The Redmi Note from Xiaomi reigned for many a month. With a price tag of close to US$160, the phablet not only packs some powerful hardware, but also offers great usability that comes with the MIUI ROM that Xiaomi employ. Finally, the device is being challenged by the fresh Meizu m1 note, which happens to be priced similarly, and also have the same screen size. However, there’s some differences between the two devices, which we shall discuss in this article.

Redmi Note vs. m1 note: Specifications

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Redmi Note vs. m1 note: Display

Both phones have 5.5-inch screens. However, although the size is the same, a huge difference lies in the technology used to make the panels, and the resolution. The Redmi Note has a 720p HD display, which is an IPS LCD panel. On the other hand, the Meizu m1 note trumps the competition with an IGZO panel with a 1920 x 1080p full HD resolution. One might argue that there isn’t much to choose from between an HD and a full HD panel, but when it’s a 5.5-inch screen you’re talking about, the difference is in front of your eyes.

Thus, it would be safe to say that the Meizu m1 note wins on the display aspect.

Redmi Note vs. m1 note: Processor

The Redmi Note comes in two flavours, i.e., one with a MediaTek MT6592 octa-core processor, and the other with a quad-core Snapdragon 400 CPU. The m1 note comes with an octa-core MediaTek MT6752 SoC, which adopts a 64-bit architecture instead of the standard 32-bit. Although the general performance of this new MediaTek chip is yet to be seen, the consensus is that it is going to be better than the MT6592 and other older MediaTek chips we’ve seen in the past. Therefore, picking one on the basis of the SoC used is a bit of a task now, but we have a strong feeling the m1 note will be the victor in the end.

Redmi Note vs. m1 note: Camera, Battery, etc.

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Again, the on-paper specifications of the two devices are nearly identical. Both phablets have a 13 mega-pixel rear camera coupled with a 5 mega-pixel front. Xiaomi’s Redmi series does pretty darn well with their cameras, more so than you would expect. Meizu is no mug either; in fact, the company has really stepped up its camera game since the launch of the Meizu MX2. The m1 note camera is yet to be tested though, so this aspect needs to be held till the time we have an m1 note in our hands.

The Redmi Note has a 3200mAh battery, while the m1 note comes in a shade shorter with a 3140mAh one. Meizu has however given design a more serious consideration, which is why the m1 note has a non-removable battery, while the Redmi Note allows you to remove and swap batteries. Sure, usability wise, the Redmi Note wins; but then there are users that prefer build and design over a non-removable battery, which is where the m1 note is expected to shine.

Another thing worth noting is that the m1 note has non-expandable storage, while the Redmi Note can take microSD cards to bump up storage.

Redmi Note vs. m1 note: Pricing

Both phones are neck and neck at the CNY 999 mark. However, because of the fact that the Redmi Note has been on the market for a while now, it is pretty easy to get hold of by now. On the other hand, Meizu’s phones aren’t yet as popular as its Xiaomi counterparts, which is why there’s generally a premium the buyer has to pay to be an owner of a Meizu. The company has been trying hard to try and reach customers through its online store, but then the costs of shipping and VAT add up to quite a bit, especially on the official Meizu international store. Thus, you have to give it to Xiaomi for a slightly better supply chain (even though the work is done by resellers here).

Redmi Note vs. m1 note: Verdict

It is pretty clear that the Redmi Note is a more flexible device than the Meizu m1 note. In the sense, it allows you to expand storage, swap batteries, etc. However, if you look back, Meizu phones have looked way better than Xiaomi ones, even though both are accused of being inspired by the same American company. In the end, it lies in your hands; you have to pick between what’s on offer, considering what you need the most.

It’s quite an interesting battle this one, between the Redmi Note and the m1 note. Meizu have finally realized they can’t be lazy if they want to be a household name. Xiaomi, on the other hand, have been proactive with their expansion lately.

What do you think? Design of the m1 note vs. the usability of the Redmi Note? Do let us know in the comments section below.

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About the author
Yash Garg
Yash is a blogger by profession, builder of things by passion and foodie by birth. You'll usually find him talking about technology, music, travel and the game of cricket on the streets of Pune when not busy writing or speeding his way through the country! Read more on retro handheld gaming on RETRO91
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Ted
December 24, 2014
@Andi
Could you please add messure and wight of both mobiles, please!
Doesn’t have Meizu Note LTE, too?
realjjj
December 24, 2014
The overall perf of the new SoC is much higher, maybe above 50% , ofc will vary from task to task.
btw the Redmi Note 4G is 899CNy , has been since singles day.
Edit: for perf, there are some Cute T7 reviews ,here included , with the tablet version of the SoC.

