Xiaomi has remained the nation’s highest-selling model for a number of years now, overthrowing the stronghold of Samsung out there. However what made Xiaomi such a family title? The Redmi Word sequence appears to have performed an essential function. Since 2014, Xiaomi has been unveiling not less than one Redmi Word smartphone in India, and up to now few years, that quantity has elevated dramatically. The corporate is quickly going to launch the twelfth iteration of the Redmi Word sequence. As Xiaomi reaches this milestone, let’s journey via time to see the ups and downs of the Redmi’s signature lineup which has made it the formidable smartphone large it’s in the present day.
Desk of Contents
Redmi milestones
First, some details first concerning the Redmi Word sequence. In India, Xiaomi has offered over 72.4 million Word units and this quantity is 300 million within the world market. The Redmi Word Prime, again in August 2015, was the primary telephone made utterly in India. Other than that, the Redmi Word 3, in 2016 when Jio was introduced, occurred to be the primary machine to assist VoLTE service.
Redmi Word 4G
The very first Redmi Word was launched early in 2014 after it had already been out within the Chinese language market since March. The beginning worth of the machine in India is of little consequence because the machine was discontinued fairly rapidly with the reason is a patent dispute with Swedish telecommunications large Ericsson. I gained’t go into an excessive amount of element right here however it mainly concerned the deferral of royalties owed to Ericsson by Xiaomi for the previous’s patents on 3G, EDGE, and AMR applied sciences. Oh and as part of this, MediaTek chipsets had been additionally banned on Xiaomi smartphones for a number of years.
To counter that, Xiaomi launched the Redmi Word 4G (overview) smartphone which was nearly an identical to the 3G mannequin aside from the chipset housed inside. As an alternative of the MediaTek M6592, the Redmi Word 4G used Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 400 SoC. This made the machine, priced beneath Rs 10,000, one of many most cost-effective handsets to have 4G expertise on the time in India. It simply may need jump-started the 4G revolution in India as nicely. On its inaugural launch day, the handset offered 40,000 items in simply six seconds, claimed Xiaomi.
Redmi Word Prime
Precisely a 12 months after the Word 4G, Xiaomi revealed the Redmi Word Prime smartphone at a beginning worth of Rs 8,499. The machine was the nation’s first Made-in-India providing and was marketed as such. By way of specs, the Word Prime took most of its cues from the Word 4G except the processor which was the upgraded Snapdragon 410. Once more at its worth, the smartphone’s specs had been very aggressive. Nevertheless, not many individuals bought to expertise the telephone due to what Xiaomi did just some months after.
Redmi Word 3
With the Redmi Word 3 (overview), launched simply three months after the Word Prime, Xiaomi was doubling down on what it meant to have a performance-oriented telephone at price range costs. The Word 3 packed a Qualcomm Snapdragon 650 SoC beneath the hood, placing it on energy with units that had been far more costly. Other than that the telephone additionally got here with a fingerprint sensor on the again, a primary for the price range phase.
As well as, the remainder of the specs had been additionally power-driven comparable to a 4,000mAh battery, as much as 3GB RAM, and 32GB inner storage. Business disrupter Reliance Jio was additionally revealing its Jio 4G providers at this level which used VoLTE expertise. The Redmi Word 3 was the primary telephone that would assist this function. All issues stated and achieved, at Rs 9,999, which had turn into just about the usual introductory price ticket for Redmi Word telephones, the Word 3 could possibly be thought of probably the most well-rounded telephone. By September, the machine had crossed 2.3 million in items shipped throughout India, making it by far the preferred telephone within the nation on the time.
Redmi Word 4
With the success of the Word 3, Xiaomi saved the profitable formulation for the Redmi Word 4‘s (overview) unveiling in January 2017. The value was set at Rs 9,999, like earlier Word telephones, and some design tweaks had been launched to make the machine extra premium and sturdy. The SoC launched was Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 625 which was higher than the 650 on the Word 3 however unusually bought a decrease numbering nomenclature. The again digicam bought a 13MP sensor whereas the entrance selfie shooter remained 8MP. This was additionally the primary time Xiaomi launched a 4GB RAM variant, a giant deal for price range smartphones. Because the 12 months got here to a detailed, Xiaomi, propelled by the Word 4’s success, had turn into India’s largest smartphone firm by market share.
Redmi Word 5 and 5 Professional
Roll in 2018 and Xiaomi, for the primary time, introduced two Redmi Word telephones on the similar time. The Redmi Word 5 (overview), a rebranded model of the Redmi 5 Plus, was kind of the Redmi Word 4 however with just a few tweaks, of which the largest was a bigger 18:9 show. Nevertheless, the Professional mannequin launched twin cameras for the primary time on a Word telephone together with being the primary telephone to harbour the Snapdragon 636 SoC.
With its lush metallic construct, efficiency focus, and elevated digicam versatility, the Word 5 Professional (overview) turned the best-selling telephone beneath Rs 15,000. The whole gross sales figures for the Word 5 sequence included 5 million items shipped in just below 4 months, a testomony to Xiaomi’s rising success heralded by its Redmi Word lineup.
Redmi Word 6 Professional
In the identical 12 months because the Word 5 sequence, Xiaomi used the month of November to unveil the Redmi Word 6 Professional (overview). This time round, the machine was full of the identical precise options because the Word 5 Professional however with a serious change within the type of a notched show being launched for the primary time on a Redmi Word. The presence of a notch allowed Xiaomi to place two selfie cameras together with a 20MP main wide-angle shooter.
Efficiency and battery remained the identical which could have left a bitter style within the mouth of followers in search of upgrades. Other than that the machine nonetheless used the dated micro-USB port when a lot of the world was transitioning to USB Sort-C. The Word 6 Professional topped out at 600,000 items offered within the first couple of minutes of its sale. Nevertheless, the machine as an entire was thought of a disappointment because it didn’t match the gross sales expectations set by earlier Word handsets.
Redmi Word 7 and seven Professional
The Word 7 sequence was a landmark in Xiaomi’s price range phase of units. Introduced in 2019, the common Redmi Word 7 (overview) had just a few noteworthy options of curiosity comparable to a waterdrop-style notch on the entrance which elevated the display screen actual property however dropped the secondary selfie digicam within the course of.
It additionally had an all-glass design with Corning’s Gorilla Glass 5 current on each the back and front. Additionally for the primary time, the Word sequence had transitioned to USB Sort-C. Nevertheless, it was the Redmi Word 7 Professional (overview) that captured the creativeness with its 48MP main digicam and introduction of the Snapdragon 675 SoC. Once more Xiaomi turned a disrupter within the beneath Rs 15,000 phase with its aggressive pricing. Just a few months later the Redmi Word 7S was additionally launched as an improve to the Word 7 by introducing a 48MP Samsung ISOCELL sensor for the first digicam.
Redmi Word 8 and eight Professional
Cameras had turn into a brand new focus with the success of the Word 7 sequence, so Xiaomi upped the ante simply six months later with a quad-camera setup on the Redmi Word 8 lineup. Xiaomi caught to its Rs 9,999 pricing however by this time the price of components was undoubtedly capturing up and the machine shipped with the year-old Snapdragon 665. You probably did, nevertheless, have a 48MP main sensor together with 8MP ultra-wide, 2MP macro, and 2MP depth sensors.
The Word 8 Professional (overview) bought a better decision 64MP main digicam and in addition marked the return of MediaTek chipsets on the lineup. It used the gaming-focused Helio G90T for heavy efficiency duties whereas additionally providing as much as 8GB of LPDDR4 RAM. Gross sales figures remained largely the identical as earlier than with 1,000,000 items of the Redmi Word 8 sequence offered within the first month of its launch.
