Infinix Hot 30 | Redmi Note 12 Pro 4G: A comparison

In recent years, Chinese mobile manufacturers Transsion Holdings and Xiaomi have proliferated the Kenyan market with a plethora of devices. Operating through their respective subsidiaries Infinix and Redmi they have produced devices in numbers and variety on offer.

Two such devices that we will be comparing are the Infinix Hot 30 and the Redmi Note 12 Pro 4G.

Both devices were released into the Kenyan market in March 2023 with a slew of features targeted at niche users. The former has a version solely dedicated to mobile phone gamers. The latter on the other hand has a cluster of cameras intended to entice photography enthusiasts.

Here is a side-by-side comparison of the devices’ technical specifications.

Specifications

Out of the box

Both devices are packaged with the basics in their respective boxes. Buyers will find a clear protective case, a SIM key, user manuals and a charging brick in either box.

Neither device comes with a set of headphones.

Exterior and Dimensions

The Infinix Hot 30 is the larger of the two. It measures 6.64 x 3.02 x 0.33 inches in dimensions. The Redmi Note 12 Pro 4G on the other hand is 6.46 x 3.00 x 0.32 inches. It is shorter, less wide and thick in comparison. This marginal difference is especially important to note with respect to holding and using the device. We’ll come back to that shortly.

Both the Infinix and the Redmi have their volume rocker and power button on the right edge. While the power button on the Redmi is raised, the Infinix has its power button set flat against the edge. Given the frequency of interaction with the power button, a flat layout feels firmer and less prone to damage.

The Redmi Note 12 Pro 4G has a 3.5mm jack port, stereo speaker, ambient sound microphone and infrared port on the top edge. Infinix Hot 30 on the other hand has a plain top edge.

Looking at the left edge, it is a tale of two phones again as the Infinix has its SIM tray there. The Redmi has a plain left edge with its SIM tray placed on the bottom edge.

Along with the SIM tray, the Redmi’s bottom edge has its charging port, primary microphone and second stereo speaker. The Infinix’s bottom edge has a 3.5mm jack port, a microphone, a charging port and the phone’s stereo speaker.

Both devices have their primary cameras at the back but with decidedly different implementations. The Redmi Note 12 Pro 4G has gone for the more traditional multi-step bump design. Its primary 108-Megapixel lens sits at the top of the bump with the remaining three and the single LED flash set below it.

The Infinix Hot 30 has a trio of bumps – two for its lenses and a third for its quad-LED flash. While the back of the Infinix is finished with a glass-feel texture, the Redmi opts for a slightly rough texture for its back.

Considering the dimensions of the respective devices and the finish option used on either device, we felt that the Redmi Note is safer in hand. The Infinix’s glass-like finish besides being slippery, is also a fingerprint magnet with any manner of smudging being evident.

Of course, both devices are sold with a clear protective case and that mitigates some of the risk of superficial damage or drops.

Camera and Screen

Infinix Hot 30’s punch-hole selfie camera is 8 Megapixels with a wide angle. The Redmi Note 12 Pro 4G’s selfie camera, also a punch-hole, is 16 Megapixels with a wide angle too.  This difference is marginally noticeable though the Redmi handles low light better.

The cluster of primary cameras is where the difference in performance becomes night and day.

Infinix has a dual camera setup with the main lens being 50 Megapixels for wide-angle photos and videos. The second lens is 0.08 Megapixels and caters to the field of depth in portrait photos.

The Redmi’s primary camera atop the bump is a whopping 108 Megapixels and captures wide angles of both videos and photos. Second in line is an 8 Megapixel lens for ultrawide images capable of up to 120 degrees field of view.

The third and fourth lenses are both 2 Megapixels with the first delivering great macro-photographs and the other delivering great depth of field.

Both devices have similar camera modes with the Redmi including a pro mode in its offering.

In this regard, it just edges out Infinix Hot 30 due to the variety it offers with respect to its cameras. Adding to that the Redmi is capable of capturing videos in 4K at 30 frames per second and in 1080p at 30 and 60 frames per second.

The Infinix only manages 2K video capture and 1080p, both only going up to 30 frames per second.

