Xiaomi has had a firm grip over the entry-level and budget smartphone market in India for well over a year now, but the Redmi Y1, which was expected to mark the introduction of its "Youth" series, made little to no dent on the market.














Less than eight months after the Y1 and Y1 lite were launched in India, Xiaomi is already preparing an update. The Redmi Y2 has been launched in India at a price of Rs 9,999 with the top end variant available for Rs 12,999, a price that puts the phone into the same bracket as the Redmi Note 5 and within shouting distance of the Redmi Note 5 Pro it launched earlier this year.
This seems to be a conscious decision by Xiaomi, who feel that youngsters love taking selfies, and a stellar camera is what they want under Rs 10,000. In terms of internals, the Y2 does seem like it offers a good deal for the price and also offers an AI-enabled dual-camera setup which left us in awe on the Redmi Note 5 Pro. The nagging question, however, is whether Xiaomi the Redmi Y2 is a sign that Xiaomi is running out of ideas. The design hasn't changed much and the likes of Oppo and Honor are already taking the lead on that front.
Build and Design: 7/10
The Redmi Y2 is the biggest smartphone Xiaomi has made to date. Now, it's not exactly entered phablet territory, but the Y2 is a big phone. It's even bigger than the Redmi Note 5 Pro which in my opinion was quite big. That said, it still fits well in one hand because of the curved back.
Well, apart from the size, there is little that has changed compared to the Y1 last year. We have the same boring design, which is beginning to become a bit too repetitive on Xiaomi smartphones in the budget. The polycarbonate body feels sturdy otherwise and also makes the phone 10 grams lighter than the all-metal Note 5.
Button placement has not changed either and neither has the placement of the micro USB port and the single, bottom-firing speaker. You also get a 3.5 mm headphone jack and an IR blaster on top. And you also get the same dual-SIM tray.
Features: 7.5/10
The Redmi Y2 has a 5.99-inch HD+ display with an 18:9 aspect ratio. Under the hood, we see that the phone is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 SoC and comes in two variants, one with 3 GB RAM + 32 GB storage and the second with 4 GB RAM + 64 GB storage.
Display: 7/10
Following the 2018 trend of taller displays, the Redmi Y2 gets an upgrade from a 5.5-inch IPS LCD display to a 5.99-inch display with an aspect ratio of 18:9. But thankfully, there's no notch. Unfortunately, the resolution hasn't improved much. It's now HD instead of HD+, but that's only because the display is taller now.
Does it warrant a buy for college-going students and others who just want a good selfie shooter? Under Rs 10,000, yes, totally. But if you look at more basic requirements like a better display, better battery life and even better processing, Xiaomi seems to be in trouble. On paper, smartphones like the Oppo RealMe 1 seems to offer a far superior display and a more capable processor, they're also cheaper.
Rs 12,999 for the 4 GB RAM + 64 GB storage model does seem a tad too high, however. That price puts it just Rs 1,000 shy of the Redmi Note 5 Pro, which is far more powerful and offers a much better camera experience.
This could be a sign that Xiaomi may be finally running out of ideas here, as brands like Oppo and Huawei are beginning to threaten its strongholds, offering not only better design but are also starting to offer better value for the hardware inside their phones. We're starting to see a trend where a Xiaomi phone is not an outright winner in its segment, and that's should be cause for concern.
Yes, the Redmi Y2 is a great phone, but now I'm no longer certain that Xiaomi makes the very best phone in its class.
Made By :-Faizz Sheikh.