1. 

   The Redmi Note 9 Pro follows close on the heels of the Redmi Note 8 Pro that itself followed the Redmi Note 7 Pro. Even though all these three phones have come up one after another quickly, Xiaomi has somehow managed to make all of them different and stand out - so there’s always something to look forward to. I have been using the Redmi Note 9 Pro for a few days now, and while I reserve my full judgement for my full review, here’s what I can say now. The Redmi Note 9 Pro is yet another ‘pro’ phone from Xiaomi that’s punching way above its weight - in more ways than one. (Photo credit: Saurabh Singh/Financial Express)

2. 

   Xiaomi is indeed stepping things up, although i would like to point out that this is subjective. If you’re already a Redmi Note 8 Pro user, chances are you’d find fewer differences to really care about to convince you to switch. For everybody else, including Redmi Note 7 Pro users, the Redmi Note 9 Pro becomes an instant recommendation. (Photo credit: Saurabh Singh/Financial Express)

3. 

   The Redmi Note 9 Pro uses Xiaomi’s ‘aura’ design with slight colour tweaks – Xiaomi is calling it aura balance this time. The Redmi Note 9 Pro will be available in black, blue and white colour options. In terms of materials, the Redmi Note 9 Pro has Corning Gorilla Glass 5 on the back, front as well as on the new square camera module – the outer frame is still plastic though. Xiaomi has also moved the fingerprint scanner on to the side with the Redmi Note 9 Pro, as opposed to its usual back placing. (Photo credit: Saurabh Singh/Financial Express)

4. 

   On the front, the Redmi Note 9 Pro has a 6.67-inch 1080p+ IPS LCD display with a taller 20.9 ‘cinematic’ aspect ratio. Xiaomi has gone for a Samsung Galaxy S20-like centrally positioned punch hole cutout here. (Photo credit: Saurabh Singh/Financial Express)

5. 

   Under the hood, the Redmi Note 9 Pro packs Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 720G processor paired with up to 6GB LPDDRX4 RAM and up to 128GB UFS 2.1 storage. This is expandable by up to 512GB via a dedicated micro-SD card slot. Software inside the phone is Android 10-based MIUI 11. (Photo credit: Saurabh Singh/Financial Express)

6. 

   The Snapdragon 720G brings, among other things, native support for India’s NAVigation with Indian Constellation or NavIC satellite positioning system developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). (Photo credit: Saurabh Singh/Financial Express)

7. 

   For photography, the Redmi Note 9 Pro comes with four rear cameras. There’s a 48MP main camera, an 8MP ultrawide-angle camera with 119-degree field-of-view, a 5MP macro camera for closeups (up to 2cm), and another 2MP depth sensor. On the front, the Redmi Note 9 Pro has a 16MP camera. (Photo credit: Saurabh Singh/Financial Express)

8. 

   The Redmi Note 9 Pro is backed by a massive 5,020mAh battery with 18W fast charging support – Xiaomi is bundling a 18W fast charger in the box. (Photo credit: Saurabh Singh/Financial Express)

9. 

   The Redmi Note 9 Pro also comes with an IR blaster and 2×2 MIMO WiFi. There’s also a new Z-axis vibration motor for seemingly better haptics plus it keeps the 3.5mm audio jack as well. (Photo credit: Saurabh Singh/Financial Express)

10. 

    Xiaomi has launched the Redmi Note 9 Pro in India at a starting price of Rs 12,999 for the base model with 4GB RAM and 64GB storage, going all the way to Rs 15,999 for the top-end model with 6GB RAM and 128GB storage. (Photo credit: Saurabh Singh/Financial Express)