The Infinix Note 11, a budget-friendly smartphone vying for a place in the sub-Rs. 15,000 segment, promises a compelling combination of features. Its attractive price point, boasting a vibrant 6.7-inch AMOLED display, a capable MediaTek Helio G88 processor, and a long-lasting 5,000mAh battery, makes it a tempting option for those on a tight budget. But does it deliver on its promises, offering true value for money in a competitive market? This comprehensive review delves deep into the Infinix Note 11’s design, performance, and camera capabilities to answer this question and guide you in making an informed decision.
Infinix Note 11 Price in India
The Infinix Note 11 is priced competitively at Rs. 11,999 in India, making it an appealing option for budget-conscious buyers. Available in three stylish colors: Celestial Snow, Glacier Green, and Graphite Black, it comes with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage.
Infinix Note 11 Design
The Infinix Note 11 embraces a minimalist aesthetic with its straight lines and clean design. While it might not be the most exciting design, it does help it to stand out amongst other budget phones known for their bulky proportions. The phone’s curved corners provide a comfortable grip, preventing any discomfort while holding the Note 11. The front is dominated by the expansive display, featuring a dewdrop notch to accommodate the selfie camera. The bezels surrounding the screen are thin, except for a slightly thicker chin at the bottom.
The plastic frame, flat on all sides, houses the power button and volume buttons on the right side, while the left side holds the SIM tray. The top of the frame remains unadorned, while the bottom hosts the essential ports: a 3.5mm headphone jack, a USB Type-C port, the primary microphone, and the speaker.
The back panel, also crafted from plastic, boasts a matte finish that effectively resists fingerprints. The camera module, housing three sensors, features a prominent primary camera designed to capture attention. The review unit, in the Glacier Green color, displays a subtle elegance.
Measuring 7.90mm in thickness and weighing 184.5g, the Infinix Note 11 maintains a comfortable balance between size and weight. Infinix thoughtfully includes a clear case and a 33W fast charger in the box.
Infinix Note 11 Specifications
The Infinix Note 11 is equipped with a large 6.7-inch AMOLED display, offering a full-HD+ resolution and a 20:9 aspect ratio, resulting in a tall and narrow display. To protect this vibrant screen, Corning Gorilla Glass 3 is incorporated.
Powering the device is the MediaTek Helio G88 processor, paired with 4GB of RAM for efficient multitasking. The phone offers 64GB of eMCP storage, which can be expanded thanks to a dedicated microSD card slot, providing ample space for your data.
Connectivity options include Bluetooth 5, dual-band Wi-Fi, and GPS, ensuring seamless communication and navigation. The Infinix Note 11 also features impressive stereo speakers for a richer audio experience.
The smartphone runs Android 11, adorned with Infinix’s XOS 10, offering a customized user interface with a range of pre-installed apps. Several stock apps may be perceived as spammy, frequently sending notifications. It is advisable to uninstall unused apps and disable notifications for those deemed intrusive, freeing up valuable storage space and minimizing distractions. Swiping right from the home screen reveals Infinix’s Zero Screen, displaying recent apps and a feed of the latest news.
XOS 10 delivers various features designed to enhance user experience. XClone allows running two instances of supported apps simultaneously, enabling a dual-account experience. A dedicated game mode optimizes performance for immersive gaming. Infinix’s Social Turbo suite optimizes the use of social media apps. The "WhatsApp mode" streamlines WhatsApp’s data access while restricting others, ensuring efficient communication. A voice changer feature enables altering your voice during video or audio calls for added privacy and fun. Peek mode allows viewing deleted messages and reading messages without sending read receipts. The user interface also includes a Smart Panel for launching favorite apps and accessing quick actions.
Infinix Note 11 Performance
The Infinix Note 11’s crisp AMOLED display, with its wide viewing angles and impressive brightness, truly elevates the experience of watching videos. While there’s no option to customize the display output, an Eye Care toggle activates Reading mode, reducing eye strain during extended screen time. The Note 11 also boasts an Always On display feature, although it is disabled by default. The stereo speaker setup delivers a loud and clear audio output, ideal for a small room.
