Home Phone comparison Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S and Nothing Phone (3a) Lite - Which is better?

Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S vs Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

49 out 100
Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S
VS
69 out 100
Nothing Phone (3a) Lite
Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S
Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

Compared 2 smartphones : Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S Manufactured in April, 2020, with display 6.67 with chipsetQualcomm Snapdragon 720G, vs Nothing Phone (3a) Lite, Manufactured in October, 2025with chipsetMediaTek Dimensity 7300 Pro. Below are specs, tests, pros and cons for each device

  1. Differences
  2. Review
  3. Specs
  4. Benchmarks
  5. Battery Life
  6. Cameras
  7. Comments (0)

Key Differences

Device key advantages
Reasons to choose Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S
  • Higher pixel density: 395ppi
  • Higher battery capacity: 5020mAh vs 5000mAh
  • Infrared port
Reasons to choose Nothing Phone (3a) Lite
  • Larger display: 6.77in
  • Higher refresh rate: 120Hz
  • Lighter design: 199g vs 210g
  • Newer Bluetooth version: 5.3 vs 5
  • Built-in eSIM

Versions

Available versions and configurations
Memory Options - 4/64 GB
- 4/128 GB
- 6/64 GB
- 6/128 GB		 - 8/128 GB
- 8/256 GB

Review

Key Specs Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S and Nothing Phone (3a) Lite
Display
Color accuracy, sharpness & brightness
Camera
Main & front camera tests
Performance
App & system performance
Games
3D gaming performance
Battery
Battery life, charging speed & type
Connectivity
Connectivity features
NanoReview Score
Overall score by NanoReview
Adjust each parameter’s importance to find the best match for you.
Customize your score
Function
Importance (Weight)
Display:
Camera:
Performance:
Gaming:
Battery:
Connectivity:
Higher weight means greater impact on NanoReview score.

Tests & specs

Specs & test comparison
Smartphones:
Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S
vs
Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

Display

Display quality comparison
Type IPS LCD AMOLED
Size 6.67 in 6.77 in
Resolution 1080x2400 pixels 1080x2392 pixels
Aspect ratio 20:9 19.9:9
Pixel density 395 ppi 388 ppi
Refresh rate 60 Hz 120 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate No Yes (60-120 Hz)
Max brightness 628 nits 1300 nits
HDR support Yes HDR10 Yes, HDR10+
Screen-to-body ratio 84 % 86.9 %
Features n/a - DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
- DC dimming
Display test
Peak brightness (auto)
Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S
571 nits
Nothing Phone (3a) Lite
n/a
sRGB gamut114.9 %n/a
Response time34 msn/a
Contrast1111:1n/a
Sources: NotebookCheck [Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S]

Design & Build

Design and ergonomics comparison
Height 166 mm (6.54 in) 164 mm (6.46 in)
Width 77 mm (3.03 in) 78 mm (3.07 in)
Thickness 8.8 mm (0.35 in) 8.3 mm (0.33 in)
Weight 210 g (7.41 oz) 199 g (7.02 oz)
Water resistance No IP54
Back panel Glass Glass
Frame Plastic Plastic
Colors - White
- Black
- Blue		 - White
- Black
Fingerprint sensor Yes In-Button Yes, In-Display
Screen-to-body ratio
Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S
84 %
Nothing Phone (3a) Lite
86.9 %

Performance

Testing Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S and Nothing Phone (3a) Lite In benchmarks
Processor
Chipset Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G MediaTek Dimensity 7300 Pro
Max Frequency 2300 MHz 2500 MHz
CPU Cores 8 (2 + 6) 8 (4 + 4)
Architecture - 6/1.8 (Kryo 465 Silver (Cortex-A55))
- 2/2.3 (Kryo 465 Gold (Cortex-A76))		 - 4/2 (Cortex-A55)
- 4/2.5 (Cortex-A78)
Process Samsung TSMC
Transistor Size 8 nm 4 nm
Neural Processor Hexagon 692 MediaTek APU 655
Graphics Adreno 618 Mali-G615 MP2
GPU Cores 256 256
GPU Frequency 750 MHz 1047 MHz
FLOPS 384 GFLOPS 536.1 GFLOPS
GeekBench v6
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S
722
Nothing Phone (3a) Lite
1015
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S
1880
Nothing Phone (3a) Lite
2922
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)7221015
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)18802922
Geekbench Compute (GPU)n/a2511
Sources: Geekbench v6 [Nothing Phone (3a) Lite]
AnTuTu 10
AnTuTu 10
Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S
387217
Nothing Phone (3a) Lite
694652
CPU130988209874
GPU90091169384
Memory72615137390
UX93523178004
NanoReview Score387217694652
3DMark Wild Life
3DMark Wild Life
Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S
1041
Nothing Phone (3a) Lite
n/a
Max Surface Temp.42.4 °Cn/a
Stability98 %n/a
Graphics Test6 fpsn/a
Graphics Score1041n/a
Sources: 3DMark [Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S]
PCMark 3.0
PCMark 3.0
Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S
8091
Nothing Phone (3a) Lite
n/a
Writing score9663n/a
Web score5943n/a
Video editing5437n/a
Data manipulation6802n/a
NanoReview Score8091n/a

