G Plus. Together with more working memory, it goes significantly faster, but there is also no better performance for the model. As in the Edge 30 Pro racer, which we tested recently.

The Note 11 is low on the memory side, with a 4/128GB configuration. The Pro model has 6 GB of RAM. Motorola Edge 30 bumps up to 8GB of RAM. The latter does not have, is a path to expand the storage memory. Both the cheaper models of Redmi can offer just that. Glory!

Android

The fact that Redmi is releasing new mobile phones now – with Android 11, is a bit disappointing. They can of course be upgraded to the current Android 12, but then you use the guaranteed update that Redmis promises. They could come up with a better offer, as many do. There may be an update to Android 13 as well. And maybe even longer for security upgrades. But there is no guarantee.

Then Motorola offered much better. It comes with Android 12 and then two and three years of security upgrades. It is much better.

big batteries

Both Redmi models have heavy 5 Ah batteries. In addition, they also have very capable chargers in the box. The smallest is 33 watts, and the Pro model has 67 watts. It ensures long battery life and fast charging. Absolutely perfect out there in the yard, that is.

The Motorola Edge 30 failed to rival that. It crawls a little over 4 Ah, but it’s about weight. It’s extraordinarily light, and it should surpass anything. The consolation is that it comes with a 33W charger.

Once we get into what’s next: Everyone comes with a clear plastic cover. They are perfectly fine. These are not phones in the design icon category anyway.

stereo

It’s not always the case that cheap phones, or mid-range phones, come with stereo – even if the trend goes that way.

All three models have stereos. Both cheap Redmi phones actually have two separate speakers. Motorola, like many, uses the left channel amplifier. It’s a slightly cheaper solution, but it works well here, and it has the best sound. However, it should be beaten by two of its cheaper competitors in terms of size. They, especially the professional performers, play impressively loud. Stereo in this context doesn’t mean you’re getting a lot of a stereo effect, if you don’t hold your head all the way to the long side and in the middle of it. But the presence of two speakers gives a powerful sound picture whether you want to use the phone as a radio or for music.

competitor

Although the two Redmi models are very cheap, they are not alone in this. Nokia, OnePlus and others have very cheap phones. But perhaps the most dangerous competitor is Samsung, which these days is releasing its new Galaxy A33 5G phone. It even crawls under the price of the Redmi 11 Pro 5G and ends up at 3,790 kroner. It also has an AMOLED display, a 5 Ah battery, and a MicroSD card slot. Samsung also provided the phone with a fingerprint reader under the screen, optical stabilization in the main camera and IP 67 against water and dust. What it doesn’t have stereo speakers. In return, it comes with Android 12 and Samsung promised four system updates and five years of security updates.

The Motorola Edge 30 costs a little more, but it’s also worth more. It crawls out to just under 5,000 crowns in the 8/128 GM version.

Conclusion

It’s easy to dismiss the cheapest Redmi phones with their extremely slow processor and limited camera performance. Motorola and Redmi Note 11 Pro are much better and much better respectively. But it’s easy to forget that this phone is super cheap, has an AMOLED display and an impressively large battery – it comes with a 33W fast charger. If price is important, it is very good for money. But of course, the Motorola Edge 30 impressed with just about everything in this price range. Very good pictures, fast enough, very light and very thin.

Motorola Edge 30

Price from 4999 kr

Redmi Note 11 Pro

Starting from 3,490 kr

Redmi Note 11

Price from 2166 kr