Jason45
December 24, 2014
To be honest, it is kind of unfair to compare a new phone (meizu note) with a phone that is released a long time ago (xiaomi redmi note).
However, if the rumors are true and Redmi Note 2 is going to get the Snapdragon 615 chipset, then Meizu note chipset will beat the Snapdragon 615 chipset on most benchmarks based on a test that has been made already by a Chinese review site.
- December 25, 2014
  It does not fair. But it also indicate that the competition of the two company is going to more and more intense, that is what i want to see“`haha~~

Guaire
December 24, 2014
Redmi Note have zero chance against Blue Charm Note.
Question is could Xiaomi make Redmi Note 2 better than Blue Charm Note or Jiayu S3? I don’t think so. Likely they will came with Snapdragon 615, 2GB RAM and 16GB internal storage.
They are late, so they have to do better job than competitors IMO. What’s point of releasing a device months later, roughly equal -or even inferior- than their rivals’.
Gizchina ignored Asus, but their next generation Zenfones could be serious competitors to Chinese vendors. New Zenfones will be revealed CES 2015. Also seems to me their new handset Asus Pegasus going to destroy Redmi 1s and even Redmi 2. They could make an impact if new Zenfones came with Intel Moorefield.
Though I don’t read any rumor about Redmi Note 2’s launch, it couldn’t be so late.
IMO for dominating 1000 yuan phablet category, they should go for MT6795, 3GB RAM and not an ugly and bulky device like old Redmi Note.
- realjjj
  December 24, 2014
  The Pegasus is 799 CNY while the Redmi 1s 4G is 599CNY as in 25% cheaper while being way old. The Pegasus is closer to the Juayu S3 that will be 899CNY, it’s not gonna destroy anything, the small Meizu will obliterate the Pegasus if anything.
  As for Xiaomi they can easily do better, lots of options, microSD, wifi ac, 21 or 24MP cam, 3GB RAM, the first 2 being very cheap and expected.
  Truth be told, Meizu is actually rather small, Xiaomi now ships in a month about as much as Meizu in the entire 2014 and Asus is not much bigger. Meizu will grow a lot with the new devices but a long long way to go before they can catch up with Xiaomi, Huawei and Lenovo (the 3 big names from China) while all the other big China brands won’t stand still either (BBK, Coolpad, ZTE, TCL, Gionee , K-Touch).
  Meizu really needs to grow up, their idiotic admiration for Apple and lack of respect for their users need to go away if they want to be relevant 5 years from now.
  - Guaire
    December 24, 2014
    Redmi and Redmi 1s’ original price range was 799 yuan. They are forced to discount. They will want to launch Redmi 2 with 799 yuan price tag.
    Redmi 1s 4G came with MTK6582. Even slower than Snapdragon 400. Cheap but relatively very slow. 1GB RAM isn’t enough to provide a fluent experience with MIUI. Also Pegasus isn’t a phablet contender.
    For 599 yuan Lenovo K3 seems much better choice.
    Xiaomi will continue sells a lot a while more but when people realize old Xiaomi is gone, they will began to bleeding.
    Samsung still sells a lot, but that fact not enough to make their handsets desirable.

Angry Mobile Nerd
December 24, 2014
Anyone and everyone would take the Meizu m1 over the Xiaomi, only the most die-hard Xiaomi hipster would rather have the Redmi Note.
- Airyl
  December 25, 2014
  - Angry Mobile Nerd
    December 25, 2014
    Honestly if I wanted a sd card slot so badly I would look at buying something else. The Redmi Note is just a big ugly cheap plastic brick of a phablet. Yes, it’s that bad.
    - Airyl
      December 25, 2014
      Hey, at least it doubles as a murder weapon just fine. Actually, forget I said that.
    - ade oju
      December 25, 2014
      I’m sure you dont have one,if you do you will know that its very good machine very fast,smooth and easy to use .the only pron is not updated its OS to KitKat
      - Angry Mobile Nerd
        December 25, 2014
        I’ve been in China for almost a decade now, believe me if I wanted one I would have had one well before you. The Xiaomi shops here have them in stock by the dozens and you always see the street around the shops littered with all the screen guards they’re giving out to people passing by.
        
        ade oju
        December 25, 2014
        Dont be personal about it .just my own opinion. Since I had one I its be a great phone ( xiaomi note ) for its value
        Rambro 88
        December 25, 2014
        There are no official Xiaomi shops there, totally online company.
        Angry Mobile Nerd
        December 26, 2014
        Xiaomi phones are sold in phone shops throughout China. While Xiaomi doesn’t own or operate these stores, they DO subsidize them to rebrand as “mi.com” stores although they are still free to sell other brands of phones along with Xiaomi phones which are primarily pushed on customers.
        If you were in China (which you are obviously not) you’d see.
Qidamin
December 25, 2014
I don’t think Xiaomi still sell the Note with MT6592 chip.

