The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 is still very fresh yet it is already starting to appear on some mid-range smartphones like the Redmi K60 series that Xiaomi just launched in China. The Pro model has the 8 Gen 2 chip and starts at CNY 3,300 for an 8/128GB model. For comparison, the Xiaomi 13 with the same chip (and same memory) is CNY 4,000.
The Redmi K60 and K60 Pro boast Snapdragon 8-series chipsets and QHD+ displays
The Redmi K60 Pro has a larger 6.67” OLED display compared to the Xiaomi 13, a 12-bit panel with QHD+ resolution and 120Hz refresh rate. The battery is larger too, 5,000mAh, and faster to charge than the Xiaomi 13 – it does 120W over a wire thanks to the Surge P1 chip and 30W wirelessly. Using a 120W adapter 0-100% charge is achieved in 19 minutes compared to 38 minutes for the Xiaomi 13 and its 4,500mAh battery (the flagship only does 67W charging, though).
The camera setup isn’t quite as nice, though with a 54MP main camera with OIS and an 8MP ultra wide it really only lacks a telephoto lens.
With vapor chamber cooling, fast LPDDR5X RAM and UFS 4.0 storage, plus 480Hz touch sampling, the Redmi K60 Pro will give gaming phones a run for their money. And with the Champion Edition exterior it even looks the part.
Redmi K60 Pro in Champion Performance Edition trim
The Moto X40 was unveiled a couple of weeks ago with a starting price of CNY 3,300 for an 8/128GB phone, the same as the K60 Pro. It has a faster 165Hz display (FHD+ resolution, rather than QHD+), higher resolution 50MP ultra wide and even a basic 12MP 2x telephoto camera. The 4,600mAh battery is smaller, but the charging situation is comparable with 125W going over a wire and 15W wirelessly.
The nubia Z50 is probably the cheapest Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 phone right now at CNY 3,000. It has a 144Hz display (lower FHD+ resolution, though) and a 50MP ultra wide camera, however, the 64MP main camera has a smaller sensor than the others. Also, the 5,000mAh battery charges at “only” 80W and lacks wireless charging.
Motorola Moto X40 • vivo iQOO 11 • ZTE nubia Z50 • ZTE nubia Red Magic 8 Pro
The iQOO 11 launched in Malaysia and Thailand and coming to India soon. It costs more than the Redmi at CNY 4,100. This one also has a faster display 144Hz QHD+ display and a 13MP 2x tele camera. The 5,000mAh battery supports 120W wired-only charging.
The Red Magic 8 Pro is a proper gaming phone and starts at CNY 4,000. The extra cost over the Redmi buys you an active cooling fan and pressure-senstive triggers. The camera is nothing special, but the phone is equipped with a large 6,000mAh battery (80W wired charging).
Xiaomi hasn’t revealed plans of an international rollout for the Redmi K60 Pro, we should see it as a Poco or a Xiaomi phone soon enough. So, once the Pro reaches a store near you, will you be buying one or is this not the right phone for you? Vote below or using this page.
Next, let’s look at the vanilla Redmi K60. This one switches to the older (but still fast!) Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset and drops the main camera to a small 64MP 1/2” sensor (0.7µm pixels vs. 1.0µm on the Pro, it keeps the OIS, though). Wireless charging is the same at 30W while wired charging drops to 67W – though with the increase in battery capacity to 5,500mAh some might see this as an upgrade. The base price is CNY 2,500 for an 8/128GB phone. One last thing, the 6.67” display maintains the QHD+ resolution (and 12-bit panel), which is a major advantage in this price range as we are about to see.
Cheap 8+ Gen 1 phones are hard to come by. For example, the Honor 80 GT, which was also announced this week, starts at CNY 3,300 (though this is for a 12/256GB model). The 6.67” 120Hz AMOLED has lower resolution (FHD+) and is only a 10-bit panel. The 54MP main camera has a larger 1/1.49” sensor but no OIS. The battery is a bit of a letdown with 4,800mAh capacity and 66W wired-only charging.
Honor 80 GT • Lenovo Legion Y70 • vivo iQOO Neo7 Racing
The Lenovo Legion Y70 also starts at CNY 3,300 and while it doesn’t match the QHD+ resolution of the Redmi K60, at least it beats it with 144Hz refresh rate. The 50MP main camera has OIS and the battery is decently large at 5,100mAh (68W wired-only charging).
The new iQOO Neo7 Racing edition gets close with a CNY 2,800 price tag. It has a 6.78” 120Hz FHD+ display and a 5,000mAh battery with 120W wired-only fast charging. The camera setup offers a 50MP main module with a larger sensor and OIS, plus an 8MP ultra wide camera.
Is the Redmi K60 (or whatever the global version will be called) the right phone for you or not? Vote below or using this page.
Finally, there is the Redmi K60E, the cheapest model of the trio at CNY 2,200. Most of the price savings are derived from switching to a Dimensity 8200 chipset. The 6.67” display keeps the resolution at QHD+ making the E-model a standout in its price range, even if it is no longer a 12-bit panel (also, the fingerprint reader moves to the side). Other changes include a 48MP sensor in the main camera (still 1/2” in size, still with OIS) and the 5,500mAh battery loses the 30W wired charging option (but keeps the 67W wired charging).
On the one hand, the K60E is not as powerful as the K60 and only CNY 300 cheaper. On the other hand, if you compare it to the phones it is a cheap way to get a QHD+ display and a large battery. Worth it? Vote below or using this page.