Redmi Word 9, 9 Professional, and 9 Professional Max
This time round Xiaomi revealed three telephones in its subsequent iteration of the Redmi Word lineup. The common Redmi Word 9 (overview), launched barely after the Professional variations, began at Rs 11,999 owing to produce chain constraints brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Contained in the telephone, a brand new chipset could possibly be discovered which was the Helio G85 and on the skin, the show had been moved to a punch-hole fashion. Nevertheless, the remainder of the telephone largely remained the identical. As per our overview, the Redmi Word 9’s efficiency appeared a tad underwhelming when in comparison with the competitors.
The Word 9 Professional‘s (overview) pricing occurred to be a bit complicated at Rs 12,999. Efficiency-wise the Snapdragon 720G being carried out was markedly a bit slower than the Helio G90T used final time round. Additionally, the machine had a 48MP Samsung GM2 shooter versus the 64MP on the earlier iteration. Other than that, the show nonetheless refreshed at 60Hz whereas the competitors had moved on to 120Hz on their respective panels. The compensation occurred within the kind of a bigger 5,000mAh battery with quick 33W charging assist. Within the Professional Max model, just a few differentiating options included a 64MP digicam on the again and a 32MP shooter up entrance.
With the Redmi Word 9 Professional lineup, it appeared for the primary time in a very long time that the competitors is lastly transferring forward within the price range house.
Redmi Word 10, 10 Professional, and 10 Professional Max
With the Word 10 sequence, Xiaomi moved its focus towards the viewing expertise and moved all three Redmi Word 10 units to Tremendous AMOLED panels. This was revolutionary as solely mid-range telephones, inexpensive flagships, and premium flagships had been aware about this type of display screen. The 2 Professional units had been additionally the primary Word handsets to have 120Hz refresh shows which mixed with the AMOLED panel offered a visible deal with beneath Rs 20,000.
Additionally, a set of Dolby Atmos tuned stereo audio system had been additionally launched in each the Professional telephones. Lastly, the Word 10 Professional Max (overview) additionally turned one of many first telephones within the price range class to get a 108MP shooter. The draw back to all this was that the Word sequence had turn into fairly costly in comparison with its earlier price range roots. Efficiency was an afterthought as nicely with most opponents simply outstripping the Word 10 sequence by way of benchmarks.
In fact, there have been a few different Word 10 units just like the Word 10T and Word 10S, however their specs had been largely much like the common Word 10 lineup to deserve an excessive amount of of a point out. It turned obvious that Xiaomi’s technique was to crowd the market with a number of Word 10 variants to extend their market share which is one thing it continued with the Word 11 sequence as nicely.
Redmi Word 11, 11 Professional, and 11 Professional+
In 2022, excessive refresh fee screens penetrated all of the fashions of the Redmi Word 11 lineup. A 90Hz AMOLED was current on the common Word 11 whereas the Professional variants remained on 120Hz. All three telephones really had completely different chipsets however solely the Word 11 Professional+ (overview) was 5G compliant with its Snapdragon 695. Nevertheless, by way of precise efficiency, the Word 11 Professional really fared higher due to its extra highly effective Helio G96. The Professional+ and Professional had a 108MP main shooter however the former lacked the quad-camera setup seen on the latter. All this made it fairly complicated to decide on between the 2 whereas the Redmi Word 11 was being left behind by higher options from Realme and POCO.
Once more Redmi launched completely different variations of the Word 11 sequence to counteract the niggles the preliminary trio confronted. Choices just like the Word 11 SE, Word 11T, and Word 11S sowed loads of doubt within the minds of shoppers. I personally felt a few of the options launched by Redmi within the later levels of 2022, ought to have been a part of the unique Word 11 sequence of telephones. General the Word 11 lineup may need been a letdown for some shoppers.
What can we anticipate from the Word 12 sequence?
With the Word 12 sequence across the nook, what precisely does Xiaomi have in its thoughts this time? Trying on the fashions it has already launched in China, it may be fairly assumed that the top-end model within the sequence will doubtless be the Redmi Word 12 Professional+. The main points shall be revealed on January fifth. I sincerely hope that this time round Xiaomi managed to supply a healthful machine that equally focuses on each side of a smartphone expertise and lives as much as the Word legacy.