Miko
December 25, 2014
Easily I would pick Meizu, but to be fair the Xiaomi is kinda older note. And for those that KEEP saying about SD cards… come on guys, with cloud services and OTG USBs that reach easily 64 GB or more, you still care about SD cards?
- MaxPower
  December 26, 2014
  If you have like 3 heavy videogames and one offline GPS with maps then you used about 8gb. That’s why people care about SD cards. No otg cable or cloud would fix their issue
  - Miko
    December 27, 2014
    8 GB I doubt it since heavy games are around 1GB each. But let’s say you have occupied 8 GB… unless you’re a hoarder or playing 10 games at the same time there is not a problem, even if you have already used 8 GBs.
    BTW I’m talking about OTG usb flash drives, if your phone supports it, not cables… just making sure we are on the same page.
    - astosenix
      December 28, 2014
      What a stupid comment!! No offense.
      Are seriously comparing having the storage in your phone with having to carry a USB memory around the whole day???
      By the way I have a xiaomi 2s with 32gb internal memory. Just my music uses around 8gb already, my pictures around ten… The cache used by wechat with my almost thousand contacts, plus groups is around 1gb…
      Not to mention other apps like offline maps.
      I only have 1.6gb free right now.
      Are you suggesting that I should connect an external memory every time I want to listen music?
      Can you explain me how can I keep listening music which is on the USB connected by otg while I’m charging the battery from my power bank?? Cause the phone has just one USB port.
      Cloud services?? With 1gb monthly plan?? Oh I know. I must get a 20gb plan and pay a fortune every month. Right?
      Maybe you use magic instead of technology, but not the rest of us.
      So, I repeat. No offense, but your comment was completely stupid.
      - Miko
        December 28, 2014
        I have 1TB cloud service for free… I guess I’m really stupid :/ I have all my pics stored there.
        Flash drive is on my key holder (wow such a big space it gets) with 64 GB of movies, songs/playlists I have and easily can put on my phone whenever I want to listen a specific playlist.
        usb 3.0 is really not so slow these days… but I understand that you may be a hoarder and keep 8GB of songs and 10GB of pics in your everyday needs in your phone… instead of a very easy reachable place that can free lots of space from your device. In your case even the biggest storage available on phones these days is not good enough for you. 🙂
        Someone has told you about back-up also?
        I’m not offended so much but you see where the companies go…less and less phones with SD cards, and you will see in the future as more and more companies will enhance these features and services..
        just my stupid thoughts
        
        astosenix
        December 30, 2014
        I don’t carehow much cloud storage you have for free. I use some different clouds too including kuaipan. And my pics get backed up automatically every time I connect to a WiFi. It’s useless if you have 500MB data plan, wich is not small in china (I have 1GB monthly by the way). And I need those pictures (really high quality and PSD files) almost everyday and I don’t want to connect a USB every time I need them, especially if it’s attached to a keychain with my five keys on it.
        I really don’t feel the urge to explain you anything about my job.
        If you store your music and movies on a USB you can’t use them while charging from your power bank, unless you copy them to your phone every time you need or want them. Its a waist of time and battery.
        I now exactly where Chinese brands are going (I’ve been living almost a decade in china) and I’m saying that I prefer having an SD slot.
        You didn’t read or understand my post properly and replied almost same thing again… so yes, you must be stupid.
        End of the conversation.
        P.S. now you can feel offended if you want. I just don’t care.
        
        Miko
        December 31, 2014
        I don’t feel offended at all, I just disagree with you. That doesn’t make me stupid, I think… but calling someone else stupid because of his/her opinion, shows some real childhood issues or the at least lack of manners… you should watch it, my friend 🙂
        By the way, Happy New Year, hoarder! 🙂
        
        astosenix
        January 5, 2015
        My exact words where:
        “You didn’t read or understand my post properly and replied almost same thing again… so yes, you must be stupid.”
        I never said you where stupid because of your opinion, just cause you seem unable to read something and understand it. And you just did it again.
        So, happy new year, stupid! 🙂
        Miko
        January 5, 2015
        I thought you wouldn’t care anymore. 🙂 Keep insulting, it’s amusing, kido. o/
ade oju
December 25, 2014
Any phone without SD not really good for me coz , of lots of apps and game to play with except 32GB. Cloud is just to save files and pics. so xiami note still the best for me except that no KitKat for it yet.

shopboy
December 25, 2014
- penny
  December 25, 2014
Kingu Prima
December 26, 2014
The M1 should be compared against Redmi Note 2 supposed to be running under a Snapdragon 615
Miko
December 27, 2014
@Gizchina:disqus
I have a small question. I understand that many companies are interested in 64-bit SoCs but , comparing the 2 SoCs in standard MX4 and m1 note, can you tell me which SoC is better in specs/power?
- msd
  February 10, 2015
  from the benchmark it is so clear: mx4 with mt6595. but one another question: why mx4 isnt dual sim when that almost all of other brands with 6595 are dual….

andrea
April 26, 2015
still unfair, but more interesting, could be the comparison between ‘xiaomi redmi note LTE snapdragon 410 64bit 16gb rom adreno 306’ and ‘meizu note’.
xiaomi is less powerful, but everyday operations’ smoothness is simply fantastic and miui is full of features and has SD slot, (even games as riptide2 go smoothly).
well designed and has everything except nfc (a lot of phones don’t have gyroscope sensor)
provided that the price is under 200 euro for everyday use is perfect
Julie Queen
June 2, 2015

Xiaomi Redmi Note vs. Meizu m1 note: Take your pick!