Now even Redmi Note phones might skip the bundled charger

One of the most divisive trends in the smartphone industry is the push to drop bundled chargers, as the likes of Apple, Samsung, and several other brands ditched the adapter in their high-end phones.

Now, it looks like Xiaomi’s budget-focused Redmi Note line could be next to ditch bundled chargers. MySmartPrice spotted a product page for the upcoming Redmi Note 11 SE (essentially a rebranded Redmi Note 10S) on Xiaomi’s Indian website, and the list of package contents omits a bundled adapter.

We could potentially chalk this up to being incorrect placeholder text, but product pages for other Redmi Note devices on Xiaomi’s Indian website all list an in-box charger. Needless to say, the outlet points out that you might need to spend Rs 999 (~$13) on a 33W charger and cable for the phone, which tops out at 33W speeds.

Not just a flagship move anymore

This isn’t the first time Xiaomi has ditched the bundled charger from a box, as last year’s Mi 11 series was available in a package without the adapter in China. However, the phone was also available in a package with the charger, and the two packages retailed for the same price. So we hope Xiaomi takes this approach if it’s removing the charger from the Redmi Note line.

Nevertheless, this wouldn’t be the first time we’ve seen a major brand remove the charger from a budget phone. realme removed the in-box charger from its Narzo 50A Prime device earlier this year while Samsung has been removing the bundled adapter from its Galaxy A series.

Still, this decision doesn’t sit right with polled readers. We ran a survey back in March 2022, asking readers whether they would buy a budget phone without a charger. It turns out that a slim majority (51.78%) wouldn’t buy a budget device without the adapter, while ~25% of respondents said it depended on the phone. Otherwise, ~23% said they’d buy a budget handset without a charger.