Memory

RAM
RAM Size - 4 GB
- 6 GB		 8 GB
Memory Type LPDDR4X LPDDR4X
Memory Frequency 2133 MHz 2133 MHz
Channels 2 2
Storage
Storage Capacity- 64 GB
- 128 GB		128 GB
Storage TypeUFS 2.1UFS 2.2
Memory CardMicroSDMicroSD

Software

OS Android 10.0 (Upgradeable to Android 12) Android 15
OS Size 18 GB n/a
UI Skin MIUI 14 Nothing OS 3.5

Battery

Volume 5020 mAh 5000 mAh
Max Charging Power 18 W 33 W
Battery Type Li-Po Li-Po
Removable No No
Wireless Charging No No
Reverse Charging No Yes
Fast Charging Yes (50% in 50 min) Yes (50% in 20 min)
Full Charge Time 2:30 h n/a
Battery Life Test
Battery Life
Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S
26:58
Nothing Phone (3a) Lite
n/a
Web Browsing10:56 hn/a
Video Playback15:15 hn/a
Games05:45 hn/a
Standby Mode136 hn/a

Main camera

Matrix 48 MP 50 MP
Photo resolution 8000x6000 pixels 8192x6144 pixels
Zoom Digital Digital
Flash LED LED
Stabilization Digital Digital
8K Recording No No
4K Recording Yes (Up to 30 fps) Yes (Up to 30 fps)
1080p Recording Yes (Up to 60 fps) Yes (Up to 60 fps)
Slow Motion 960 fps (720p) 120 fps (720p)
Wide-angle lens 119 ° 120 °
Lenses count Standard: 48 MP
Ultra-wide: 8 MP
Macro: 5 MP
Depth: 2 MP		 Standard: 50 MP
Ultra-wide: 8 MP
Macro: 2 MP
Features - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode		 - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
Main lens
Matrix48 MP50 MP
Aperturef/1.8f/1.9
Focal length26 mm24 mm
SensorSamsung S5KGM2Samsung ISOCELL GN3
Sensor size1/21/1.57
Pixel size0.8 μm1 μm
AutofocusPhase autofocusPhase autofocus
StabilizationDigitalDigital
Ultra-wide lens
Matrix8 MP8 MP
Aperturef/2.2f/2.2
Focal length13 mm15 mm
SensorOmnivision OV8856Sony IMX355
Sensor size1/4.01/4.0
Pixel size1.12 μm1.12 μm
StabilizationDigitalDigital

Front camera

Matrix 16 MP 16 MP
Photo resolution 4920x3264 pixels n/a
Aperture f/2.5 f/2.5
Sensor Omnivision OV16A1Q n/a
Sensor size 1/3.06 n/a
Pixel size 1 μm n/a
Autofocus No No
Stabilization Digital Digital
Video resolution 1080p (Full HD) at 30 fps 1080p (Full HD) at 60 fps
TOF 3D sensor No No

Connectivity

Wi-Fi version Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac) Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)
Wi-Fi features - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display		 - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version 5 5.3
Bluetooth features LE, HID, A2DP LE
USB type USB Type-C USB Type-C
USB version 2 2
USB features - Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- OTG		 - Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- OTG
DisplayPort n/a No
GPS - GPS
- GLONASS
- Beidou
- Galileo
- NAVIC		 - GPS
- GLONASS
- Galileo
- QZSS
NFC* No Yes
Infrared Port Yes No
Connectivity
SIM Count*22
SIM TypeNanoNano
SIM ModeDual SIM StandbyDual SIM Standby
eSIM Support *NoYes
Hybrid SlotNoNo
2G BandsGSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 2100 / 2600 / 2300 / 2500GSM 850/900/1800/1900
3G BandsHSDPA 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100UMTS 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 19
LTE Bands*LTE (B850/B900/B1800/B2100/B2300/B2500/B2600)LTE (B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B17/B18/B19/B20/B26/B28/B38/B40/B41/B42/B48/B66)
LTE category12n/a
5G SupportNoYes

Sound

Speakers Mono n/a
3.5 mm Jack Yes No
FM Radio Yes No
Dolby Atmos No No
Speaker Test
Max Volume
Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S
81 dB
Nothing Phone (3a) Lite
n/a

Other

Class Mid-range Mid-range
Announced March, 2020 yr October, 2025 yr
Release Date April, 2020 yr October, 2025 yr
Launch Price ($) 200 n/a
MSRP ($) n/a 249
Sensors - Proximity Sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint sensor		 - Proximity Sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint sensor
Charger Included n/a No
* Attention! Config, frequencies, NFC, and other specs may vary by region.

Results

After analyzing the data, we consider Nothing Phone (3a) Lite the clear winner in this comparison.

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