The Note Pro series is Xiaomi’s answer to large phones that don’t break the bank. Although not the newest edition to the line-up, the Note 8 Pro is one of their best. Let’s dive into the device below.
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The Redmi device comes with a gradient that moves horizontally. It goes from light to dark, which isn’t something you see that often. It caught our attention with the phone’s green variant. There’s a metallic look to them too.
We love how curved its back is. This not only makes it look more expensive than it is, but makes it a dream to hold. The glass it carries can handle a beating. It’s Gorilla Glass 5, so you’re in good hands.
Speaking of hands, how big are yours? We only ask this because the Note 8 Pro is huge. It stretches 6.53 inches across. To be more precise, its dimensions are 161.4 x 76.4 x 8.8 mm. Compared to the newer Note 9 Pro, the phone is just as slim.
If you look at its back, you won’t see a fingerprint sensor. No, it isn’t optical like in most devices these days. It’s on its back. It works snappily and never left us wanting more.
We’re especially glad that it comes with a microSD card. It also has a headphone jack, which is currently a luxury.
Do we think its buttons are easy to reach? Definitely.
We do have a complaint, though. Its camera set-up protrudes. You’ll find it hard to set the Pro flat on a surface.
Considering its price, we’re not fans of its display. A lot of phones nearing Rs.50,000 come with Super AMOLED screens. The Note device disappointed us with an LCD display. It results in colours that aren’t the most vibrant. Next to something like the Samsung M30s, the phone’s screen doesn’t stand a chance.
Its notch is small. We appreciate this as we’re not the biggest notch fans. As it’s barely noticeable, you get a more immersive viewing experience. The phone’s large display also helps with this.
Its display is 1080 x 2340 pixels, which is standard for phones of this price.
If you’re wondering what its screen-to-body ratio is, it’s 84.9%. It’s not bad, but we would’ve loved less bezel.
The Note 8 Pro can easily handle glare. Its display reaches 500 maximum nits, making it bright. It also has great viewing angles.
Last but not least, we have to talk about the glass that protects it. There’s Gorilla Glass 5 on its front. As we already established, it’s very durable.
From the Note 7 Pro to the Note 9 Pro, each new version has had a 500 mAh increase in battery. The 8 comes with a 4500 mAh unit. It performs well. You can expect the device to last well over a day.
Like most phones of this price, it comes with fast charging. An 18 W charger fully charges it in 2 hours and 15 minutes. As you can imagine, it uses a USB-C port to charge itself.
The Note 8 Pro has the Helio G90T inside. It beats the Note 7 Pro’s Snapdragon 675 chip easily. There’s no lag for every-day tasks. Even when things get extensive, the SoC handles things well.
What version of Android does it run? Android 9 out of the box. If you’re expecting Android 10, know that the phone has received the update.
Its memory variants make it snappy too. You can choose from 64, 128, and 256 GB of space. RAM-wise, your choices are 6 and 8 gigs. The 8-gig variant is very good – it makes swiping through apps a buttery experience.
There are many lenses to capture memories with. The primary sensor is a 64 MP wide lens, the secondary sensor is an 8 MP ultrawide lens, the tertiary sensor is a 2 MP macro lens, and the fourth sensor is a 2 MP depth sensor.
To be honest, its camera is not perfect. It captures detail, but its shots are far from colour accurate. Noise is not an issue, which is great, but pictures taken are not as good as in more expensive devices.
We noticed that its camera processing is very aggressive. Although it takes blemishes out of shots, it’s responsible for colours being the way they are.
Speaking of problems, focusing is very iffy.
What about its front camera? There’s a 20 MP wide lens on its front. It’s good but nothing to write home about.
Enjoyed what you read? Let’s compare the phone with a few alternatives below.
The Nokia 6.2 isn’t as big as the Note 8 Pro. It’s only 6.3 inches. Phones in this price range come with glass bodies, and the 6.2 is no different.
Compared to its Redmi counterpart, its body is not that durable. It’s made from Gorilla Glass 3, not 5. This is probably why the phone isn’t as sturdy. It’s 20 grams lighter than the Redmi phone.
Display-wise, you’re met with an IPS LCD screen. You already know how we feel about it. Gorilla Glass 3 is on its front as well, so be careful if you’re clumsy.
Its screen-to-body ratio isn’t as great. It’s only 82.5%.
The Nokia device has a trick up its sleeve. It’s HDR10 rated, so it can produce more colour than its counterpart.
