This is a review of the Redmi A5, an entry-level smartphone positioned under 100,000 Nigerian Naira. As far as I can tell, the phone's primary strengths are its low price and its large 5,200 mAh battery, which offers two days of endurance. However, significant compromises are made across the board to meet this price point. Performance is limited by a weak UNISOC T7250 processor and the restrictive Android 15 Go Edition OS, making it suitable only for basic tasks. The 6.88-inch 720p display, while featuring a 120Hz refresh rate, confines this smoothness to the UI only and suffers from low brightness and a lack of protective glass—a downgrade from its predecessor. The 32MP camera system is inconsistent, particularly in processing dynamic range for human subjects, and the single mono speaker and unreliable fingerprint sensor further underscore its budget nature. The phone is a clear case of getting what you pay for: a device with standout battery life but with fundamental limitations in nearly every other area.
A Critical Look at the Redmi A5 Budget Smartphone
0:00 Price and Configurations: Two versions are available. The base model with 3GB RAM and 64GB storage costs just under 100,000 Naira, while a 4GB/128GB version is priced around 110,000 Naira.
0:31 Standout Battery Life, Slow Charging: The phone's main selling point is its 5,200 mAh battery, which easily lasts two days. The included 15W charger is extremely slow, however, requiring 2.5 hours for a full charge.
1:14 Basic Build and No Durability: The phone is made entirely of plastic. While the matte back resists fingerprints, there is no official IP rating for water or dust resistance.
2:30 Poor Audio and Security: It has a single, top-mounted mono speaker with poor sound quality. The side-mounted fingerprint sensor is described as unreliable.
3:07 Severely Compromised Display: The 6.88-inch, 720p IPS display has a 120Hz refresh rate, but this is only active in the phone's UI, not within apps. Brightness is low at 450 nits, making it difficult to see in sunlight.
3:40 Downgraded Screen Protection: The screen has no specified scratch or dent protection, a notable downgrade from its predecessor, the Redmi A3X.
4:42 Limited Performance and Software: Its UNISOC T7250 processor is only suitable for basic tasks like calling and social media. It runs Android 15 Go Edition, which means it cannot run some apps and lacks multitasking features like split-screen.
6:02 Inconsistent Camera System: The phone features a 32MP main camera and an 8MP selfie camera. The secondary "auxiliary lens" is functionally useless. Image processing is inconsistent, with noticeable dynamic range and color shifts between normal and portrait modes.
7:12 Usable but Poor Video: Video is capped at 1080p. Quality is merely "usable" in good lighting, and the digital zoom is not worth using.
8:06 Final Verdict: The phone's value proposition rests entirely on its low price, excellent battery life, and the superficial smoothness of the 120Hz UI. I don't care about the other features, as they are all heavily compromised.