Xiaomi has just announced the cheapest phablet that we’ve come across so far with the new Redmi Note. This is the successor of the Hongmi/Red Rice/Redmi which recently started making its way to global markets.

The Redmi Note features a 5.5 inch 720p IPS display with the OGS technology and will retail in two variants with a different processor clock speed and RAM combinations. The high end variant will feature 2GB of RAM and a 1.7 GHz octa-core MediaTek chipset while the other model packs a 1.4 GHz octa-core chip and will only have 1GB of RAM. Other features include a 13 megapixel camera with f/2.2 aperture and a 5 megapixel front facing shooter for self-portraits.

The device runs on Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean based on the company’s proprietary MIUI 5.0 ROM and will pack a decently sized 3,200 mAh battery. The entry level model will cost 799 CNY or $129 while the top end model will cost slightly more at 999 CNY ($161), which sounds like a fairly decent bargain for a smartphone of this caliber.

The handset is currently available for purchase only in China, but the manufacturer plans to launch it in global markets subsequently.

• SourceQzone
• ViaFone Arena