Special edition books, CDs, software packages and now smartphones. A few weeks after playing around with the OnePlus 12R Genshin Impact Edition, we have in the office the special Redmi Note 13 Pro+ World Champions Edition (Argentina Campion Mundial/Argentine Football Association). Sure, it’s a way to push the sales of a popular phone but credit goes to Redmi for putting in enough effort to make the special edition shine.

The box will make most football fans want to take a peek inside. On the cover is a collage of Angel Di Maria, Emiliano Martinez and Rodrigo De Paul and on opening the box you will notice the distinctive dual-tone design, featuring blue and white stripes on the phone’s back panel.

The special edition mentions the number 10 on the back, which, of course, represents Lionel Messi (and the tenth anniversary of Xiaomi India).

The display is sharp and is slightly curved to offer a comfortable grip

It doesn’t stop there: The blue charging cable goes hand in hand with an eye-catcher of a charging brick. And the best part of the packaging is the SIM ejector, which is shaped like a football and it includes the AFA logo.

Besides featuring the logo of Argentine Football Association across the packaging, in the top corner of the box there are three gold-hued stars to mark Argentina’s three World Cup final victories. Also special is the customised user interface of the phone, from lock screen to wallpapers to icons.

What about the phone?

A flagship phone in 2024 will be about the choice of material, the number of antennas for connectivity, some extra lens magic in the camera department, and a processor that does things flawlessly. What Redmi has done is consider a price point and then work backwards to give a very nimble device.

For most people, Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G will become the always-there companion for a few years. The phone comes with MediaTek Dimensity 7200 Ultra. Well, Ultra may seem like a nice word to throw around but in the case of Redmi, it delivers. I wouldn’t go all out and say “look ma, a flagship killer”. Not many people need a flagship phone. In my extended family of 11 members, only three need flagship-grade phones. Others are pretty happy with what Redmi is offering.

There has been hardly any stuttering in the few days I have used the phone. Be it making casual edits to photos or cropping videos or playing games, things have been smooth sailing. If you are someone who uses a phone to make calls, browse the Internet, take some photos… you won’t really need a premium phone. In case it’s about complicated editing and running heavy-duty apps, you will need to look at a higher pricing.

There is a small degree of bloatware but the wallpaper and icons are tuned to the Argentine Football Association theme

That brings me to the display. The 6.67-inch 3D Curved AMOLED display (1.5K, 2,712 x 1,220) has a pixel density of 446PPI and 120Hz refresh rate. These figures are not just good on paper; you will notice it if you use the phone. Plus, there is Dolby Vision, HDR10+, Widevine L1 support, a touch sampling rate of 240Hz and peak brightness of 1,800nits. If you are using this phone and an entry-level flagship device, the difference will be miniscule, if at all. In fact, Redmi punches above its weight and gives the phone a premium feel by doing away with the 3.5mm headphone jack.

You could be wondering whether Redmi has cut corners in the camera department. It depends on what kind of photographs you want from a phone. There is a 200MP main camera with ISOCELL HP3 sensor, 8MP ultra-wide and 2MP macro.

It’s very difficult to point out the photo taken on the new Redmi phone versus some Android flagship numbers. If an affordable phone can turn in brilliant photographs, it’s time for flagship manufacturers to up their game. How about at night? It’s equally good. Perhaps the shutter speed could have been half a second quicker but that’s just a quibble. Autofocus is another department worth visiting. And a quick hat tip to the 4x zoom — works effortlessly.

There are some video filters but I am not a big fan of filters on any phone. And I am so far satisfied with the quality of 4K videos at 30fps.

Should you buy it?

If you follow football closely and like Redmi phones, this is the device for you. The special edition of Redmi Note 13 Pro+ hits the right notes with its blue-and-white stripes and tweaks.

The charging brick, write and SIM ejector are designed to reflect the overall theme of the special edition

At a glance

Device: Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G AFA World Champions Edition

Price: ₹34,999 for the 12GB+512GB variant

High notes

Impressive finish and display quality

Sustained performance

Camera is well-tuned