Redmi Note 14 Pro+: Diamond-Grade Quality, Five-Year Peace of Mind

Redmi Note 14 Pro+: Diamond-Grade Quality, Five-Year Peace of MindThe Redmi Note series is renowned for its "Little Diamond" moniker, with exceptional quality being a constant focus for users. With each generation, Redmi releases a series of "Little Diamond Challenge" videos, showcasing their commitment to phone durability

Redmi Note 14 Pro+: Diamond-Grade Quality, Five-Year Peace of Mind

The Redmi Note series is renowned for its "Little Diamond" moniker, with exceptional quality being a constant focus for users. With each generation, Redmi releases a series of "Little Diamond Challenge" videos, showcasing their commitment to phone durability. As consumers demand longer phone lifespans and the risks of accidental damage increase, robust drop and water resistance become increasingly important. The Redmi Note 14 series has invested heavily in quality, adopting a new "Diamond" architecture and achieving the full spectrum of IP ratings: IP66, IP68, and IP69 surpassing the quality of most flagship phones. Beyond its outstanding durability, the Note 14 series offers numerous surprises. Let's delve into the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ for an in-depth experience.

Design: "Grand Slam" Waterproof Diamond Structure, Robust and Drop-Resistant

Unlike the sharply angled design of its predecessor, the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ incorporates more curved elements. While this sacrifices some of the refined aesthetic of straight edges, it significantly improves the hand feel. The camera module is centrally positioned with a similarly rounded design. This creates a stark visual contrast with previous generations, enhancing its recognizability. The repositioned camera offers a geometrically pleasing central symmetry, complemented by engraved textures along the edges, resulting in a sophisticated overall look that highlights Redmi's design attention to detail.

The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ is available in three colors: Starry Sand Blue, Mirror Porcelain White, and Midnight Black. Our review unit, Starry Sand Blue, features a wave-like texture, visually reminiscent of crashing waves, and combined with the teal color, offers a unique Oriental aesthetic. The device features a glass back with a fully curved design for a comfortable grip. At 8.66mm thick and 210.8g, it's slightly heavy, reflecting the high-quality materials used.

The front boasts a 6.6-inch high-end display with a 1.5K resolution and a peak brightness of 3000 nits exceptional for its price range. We measured a brightness of 2797 nits, ensuring effortless viewing of videos and text even in bright sunlight. The 120Hz high refresh rate provides smooth and fluid motion. This outstanding screen also features Xiaomi's TrueColor display and Eye Protection mode, along with 20,000-level automatic brightness adjustment and 1920Hz high-frequency PWM dimming, automatically adjusting color temperature and brightness for optimal viewing comfort and eye protection.

The curved screen contributes to impressively thin bezels, particularly the bottom bezel, which is comparable to high-end models. The screen is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2, while the back uses Corning Gorilla Glass 7i, greatly enhancing drop and scratch resistance. Combined with the "Diamond" architecture, which physically thickens the frame and corners, the phone provides all-around protection, withstanding drops from a height of 1.8 meters onto a marble surface. In our testing, it survived a 1.5-meter drop onto a wooden floor without any screen damage.

The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ boasts IP66, IP68, and IP69 water resistance a "grand slam" of protection. Previously, IP68 was the common standard, offering protection against submersion but limited defense against other water-related scenarios. IP66 protects against jets of water, while IP69 withstands high-pressure, high-temperature water jets. This robust water resistance means the phone can withstand submersion, heavy rain, and even accidental drops into a hot pot without damage. We tested this by submerging the phone in a deep water tank (provided by Redmi at their launch event) for 10 minutes; it powered on and functioned normally afterwards. Redmi has also developed a wet-hand algorithm, ensuring accurate touch input even with wet, oily, or soapy hands.

Performance: First-Gen Snapdragon 7s Gen 2, Mid-Range Performance

The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ globally premieres the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 processor, manufactured using TSMC's 4nm process. It features a 1+3+4 CPU architecture: 12.5GHz A720, 32.4GHz A720, and 41.8GHz A520. AI performance is improved by 30%, supporting various on-device AI functions. Storage options go up to 16GB+512GB, with an additional 6GB of expandable RAM. A large 5000mm VC cooling system ensures optimal performance.

The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ delivers mid-range performance, scoring approximately 761051 on AnTuTu, around 1148 on GeekBench 6 single-core, and 3357 on multi-core. This is sufficient for everyday tasks, providing smooth and reliable operation. In gaming, it supports 120fps at high settings in Honor of Kings and achieves an average frame rate of 39.5fps at the highest settings in Genshin Impact. While Genshin Impact at maximum settings is demanding, the performance remains acceptable. Power consumption is low at 4.81W, and heating is moderate, with front and back temperatures around 42.5C and 42.9C respectively, resulting in a comfortable hand feel.

Battery Life: 6200mAh Large Battery, 50-Minute Full Charge

The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ excels in battery life, incorporating flagship-level Jinshajiang battery technology, offering high energy density, low-temperature performance, and longevity. The 6200mAh battery provides exceptional reassurance. The combination of the large battery, 4nm processor, and HyperOS optimization results in astonishing battery life. In a 3-hour test, it consumed only 28% of the battery, leaving 72% remaining, ranking fifth in our 2024 battery life rankings. Extrapolating from this, the Redmi Note 14 Pro+ theoretically achieves almost 11 hours of heavy use. Daily usage results in lower power consumption; photography is relatively power-intensive.

The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ uses 90W fast charging. While slower than some competitors, the 6200mAh + 90W combination is more practical than a 5000mAh + 120W setup, given its significantly longer battery life. The 90W charging is fast; we measured a 47% charge in 15 minutes, 81% in 30 minutes, and a full charge in approximately 50 minutes. This is impressive for a 6200mAh battery.

The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ is not only long-lasting but also highly durable. The battery incorporates a solid-state electrolyte, reducing internal resistance in low temperatures and allowing stable discharge down to 2.8V. In -20C environments, it supports video calls for 7.57 hours. This is particularly useful as winter approaches. The battery offers a 1600-cycle lifespan, retaining over 80% capacity after 1600 cycles more than four years of daily charging. Redmi offers a five-year warranty on the battery for initial purchasers, demonstrating confidence in its longevity. In practice, daily charging is unnecessary.

Camera: Full-Focal Length Triple Camera System, Lossless 5X Zoom

The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ also impresses in the camera department, featuring a 2.5x optical zoom telephoto lens, achieving lossless 5x zoom through 50MP cropping, and supporting up to 30x hybrid zoom. In terms of telephoto performance, the Note 14 Pro+ has an overwhelming advantage in its price range.

The main camera uses a 50MP wide-angle lens with a large 1/1.55-inch Sony IMX800 sensor, supporting 2m merged pixels and two levels of 16x native ISO fusion output, achieving a dynamic range of 13.2EV. This significantly outperforms other main cameras in the same price range. An 8MP ultrawide lens covers a 0.6x-5x focal range, rivaling that of a mini-flagship.

Sample images show excellent performance in common focal lengths. The dedicated telephoto lens significantly enhances long-range photography, easily capturing details from tens of meters away; the lossless 2.5x and 5x zoom delivers exceptional clarity that holds up well even under magnification.