Xiaomi Redmi Note 15 Pro Plus

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 15 Pro Plus is listed at Rs. 164,995 for the 12GB + 512GB model, the only variant sold in Pakistan. At that price it is a strong all-rounder with one clear weak spot: speed for the money.

What you get:

• One of the best screens in its class, a large and bright 6.83-inch 12-bit AMOLED panel
• Excellent toughness, with IP68 and IP69K ratings and Gorilla Glass Victus 2
• A 6500 mAh battery with a 100W charger in the box
• 5G, NFC and loud, clear stereo speakers

What you give up: the Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 is good but not fast for this price, and the phone uses older LPDDR4X RAM and UFS 2.2 storage, which many rivals at this level have moved past. There is no telephoto camera, and the ultrawide is weak.

Against the picked alternatives: the Oppo Reno 16F (Rs. 139,495) is cheaper and has a bigger 7000 mAh battery and a 50 MP ultrawide, but a smaller, dimmer screen. The Samsung Galaxy A57 (Rs. 165,495) promises up to 6 major OS updates but has a smaller 5000 mAh battery and slower 45W charging.

Verdict: worth it if you want a rugged phone with a top screen, long battery life and very fast charging. If raw performance or camera zoom matters most, look elsewhere, or wait for a price cut.

The display is the Redmi Note 15 Pro Plus's best feature. It is a 6.83-inch AMOLED panel at 1280 x 2772 resolution, sharper than the Full HD screens on most rivals, with a 120Hz refresh rate.

• Colour and HDR: it is a 12-bit panel with HDR10+ and Dolby Vision. Dolby Vision works well on the major streaming apps, so films and series look rich and detailed.
• Brightness: Xiaomi quotes 3200 nits peak, and real-world brightness is good outdoors.
• Eye comfort: 3840Hz PWM dimming, about double the previous model, reduces flicker for long night-time use.
• Shape: the screen curves gently on all four edges. It feels flat in use, but the curve makes swipe gestures from the bottom feel natural and improves grip.
• Protection: Gorilla Glass Victus 2 covers the front.

The only real complaint is size: the phone is a little wider than usual, which some people with smaller hands may notice.

The phone runs the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 (4 nm) with an Adreno 810 GPU and 12GB RAM in Pakistan.

• Everyday use: apps, social media, browsing and multitasking run without lag. Benchmark scores in Pakistani testing were slightly above typical for this chipset.
• Gaming: PUBG runs at up to 60fps, and the higher frame-rate options are not unlocked on this phone. Demanding games are playable but not its strength.
• Heat: in independent stress tests, it kept close to full performance and only got a little warm, so long sessions do not slow it down much.
• Storage: LPDDR4X RAM and UFS 2.2 storage are older and slower than the UFS 3.1 or 4.0 found in many phones at this price. Installing apps and copying large files takes longer.

The main criticism is value: phones with the stronger Snapdragon 7 Gen 4 or similar chips cost about the same. For normal users it is smooth and reliable; for gamers it is not the best performance for the money.

The rear setup is a 200 MP main camera with OIS and an 8 MP ultrawide. The 2 MP macro camera of the older model has been dropped. The front camera is a new 32 MP sensor.

• Main camera: good detail, natural colours and decent dynamic range in daylight. Low-light photos are bright and usable. Colours lean natural rather than brightened, which some buyers may find less flattering at first.
• Portraits: there is no telephoto lens, so portrait shots rely on cropping. Results are decent, but not a strength if you take a lot of portraits.
• Ultrawide: the same 8 MP sensor as before, and its photos look soft.
• Selfies: a clear improvement, with good detail and an HDR preview on the front camera.
• Video: the main camera records up to 4K at 30fps with OIS and gyro-EIS, and stabilisation is decent. The ultrawide and selfie cameras stop at 1080p, and there is no 4K at 60fps.

Overall, the camera is good for the main lens and selfies, but missing zoom and a weak ultrawide hold it back at this price.

The Redmi Note 15 Pro Plus uses a 6500 mAh silicon-carbon battery, which adds capacity without making the phone much thicker.

• Battery life: independent testing shows a big improvement over the Redmi Note 14 Pro Plus, and day-to-day endurance is very good. Most users should get through a full day with plenty to spare.
• Charging: a 100W HyperCharge charger is in the box. Xiaomi claims a full charge in about 40 minutes, and independent testing came close to that.
• Reverse charging: it can fast-charge earbuds or another phone by cable at up to 22.5W.
• Battery care: HyperOS can limit charging to 80% or adapt to your charging habits to help the battery last longer.

The older model came with a faster charger, but in real use the difference is small. There is no wireless charging listed in its specifications.

The phone ships with HyperOS 2 on Android 15, which is a generation behind for a phone launched with Android 16 already out. In Pakistan, an update to HyperOS 3 on Android 16 arrived right after setup.

• Updates: Xiaomi promises 4 major Android upgrades and 6 years of security patches for the Redmi Note 15 series, matching our database.
• AI features: Google Gemini, Circle to Search, AI subtitles, AI writing and translation, AI wallpapers, and photo tools such as AI erase, sky replacement and background cut-out. These are useful but lighter than the AI suites on pricier phones.
• Useful extras: an IR blaster to control your TV or AC, NFC, the T1S signal chip for better network reception, and Xiaomi's offline communication feature.
• Stability: no major bugs have been reported on HyperOS 2 for this phone.

We could not verify how many preinstalled apps or system ads the Pakistani unit ships with, so check the recommendation settings during setup.