Redmi may have only recently given its Note 11 series a global launch, but reports are already surfacing about the next generation of the Note. Here’s all we know so far about the potential powerhouse that will be the Redmi Note 12.
When will the Redmi Note 12 be released?
We haven’t seen an official date from Xiaomi (Redmi is one of its brands) about when the Note 12 will arrive, but we do know that the strategy of the brand is now to release two series each year. This was reiterated by the Lu Weibing, general manager of Redmi, in a recent Weibo post.
In it he said that, ‘Since last year, the Redmi Note series has launched a product strategy of two generations a year: one generation focuses on extreme performance (Performance King Kong), and the other focuses on all-round experience (experience King Kong), users can choose according to their different needs.’ [Translation by Google].
With the Note 11 series being the lifestyle version, this means that the upcoming Note 12 series should add a bit of oomph to proceedings. We haven’t quite seen the release schedule settle down yet though, as this is when the last two generations arrived:
Redmi Note 11 and 11 Pro: October 2021
Redmi Note 10 and 10 Pro: March 2021
Going by those dates it looks like we’re actually already overdue the launch of the Note 12 series – though bear in mind that the Note 11 had a protracted launch, with an October arrival in China but only going global in early 2022. That late global release might have a knock-on delay for the Note 12 series.
As with many Chinese brands that currently have to deal with the US trade embargoes, the Redmi devices are not expected to be launched in North America.
How much will the Redmi Note 12 cost?
As the phones haven’t been announced yet, we don’t have any confirmed details on cost. That being said, we can look at the previous model to see what you should expect.
We can’t see the Note 12 series moving too far away from these price structures, as they also fit around the Poco and Xiaomi devices that are their stablemates. Of course, the current disruptions to the manufacturing and distribution networks due to Covid and the Ukrainian war could well force prices up slightly. Hopefully not.
What specs and features will we see in the Redmi Note 12?
Obviously, with Xiaomi yet to break cover, we don’t have official specs yet for the various models that will appear in the Note 12 range. We have seen reports of a couple of phones thought to be Note 12 models that were spotted on the Chinese site TENAA that certifies them for use in the region. These were posted on Twitter by tech tipster Abhishek Yadav with several specifications mentioned.
Two Redmi Note 12 series smartphones appears on TENAA certification.
22041216UC & 22041216C4300mAh & 4980mAh- 6.6″ FHD+- 8.8mm thick- Android 12 #Xiaomi #RedmiNote12 pic.twitter.com/TUs3B0RAEP
— Abhishek Yadav (@yabhishekhd)
April 22, 2022
If these are indeed two of the Note 12 series, then it looks like Redmi will be using 6.6-inch Full HD+ displays, which is similar to the 6.67-inch ones used on the Redmi Note 10 Pro and Note 11 Pro.
The 8.8mm thickness stated in the post is more portly than the 8.1mm used on the 11 and 10 series devices, indicating a possible change to the design. While the 4300mAh and 4980mAh batteries are different again, as the previous generations used 5,000mAh or slightly above for most of the devices, with the Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G being the exception thanks to its 4500mAh battery. Both devices shown on the TENAA site support 5G, dual-SIMs, and will come with Android 12.
With that in mind, could it be that these are the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G and Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G models?
Notebookcheck has already reported that Redmi will launch three Note 12 series devices in China, which are expected to employ MediaTek Dimensity 810, 1300 and 8000 chipsets. So these leaked devices could be two thirds of that collection.
We’ll be updating this article as more information comes to light, so be sure to check back regularly to see what we can uncover. Until then, you can also take a look at our roundup of the best budget phones and best budget Chinese phones for more options.