That’s great, but we have to bring up another negative aspect of its display. It’s not as sharp as the Note 8 Pro. Its only 1080 x 2280 pixels.
The Note 8 Pro out-beats the Snapdragon 675 in its predecessor. This means the 6.2’s Snapdragon 636 doesn’t stand a chance.
Like the Pro, the Nokia device comes with Android 9 out of the box. The phone can be upgraded to Android 10, which isn’t much of a surprise.
Its storage options are great. You can only choose from 32, 64, and 128 GB of space, along with 3 or 4 GB of RAM. If 128 GB isn’t enough for you, know that you can expand its storage.
The device has a 3500 mAh battery. It can last about a day. When you hear that it comes with a regular 10 W charger, you might think this is bad news. However, it takes about the same time to charge as the 8 Pro.
Unlike its counterpart, it doesn’t have 4 cameras on its rear. There are only 3. The primary sensor is a 16 MP wide lens, the secondary sensor is an 8 MP ultrawide lens, and the tertiary sensor is a 5 MP depth sensor. In terms of its front camera, there’s an 8 MP shooter.
The M30s has a superior display. If you remember, we compared it to the Xiaomi device. Its display is Super AMOLED, so it’s more vivid and in-your-face.
The phone has a small notch. Its screen-to-body ratio is about as great as its Redmi counterpart. Something else that is the same is their pixel resolutions.
It’s a device that isn’t built as well. You’re getting a plastic body. This is why the M30s is 12 grams lighter.
Samsung loves to place Exynos chips in their phones. The M30s has one in it. Unfortunately, its Exynos 9611 chip doesn’t give the G90T a run for its money.
What version of Android does it run? Android 9 out of the box. Yes, you’re getting the Android 10 update too.
If you care about memory variants, you’re not getting that many options. You only get the device with 64 and 128 GB of space, along with 4 or 6 GB of RAM. If you want to expand its storage, you can easily do this.
The M30s’ battery is great compared to the Note 8 Pro’s. It’s 6000 mAh, letting it last over 2 days. Remember how we said the 8 Pro came with an 18 W fast charger? Its Samsung counterpart has a 3 W smaller one, yet it takes the same time as the Pro to fully charge.
Let’s talk about its camera before we move onto our next phone:
There’s a triple camera setup for you to play with. The primary sensor is a 48 MP wide lens, the secondary sensor is an 8 MP ultrawide lens and the tertiary sensor is a 5 MP depth sensor. Front camera-wise, there’s a 16 MP shooter at your disposal.
Like all the other alternatives, the S1 is not as big as the Note 8 Pro. It isn’t built that well either. The phone carries a plastic body. It’s the lightest phone so far, being less than 180 grams.
Its display is much better, though. It’s Super AMOLED, so it’s very vibrant. Like the other alternatives, the Vivo device doesn’t have a screen-to-body ratio as great as the Pro’s.
The S1 is another device with a 1080 x 2340-pixel screen.
It comes with Android 9 out of the box. The Android 10 update is in the works. Other than the Note 8 Pro, the S1 is the only phone that has a MediaTek processor. The Helio P65 is inside. It’s also the only phone that beats the G90T.
Yes, its storage is expandable. However, you may not want to expand its storage. The Vivo device comes with large storage capacities. It offers 64, 128, and 256 GB of space. Along with this, 4,6 and 8 gigs of RAM are by your side. It’s safe to say the S1 has the best memory variants so far.
Its battery is the same size as its Xiaomi counterpart. That being said, it can last longer. You can expect 2 days out of it. Its superior processor allows this.
Speaking of its Xiaomi counterpart, the S1 has an 18 W fast charger too. Get a good book ready, the phone will take 2 hours to charge.
We should probably talk about its camera. There’s a triple-set up on its rear. The primary sensor is a 16 MP wide lens, the secondary sensor is an 8 MP ultra-wide lens, and the tertiary sensor is a 2 MP depth sensor. Its front camera is impressive. What do you think about a large 32 MP camera?
We think the Note 8 Pro is a good phone. It does well when compared to alternatives. The only alternative that can match it was the Vivo S1.
If you ever had questions regarding the Note 8 pro's popularity, know that it was the 4th bestselling phone worldwide in the first half of 2020. Surpassed only by the iPhone 11, Samsung Galaxy A51 and Redmi Note 8.
At the end of the day, we think the phone would look great by your side. If you’re looking for something a little extra, the S1 would make a great purchase.
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