Unlocking the Infinix Note 11 with the side-mounted fingerprint scanner or face recognition is swift and reliable. Throughout the review period, no discernible slowdowns occurred, allowing for smooth multitasking between multiple apps. Benchmark scores further solidify the Note 11’s performance. In AnTuTu, it achieved 182,757 points, showcasing impressive overall performance. In Geekbench 5’s single-core and multi-core benchmarks, it scored 371 and 1,336 points respectively, highlighting its capabilities in handling demanding tasks. In GFXBench’s Car Chase and T-Rex graphics benchmark scenarios, the Note 11 delivered 8.2fps and 40fps respectively, indicating decent graphics processing prowess.
Gaming performance demonstrates the Note 11’s ability to provide a satisfying experience. Battleground Mobile India (BGMI) defaulted to HD graphics and High frame rate settings, showcasing the Note 11’s capability to handle graphically intensive games. The game was playable without any hiccups. After an extended gaming session of about 20 minutes, the top half of the phone experienced a slight warmth, a normal occurrence for sustained use. The battery level showed a 5 percent reduction, indicating efficient power management during gaming. Similar battery consumption was observed after playing Clash Royale for 25 minutes.
The Infinix Note 11 delivers impressive battery life, lasting a day without needing a recharge. The phone also minimizes idle battery drain, ensuring long-lasting usability. Our HD video loop test yielded an impressive result of 14 hours and 28 minutes. Infinix’s inclusion of a 33W fast charger further adds to its value proposition. In just 30 minutes, the battery reached 46 percent, and within an hour, it reached 86 percent, enabling swift top-ups. Charging slows down after this point, taking an additional 20 minutes or so to reach a full charge.
Infinix Note 11 Cameras
As with many budget smartphones, the Note 11 exhibits some compromises in camera performance to maintain its competitive price point. It features a triple camera setup: a 50-megapixel primary camera, a depth sensor, and an "AI sensor." The primary camera defaults to capturing 12.5-megapixel photos, providing a good balance between image size and quality. However, tapping a convenient toggle allows shooting at the full 50-megapixel resolution, ideal for capturing intricate details. For capturing those precious selfies, the Note 11 houses a 16-megapixel camera in the dewdrop notch, accompanied by an LED flash cleverly integrated within the top bezel. The camera app is intuitive and simple to navigate, making it easy to switch between various shooting modes.
Daylight images garnered with the Infinix Note 11 appear a bit flat, lacking the desired level of detail. Colors appear washed-out, and objects in the distance aren’t sharply defined. Images captured at the full 50-megapixel resolution, while large at 13MB, also suffer from the same issues as those captured at the pixel-binned resolution. The lack of detail makes these high-resolution images unsuitable for cropping.
Close-up shots benefit from the AI’s rapid detection of the subject. However, the phone sometimes struggles to lock focus quickly, resulting in blurred images when patience is not exercised. While the phone manages decent edge detection and adds depth to the background, it doesn’t capture the most refined detail on the subject.
Portraits perform slightly better, offering the ability to adjust the blur intensity before capturing a shot. The phone generally separates the subject from the background well, creating a pleasing bokeh effect, though sharpness could be improved.
Low-light camera performance is decidedly average. Nighttime images exhibit haze and indistinct details. The Night Mode, while improving brightness, introduces blur due to the longer shutter speeds, affecting images with moving subjects.
Selfies captured with the Infinix Note 11 display decent quality in daylight, and the phone also captures satisfactory portraits. Low-light selfies provide average results, but the front flash proves helpful in darker environments.
Video recording is capped at 2K for both the primary and selfie cameras. Footage lacks stabilization, and Ultra Steady mode only functions at up to 1080p. This limitation results in shaky footage when shooting in the default mode. While an Ultra Steady option is present, it introduces a shimmering effect in video clips.
Verdict
Crafting a budget smartphone requires a delicate balancing act. Manufacturers often make concessions to achieve competitive pricing. The Infinix Note 11’s camera performance, while functional, doesn’t reach the heights of some competing budget phones, and users may need to take multiple attempts to get the desired shot.
However, if you’re willing to overlook the camera’s limitations, the Infinix Note 11 offers impressive value for its price. The captivating AMOLED display and dual speakers provide an immersive viewing and gaming experience. Additionally, Infinix has incorporated useful software features, although the phone’s pre-installed stock apps can be intrusive.
For those seeking alternative options in the budget segment, consider the Moto G31 (Review), which runs on stock Android, offering a clean and uncluttered user experience.
