Today we have with us the new Redmi Note 17, which is the newest member of Xiaomi’s Redmi Note series and the successor to last year’s Redmi Note 15. It is also functionally identical to the Poco M8 Power that was launched recently.
The Redmi Note series has always prioritized offering great value by combining premium features with an affordable price. However, things are going to be different this year. The Redmi Note 17 is the latest victim of the ongoing memory crisis thanks to Uncle Sam’s invention, and as a result, some of the specifications have been dialed back compared to last year’s model.
Starting with the design, you do get refreshed aesthetics for 2026. This includes flat sides, a flat screen, and a simplified camera array on the back. The phone comes in three colors: black, a light blue, and this cool-looking purple we have here. The phone itself is quite large, which may not fit all hand sizes, but the weight and thickness are reasonable, especially for the size of the battery within.
The display on the Redmi Note 17 is bigger than before; you now get a 7.0-inch panel with roughly the same resolution as before. The flat panel does accentuate the bezels a bit, which definitely look chunkier on the new model, especially on the bottom. It’s still a 120Hz AMOLED panel though, and although the rated numbers don’t go quite as high as before, it still gets very bright. There’s also an integrated optical fingerprint scanner, which works well.
The new phone has a single speaker on the bottom, which unfortunately doesn’t sound very good.
On to the performance side of things, the Redmi Note 17 runs on the Snapdragon 4 Gen 4 chip. While we can’t share benchmark results today, we can talk about the general experience of using the device. In short, it’s usable, which means you should be able to get through daily activities such as messaging, watching videos, browsing the web, and ordering food or groceries with moderate ease. However, we are concerned with the long-term usability of this chip as apps and operating systems get more bloated.
The camera on the back has also been downgraded to a single 50MP unit. The images are usable but nothing to write home about.
Main camera samples
Finally, there’s the 8000mAh battery. While we haven’t done a full battery test, the phone is essentially unkillable, and three days of light use is relatively easy to achieve. It also charges reasonably fast, and the 22.5W reverse wired charging can come in handy.
Speaking of charging, we also have Xiaomi’s new Power Bank 5i. This is a massive 20,000mAh battery that can provide up to 67W of fast charging across all major charging standards. It has an integrated charging cable that also works as a lanyard, as well as two additional ports. There is even a small screen on the side to show internal battery charge level, as well as indications for fast charging, low current, and malfunctions. It’s priced at INR 3,299.
Getting back to the phone, the Redmi Note 17 is priced at INR 27,999 for the 6+128GB variant and INR 30,999 for the 8+128GB variant. The pricing situation is unfortunate, as you can get last year’s Redmi Note 15 for INR 28,999 for the 8+128GB variant, and INR 31,999 for the 8+256GB variant. Aside from the battery, that phone does still offer a better overall package. More interestingly, the identical Poco M8 Power is also priced INR 3,000 less for the same two variants as the Redmi Note 17. It’s not clear why Xiaomi routinely prices identical Poco-branded devices notably less, but it does make the Redmi Note 17’s situation a bit tricky at the moment.
We will be taking a further look at the device in our review when the phone goes on sale.