Well, this is a surprise. They actually released both versions together in Malaysia. Xiaomi Redmi 17 has been unveiled in the Asian market. And it can be bought in both 4G and 5G trims. Of course, the specs are pretty much identical on either version. The only exception is the chipset and performance gap that comes with it.
Redmi 17 in its 4G version only has a Helio G91 Ultra chip, and that’s not a chip known for its performance. Of course, this is cheaper and 4G-ready. Well, we see a big performance jump on the Redmi 17 5G with its Snapdragon 4 Gen 5, which actually has a faster boost clock (2.4GHz) and better UFS 2.2 storage speeds.
Each of these Redmi 17 versions has either 6GB or 4GB RAM, and the storage linked to those variants is 128GB or 256GB. There’s a 50MP main camera on both. No other camera is seen on the back, but the phone does have an 8MP selfie in the punch hole.
Yes, this Xiaomi latest Redmi model screen uses a punch hole, but it’s actually a downgrade from the last model. They demoted it to 720p resolution. Though if you can look past that, it’s still a 120Hz panel, IPS HD+ at 6.9”. We hear its brightness is 825 nits HBM.
By the way, the storage will expand on each Redmi 17 since there’s a slot for an SD card. There’s even a headphone jack on the phone. But that does leave this newcomer with a shoddy IP64 rating, which will only keep the body safe from water splashes.
Now, the main reason anyone would consider this handset is the battery. Both Redmi 17 4G and 5G fit the same 7500mAh cells in the frame, rated for up to 45W fast charging. And this battery can also output 22.5W reverse wired energy for your other accessories.
NFC is a niche quality, subject to what market the Redmi 17 is rolling out to. And there’s also a side fingerprint reader here. The absolute basic 4/128GB trim for the Redmi 17 5G has an MSRP of $188 (~PKR 52,000). And the Redmi 17 4G starts at $163 MSRP (~PKR 45,000) for the 4/128GB option. Of course, these prices will change from market to market. (Note: This Redmi 17 5G is not to be confused with the Chinese Redmi 17 5G version. They are different in more ways than one.)
