Redmi, the sub-brand of Xiaomi, has finally launched its first gaming phone in China. Dubbed as the Redmi K40 Gaming Edition, it packs two more physical buttons for proper 4-finger gameplay support, bling on the back, and a price tag that’s highly affordable for a gaming device.
With Redmi K40 Gaming Edition, it’s a 6.67-inch handset with a 120Hz AMOLED display. Although there’s support for HDR10+, we’re a bit surprised to see 500 nits peak brightness only, especially when other OLED panels reach up to 1000 nits today. Regardless, this is a phone for gaming, so the 3-finger 480Hz touch sampling rate is more important to have.
The Gaming Edition device runs on a 5065mAh battery with support for 67W fast charging. Unfortunately, there’s no jack for headphones, but Redmi partnered with JBL to tune its Dolby Atmos-certified stereo speakers. There’s a Redmi K40 Gaming Enhanced Edition that features a Razer mechanical keyboard app, but that’s a different model already.
For a gaming phone, the Redmi K40 Gaming Edition is thin and light at 8.33mm and 205g. There’s accent lighting on the camera module, but it appears it’s not customizable through software support. But as expected, the main highlight of the device is the dual-magnetic physical triggers on the side. Redmi claims that the two buttons have a lifespan of up to 1.5 million taps. But, ensuring the device performing at its best during extended use is the vapor chamber cooling. Moreover, there’s IP53 splash and dust resistance.
At the core of the gaming phone is the Dimensity 1200 chip with 5G support. While we definitely would’ve preferred Snapdragon 870, that would also mean jacking up the price.
Speaking of the price, Redmi K40 Gaming Edition comes with a starting price of ¥1999(~₱14,900) for the 6/128GB. The 8/128GB and 8/256GB will set you back ¥2199(~₱16,400) and ¥2399(~₱17,900), respectively. Additionally, the 12/128GB and 12/256GB are priced at ¥2399(~₱16,400) and ¥2699(~₱20,100), respectively. A Bruce Lee Special Edition with 12/256GB will also become available at ¥2799(~₱20,900). The sale will start on April 30 in China.
There’s no word yet regarding the Philippine release, and given that it’s a MediaTek-powered device, the likeliness of local availability is low.
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Redmi K40 Gaming Edition specs, price, availability in the Philippines
- Display: 6.67″ FHD+ OLED HDR10+ 120Hz 500 nits peak
- Design: Metal and Gorilla Glass 5 (front and back), Physical pop-up gaming triggers
- Dimensions: 161.9 x 76.9 x 8.3 mm, 205g
- Chipset: MediaTek MT6893 Dimensity 1200 5G (6 nm)
- CPU: Octa-core (1×3.0 GHz Cortex-A78 & 3×2.6 GHz Cortex-A78 & 4×2.0 GHz Cortex-A55)
- GPU: Mali-G77 MC9
- RAM: 6/8/12GB
- Storage: 128/256GB UFS 3.1 non-expandable
- Main Camera: 64 MP, f/1.7, 26mm (wide), 1/2.0″, 0.7µm, PDAF
8 MP, f/2.2, 120˚ (ultrawide)
2 MP, f/2.4, (macro) | up to 4K@30fps video recording EIS - Selfie Camera: 16 MP | video up to FHD@30fps
- Connectivity & Ports: 5G, 4G LTE, Bluetooth 5.2, WiFi 6, GPS, USB-C, NFC
- Security: face unlock, side-mounted fingerprint scanner
- Battery: 5065mAh battery (67W)
- Audio: Hi-res, Stereo Speakers Tuned by JBL
- OS: Android 11, MIUI 12.5
- Colors: Black, Gray, Silver, Bruce Lee Yellow
- Price: ¥1999(~₱14,900) to ¥2799(~₱20,900)
- Release date: April 2021 (China)