On the screen, the Infinix with the larger screen has a better pixel-per-inch density giving a sharper colour relay. It does not get as much peak brightness as the Redmi (600 nits against 1100 nits) but still produces an enjoyable viewing experience.

The Redmi enjoys the advantage with its 120Hz refresh rate, with the Infinix maxing out at 90Hz. This has an effect on browsing ease and the speed of gaming which sets Infinix at a disadvantage.

Storage, Performance and Battery

Both the Infinix Hot 30 and the Redmi Note 12 Pro 4G have 256GB of internal storage. RAM allocation differs with the Infinix having a total of 16GB. 8GB is the base allocation expandable to a further 8GB through universal flash storage (UFS). The Redmi also has a base rating of 8GB expandable to 11GB.

The Infinix Hot 30 being a gamer-focused phone gets good gain from the added 8GB of RAM. The Redmi also delivers on the gaming front despite having less RAM added to it. The Hot 30 however claims the crown where RAM-intensive apps are running on the device.

For the operating systems, the Hot 30 comes pre-installed with Android 13 paired with its custom XOS 12.6. The Redmi 12 Pro 4G has the older Android 11 operating system with MIUI 13 as its custom skin.

On the chipset front, the Redmi has the advantage over the Infinix with its Qualcomm SM7150 Snapdragon 732G fit. The Infinix has the less powered Mediatek Helio G88 which has a smaller performance range in comparison. So while the Redmi has less RAM to work with, it ekes out better performance in contrast to the Infinix.

The win continues for the Redmi with its CPU running the Kryo 470 Gold and Kryo 470 Silver cores. These have better latency – response time – than the Cortex A75 and Cortex A55 in the Infinix can provide.

An Adrino 618 graphics card is fitted into the Redmi while the Infinix has the Mali G52 MC2 graphic card. The performance of the two cards is comparable. However, looking at the whole performance package, the Redmi extracts more collectively with less power consumption, unlike the Infinix. The Redmi Note 12 Pro 4G, therefore, scores a win against the Infinix Hot 30 on the performance front.

The devices are on par in the power department. Both spot a non-removable 5000mAh Li-Po battery. As elaborated above, the Redmi extracts better performance with slower depletion of the battery compared to the Infinix. The final win for the Redmi comes in how quickly it can recharge on the fly. It has a 67 Watt power brick, unlike the Infinix with its 33 Watt fast-charging brick. Thus, the Redim uses power better and recharges faster.

Communication, Connectivity and Sensors

Both the Redmi and the Infinix have a cellular connectivity range between 2G and 4G. The Redmi however has the newest LTE-A module denoted by band 66 in its 4G range for an even faster connection. The Infinix in comparison has band 41 as its highest frequency range in the 4G module. The marginal speed advantage in the Redmi is hardly noticeable normally but makes all the difference in low latency situations.

The devices are tied on Wi-Fi with both running version 802.11 dual band.

The Bluetooth module is another area where Redmi wins over Infinix. While both run the Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP 5.0), the Redmi has the newer Low Energy (LE) version. This reduces the energy extracted from both the phone and headphones’ batteries for longer life. Additionally, Redmi’s LE Bluetooth module ensures lossless transmission of data even in areas of competing radio waves.

Both devices have GPS, NFC and USB Type-C 2.0. The Redmi however does have an Infrared module absent in the Infinix. Infinx scores over Redmi with its FM Radio absent in the latter.

The two phones have side-mounted fingerprint sensors of which we preferred the implementation on the Infinix Hot 30. It gives a sense of structural integrity with long-term use.

A proximity sensor, gyro sensor, accelerometer and compass are staples in both devices.

Our verdict

The slightly larger screen is a win for the Infinix as is its 16GB RAM allocation. However, the Redmi runs away with the top honours on multiple fronts including performance and power management.

The Infinix Hot 30 retails at Ksh 22,899 while the Redmi Note 12 Pro 4G goes for Ksh 36,999.

The Infinix Hot 30 is an obvious choice for the price conscious who wants a mid-level, well priced with great features. The Redmi Note 12 Pro 4G is also a great choice for those who wants who want extra features and are willing to add a few more shillings.