Xiaomi Redmi S2 now official: A cheap phone with dual camera tech

Dual-camera technology has quickly filtered down to cheaper smartphones, hitting entry-level devices too. The Xiaomi Redmi S2 is the latest budget phone with dual cameras, following in the footsteps of last month’s HONOR 7A.

The handset sports a 12MP and 5MP dual camera on the back, enabling portrait mode shots. Selfie duties are handled by a 16MP snapper with pixel-binning tech for better pub selfies. The front-facing camera also takes care of facial recognition, if you don’t care for the rear-mounted fingerprint scanner.

Much like dual cameras, the 18:9 screen ratio trend is moving down to budget phones too — the Redmi S2 is no exception. The Xiaomi handset serves up a 6-inch 1,440 x 720 (18:9) display.

In the performance department, you’re looking at a Snapdragon 625 chipset, 3GB or 4GB of RAM, and 32GB or 64GB of expandable storage. All of this is driven by a 3,000mAh battery. Other prominent features include dual SIM slots, a headphone jack (I hope these don’t disappear on budget phones), microUSB port, and IR blaster.

What makes the Redmi S2 all the more impressive is its starting price of 999 yuan (~$157). This is the same price as the entry-level Redmi Note 5, although each phone has its advantages. The Redmi Note 5 has a sharper, full HD screen and a larger 4,000mAh battery, while the new phone has a dual camera combination and 16MP front-facing snapper.

All in all, it looks like you’re getting plenty of phone for the price. Here’s hoping it’s available outside China too. 

Interested in the device anyway? You can visit the Chinese store listing via the button below.