I still remember when Xiaomi first entered the Indian market many years ago. The Redmi Note smartphone catapulted the company into the mainstream, with people lining up to buy one. It was a very different time then, yet years later, Xiaomi continues to sell millions of Redmi Note devices.
However, the competition is now far more intense, with numerous brands competing for consumer attention. At the same time, Redmi Note phones are priced significantly higher than they were in the mid-2010s, raising questions about how relevant the Redmi Note lineup remains today.
To find out, I agreed to review the new Redmi Note 15, and see whether the smartphone that made Xiaomi a household name (despite many still not being able to properly pronounce it) has the momentum to be a game changer, or if it’s just another phone in a sea of devices.
Here is my review of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 15
What: Xiaomi Redmi Note 15 | Price: Rs 22,999 onwards (I reviewed the model with 8GB RAM and 256GB of internal storage)
Big screen and lightweight, too
The Redmi Note has always been a big-screen phone, even when other smartphones came with smaller displays. That one aspect, along with its low price, had a significant impact on the market, and Xiaomi benefited. The Redmi Note 15 continues this tradition with a large display. At 6.67 inches, the screen is more than good enough for everyday use. The AMOLED panel is bright and colourful, supports a 120Hz refresh rate, and reaches up to 3,200 nits of peak brightness.
The Note 15 is impressively thin, though not as thin or lightweight as the iPhone Air. (Image credit: Anuj Bhatia/Indian Express)
I spent a lot of time outdoors, and a bright screen always helps, especially as a heavy WhatsApp user. At night, before going to bed, I usually spend a few minutes on social media or scrolling through my LinkedIn feed. The dedicated reading mode is a great way to reduce eye strain, as it automatically adjusts colours based on app types and sunrise/sunset times. To my surprise, the bezels around the screen are thin, and once you turn the display on, the phone doesn’t look like a mid-range device at all.
The Redmi Note 15 strikes me as offering the best of both worlds. While smaller than a 6.9-inch display, the 6.67-inch screen on the Note 15 is still plenty big enough for me. Although it’s not as thin and lightweight as my iPhone Air, many people will still be awestruck by its design and how thin and light it feels. At 7.35 mm, I love how easy it is to hold and carry in my pocket.
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The 6.67-inch screen is big enough for me for everyday use. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)
I do admit that made me appreciate the Redmi Note 15 less, its design, which is a bit bland, to put it mildly. Whenever I look at the Redmi Note 15, it reminds me of computers from the 1990s, dull, unremarkable, beige-coloured machines. This is a common concern among fellow tech journalists as well.
Xiaomi should rethink the design language of the Redmi Note series. Even if it means taking a completely different direction, the company should bring product design to the forefront. Maybe it could play with colours or textures so that everyday consumers feel excited when they see a phone.
Long battery life is the highlight
The Redmi Note 15 is powered by Qualcomm’s mid-range Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 chip. While it can’t rival top-tier processors in terms of raw power, it’s fast enough to make the phone feel snappy and responsive. It is a slightly older chip, but that shouldn’t be an issue when running popular apps like WhatsApp, Gmail, or LinkedIn. That said, the chip inside the Note 15 isn’t equipped to handle the latest and most demanding mobile games. However, I had no issues running casual games.’
The phone comes preloaded with bloatware apps. Not cool in 2026. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)
Battery life is excellent, lasting close to two days between charges with general use, including several hours of active screen time. The sizeable 5,520 mAh battery supports up to 45 W fast charging as well as 18W wireless charging, which means you won’t need to think about carrying a power bank. I am also glad that Xiaomi still includes a charger in the box.
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The phone runs HyperOS, a custom skin layered on top of Android 15. There are plenty of customisation options, which is a good thing and an area where Android phones still have an edge over the iPhone. However, I felt that the HyperOS 2 skin is a bit too heavy for a phone running an older chip, and it can strain performance at times. On top of that, Xiaomi has included pre-installed bloatware that feels unnecessary and slows the phone down. Thankfully, most of this bloatware can be removed easily. Xiaomi says Android 16–based HyperOS 3 is coming soon, and I hope it addresses the issues I have had with the device.
The Note 15 has a big, beefy battery. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)
The Note 15 has two cameras on the back: a 108-megapixel Samsung ISOCELL HM9 sensor, the first phone to ship with it, and an 8-megapixel ultra-wide camera. The main camera is pretty good all around, with solid colour reproduction and dynamic range, and does a decent job in most situations. The 3x lossless zoom via sensor cropping is arguably the best of the lot, producing nicely detailed images with reasonable reach. Overall, the camera on the Redmi Note 15 is quite good, which is rare at this price. However, it won’t match the top camera phones from Samsung, Google, Apple, or Vivo.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 15 camera sample. Image rezied for web
Xiaomi Redmi Note 15 camera sample. Image rezied for web
Xiaomi Redmi Note 15 camera sample. Image rezied for web.
So, should you buy the Xiaomi Redmi Note 15?
The mid-range smartphone market is packed with devices from various brands, and honestly, very few truly stand out. The Redmi Note 15 isn’t trying to be different, and that’s okay. It’s a fairly standard smartphone that does a good job for everyday use.
Sure, the Redmi Note series may not have the same hype it once did, but that doesn’t mean the Note 15 is a bad phone. It isn’t, but it’s not particularly exciting either. Get the Redmi Note 15 if you are planning to replace your old smartphone and don’t want the burden of another EMI in today’s cash-strapped economy.
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