Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 vs Honor 6X: Which One Should You Buy?

Xiaomi and Huawei's Honor brand recently launched their contenders for the best sub-Rs. 15,000 smartphone crown in the market, with the Xiaomi Redmi Note 4(Review) and the Honor 6X(Review) smartphone in India just a while ago. While Xiaomi has variants starting at Rs. 9,999 and going up to Rs. 12,999, Honor's got two variants - one priced at Rs. 12,999 and the other at Rs. 15,999.

Both the Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 and Honor 6X - which offer good specifications at an affordable price tag - join many other competitively priced smartphones in the country, vying for the attention of the budget-friendly audience. Both the smartphones have gone on sale last week on different online portals in the same price vicinity.

Price, availability, colour options
While the Redmi Note 4 is available Mi.com (will come to Flipkart later), the Honor 6X is available via flash sale on Amazon India exclusively. The Honor smartphone was launched in two variants in India - 3GB RAM + 32GB inbuilt storage priced at Rs. 12,999, and 4GB RAM + 64GB inbuilt storage at Rs. 15,999.

The Redmi Note 4 is available in three variants - 2GB RAM + 32GB storage at Rs. 9,999, 3GB RAM + 32GB storage at Rs. 10,999, and the 4GB RAM + 64GB storage at Rs. 12,999. The Redmi Note 4 is available in Black, Gold and Grey, while the Honor 6X is available in Gold, Grey and Silver colour options.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 4X Launch Set for February 8

Design, specifications
Both the devices have a fingerprint scanner at the back with metal and plastic combination builds. The Honor 6X ups the ante in the camera department with a dual camera setup. As for the front, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 has capacitive backlit navigation buttons, while the Honor 6X has onscreen keys.

With respect to specifications, both the smartphones feature a similar 5.5-inch full-HD (1080x1920 pixels) display. The Honor 6X comes with an in-house Kirin 655 SoC, while the Redmi Note 4 sticks to the Qualcomm processor with Snapdragon 625 SoC. The smartphones are also available in different RAM/storage bundles as listed above, with the highest being 4GB RAM and 64GB storage. Here it's worth noting that the highest bundle is priced at Rs 12,999 by Xiaomi, while Huawei offers the highest bundle variant for Rs. 15,999. Both come with a hybrid dual-SIM card slot allowing for further storage expansion.

In the camera department, the Honor 6X holds more weight with a dual 12-megapixel and 2-megapixel sensor at the back with LED flash. At the front, there is an 8-megapixel sensor. The Xiaomi Redmi Note 4, in comparison, sports a 13-megapixel rear sensor with LED flash, and a 5-megapixel front sensor. Both the devices come with 1080p video shooting support.

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 comes with a larger 4100mAh battery, while the Honor 6X comes with a 3340mAh battery. Both the smartphones support 4G with VoLTE, and run on Android 6.0 Marshmallow (with their own skins on top).

The big highlight of the Honor 6X is its dual camera setup at the back. In all the other departments, the Redmi Note 4 gives it a tough fight, what with its massive battery and a little cheaper price. Your purchase decision should largely be affected by camera preferences. Furthermore, the Honor 6X is available on Amazon India only through the flash sale for now.

Overall
In our review, we found the Honor 6X to be a dependable option to consider, like its predecessor, however, without offering any standout feature that would make you want to rush out and buy it. We wish Honor had paid attention to finer details like Wi-Fi 802.11ac support, a USB Type-C connector, true dual-SIM functionality like the 5X, and perhaps a simpler look and feel to EMUI. The dual-camera setup feels gimmicky and unnecessary, and low-light performance could have been much better.

As for the Xiaomi Redmi Note 4, we found it to be a great package with the only downsides being its hybrid SIM slot, lack of quick charging, and excess of preloaded apps. It scores well in terms of design, battery life, and performance. For those who are looking for a smartphone with a big screen and great battery performance on a budget, the Redmi Note 4 is easy to recommend.

For a detailed comparison, check out the specifications table below: