Xiaomi has announced the Redmi K20 Pro, the most affordable Android smartphone with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 chip to date.
It's packed with top-of-the-line specs, and it's more or less in the same price segment as Google's $400 Pixel 3a and well below the $670 OnePlus 7 Pro.
'Flagship Killer' Killer
As noted, the Redmi K20 Pro boasts a Snapdragon 855, the latest processor that's commercially available so far. In other words, it's the kind that powers high-end smartphones such as the Samsung Galaxy S10 and Pixel 3.
That's not the only thing that makes it impressive, though. It also sports a 6.39-inch OLED display with a fingerprint reader underneath, and it has a motorized pop-up camera, allowing it to have no notches and nearly no bezels.
Speaking of cameras, its front-facing snapper is rated at 20 megapixels. On the back, it has a triple-camera setup that consists of a 48-megapixel Sony IMX 586 for its primary lens, a 13-megapixel ultrawide lens, and an eight-megapixel telephoto lens with 2x optical zoom.
Regarding memory, it comes in several configurations that range from 6 GB of RAM and 64 GB of native storage to 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of built-in storage, and it's equipped with a microSD card slot to boot. It also has a 4,000 mAh battery with fast-charging support at a rate of 27W. Xiaomi says it can be fully charged in 70 minutes.
It runs on Android 9 Pie with the manufacturer's MIUI 10 on top from the get-go. Of course, it has the other specs expected from high-end phones too, including Wi-Fi 802.11ac, Bluetooth 5.0, and USB-C port. What makes it even more special is it's coming with a "non-flagship" feature as well: a 3.5mm headphone jack.
As announced in a press release, the Redmi K20 Pro will start at $360, and that's for the model with 6 GB of RAM and 64 GB of storage. Meanwhile, the most expensive version is about $430, and that comes with 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage.
It's unclear whether it's going to land on U.S. shores, and it's probably not likely to happen, but aside from availability in China, it could be up for grabs in certain markets in Europe.
The Chinese brand also took the wraps off the Redmi K20, and it differs from the Pro variant with its Snapdragon 730, 48-megapixel Sony IMX 582 sensor, and fast-charging rate of 18W.
Redmi K20 Pro vs. OnePlus 7 Pro
When the OnePlus 7 Pro rolled out, it wasn't exactly the affordable flagship killer that fans knew and loved. Sure, it's still cheaper than the likes of Apple's iPhone and, say, the Galaxy S10. However, it's bordering on the premium price point at $670.
With the unveiling of the Redmi K20 Pro, it's not a stretch to say that Xiaomi has dethroned OnePlus in being the manufacturer of flagship killers.
At that, the Redmi K20 Pro has the same Snapdragon 855 as the OnePlus 7 Pro, a similar motorized pop-up camera, the same 4,000 mAh battery, and the same Sony IMX 586 sensor for their main camera, and it even has a 3.5mm headphone jack, which the latter doesn't have.
To put things into perspective, the Redmi K20 Pro starts at around $360, while the OnePlus 7 Pro starts at $670 — that's a huge difference of about $310.
In OnePlus' defense, the OnePlus 7 Pro is available with 12 GB of RAM, while the Redmi K20 Pro maxes out at 8 GB of RAM.
Across the board, the Redmi K20 Pro ties with the OnePlus 7 Pro and beats it in price, and by the same token, it blows the other smartphones in its $400 price segment out of the water.
