Performance or Camera?
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 has created quite a stir in the budget smartphone market soon after its launch. Since the most awaited budget smartphone was out, another Chinese smartphone giant Honor played its card and launched Honor 6X in India. Although both the smartphones are aimed at different consumers, the two still compete because of the similar price tag.
We are comparing the Rs. 12,999 version of both the smartphones to help you find out which one is a better choice for the price.
Performance & Storage
The Honor 6X is powered by the 2.1 GHz, Octa Core, HiSilicon Kirin 655 Processor paired with 3GB of RAM and the Mali-T830MP2 GPU.
While the Redmi Note 4 is powered by 2 GHz, Octa Core, Qualcomm MSM8953 Snapdragon 625 Processor with 4GB of RAM and Adreno 506 GPU.
The Redmi Note 4 definitely looks a bit more powerful than the Honor 6X on paper, but the performance on both the smartphones is impressive during regular usage. Both the smartphones feel smooth but the Note 4 takes the lead when it comes to prolonged gaming, multitasking and doing power intensive tasks.
On the storage front, Redmi Note 4 has just double the storage available on Honor 6X. Where Honor 6X offers 32GB of internal storage, the Note 4 again hits the right spot with 64GB of internal storage. Both the smartphones come with Hybrid SIM slot that supports microSD card in place of second SIM.
With a more reliable Qualcomm processor, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage, Redmi Note 4 is a better choice for aggressive users.
Display
Both the Honor 6X and the Note 4 have a 5.5-inch Full HD (1920x1080) display. Both the smartphones have the 2.5D curved glass on the display.
We cannot rate any of the display panels above the other because it is tough to spot any distinction with naked eyes. Both the displays look crisp and evenly saturated. The colours were a bit punchier on Honor 6X, but both the displays are good for watching videos and reading. Viewing angles are decent, and outdoor visibility is not a problem too.
Camera
On the imaging front, the Honor 6X comes with a dual camera setup with 12MP + 2MP camera setup with dual-LED on the rear, and an 8MP sensor on the front. The 2MP secondary sensor is a monochrome sensor. The Redmi Note 4 comes with a 13MP rear camera and a 5MP front camera with a wide-angle lens that Xiaomi claims has a field of view of 85 degrees.
Without any doubt, the Honor 6X has a much better rear camera compared to Redmi Note 4. The images clicked on Honor 6X looked much crisper and showed better color contrast. With a special wide-aperture mode, you can take a variable aperture photo for various bokeh effects, which can also be adjusted later. Whereas in low light, both the camera captured similar pictures.
The front camera on Redmi Note 4 captures wider area compared to Honor 6X. Other than this, both the smartphones click good selfies in day light but Redmi does slightly better job in low light conditions.
If you love playing with the camera on your phone, you should prefer Honor 6X.
Battery
The Honor 6X comes with a 3,340mAh battery unit, while the Redmi Note 4 comes with a larger 4,100mAh battery unit.
The Redmi Note 4 has a longer battery life and easily lasts more than 1 day.
Software
Both the smartphone come with Android Marshmallow with their own custom UI on top. The Redmi Note 4 comes with the MiUi 8 and the Honor 6X has EUI 5.6 skin on top.
Honestly, software is something that depends on your personal liking. In day to day usage, both the UIs felt smooth and snappy so there is no chance of rating one over other.
Which one to buy at Rs. 12,999?
In terms of performance and battery life, there is no doubt about Redmi Note 4 being the clear winner. But if you are looking for a good camera phone with decent performance and overall package, Honor 6X is not a bad choice either. The camera on Redmi Note 4 is not bad either, but the dual camera setup on 6X steals a few points in this department.
If you can compromise a bit with the camera, then Redmi Note 4 is undoubtedly a smarter choice any day.