Xiaomi has just taken the covers off its new Redmi Note 2, an affordable priced phablet for the masses. While the previous Redmi Note is seen as a cheap and good, the new version has moved the Redmi series up to the flagship league while maintaining its affordable price of under 1,000 CNY (RM625).

The Redmi Note 2 is much thinner, lighter and narrower than the previous Redmi Note thanks to its compact design and narrower bezels. It looks like a bigger Mi 4i and it has a 5.5″ IPS display which now pushes Full HD 1080p resolution. Overall, it is 8.25mm thin and weighs just 160 grams.

The Redmi Note 2 is definitely no slouch as it gets MediaTek’s 64-bit Helio X10 MT6795 Octa-Core processor, which is the same unit that’s powering the Meizu MX5 and HTC One M9+. It consists of True 8x A53 cores that can run simultaneously.

There are 2 versions available – A standard Redmi Note 2 getting a 2.0GHz Octa-Core processor with 2GB LPDDR3 RAM and 16GB of storage, while the Redmi Note 2 Prime has a higher clocked 2.2GHz Octa-Core processor with 2GB LPDDR3 RAM and 32GB of storage. According to Xiaomi, the Redmi Note 2 Prime scores over 54K on Antutu which even surpasses its own Mi 4i and Mi Note flagships.

For taking pictures, it not only gets a 13MP f/2.2 camera but it comes with Phase Detection Auto Focus that boast an ultra-fast 0.1 focus speeds. For the front it gets a 5MP shooter with Xiaomi’s own beautify mode. Also new for a Redmi series is an Infrared blaster which can be used as a universal remote. The Redmi Note 2 also comes with a microSD expansion slot and it is juiced up by a 3,060mAh removable battery that supports QuickCharge 2.0.

In terms of connectivity it has faster 802.11ac WiFi and it also supports dual-SIM cards with 4G LTE. At time of release, the Redmi Note 2 is still running on MIUI 6 but it will be upgraded to MIUI 7 eventually.

The Redmi Note 2 is priced at 799 CNY (RM499) for its China only TDD-LTE+TD-SCDMA variant, and 899 CNY (RM561) for its TDD-LTE + FDD-LTE version. Meanwhile the high-spec Redmi Note 2 Prime which supports both TDD-LTE and FDD-LTE standards is priced at 999 CNY (RM624). This is probably the best smart phone under RM800 right now. The only question is how soon will it take for Xiaomi to release it in South East Asia.

For more info, you can check out the Redmi Note 2 product page.

Redmi Note 2 Promo Images