Infinix Note 12 Pro 5G review: It leaves you wanting for more

As a rising smartphone brand, Infinix has many tricks up its sleeve to entice the consumers. And it is important considering that it operates primarily in the mid-range smartphone segment. In just this year, Infinix has had three separate smartphone launches for its Note 12 series including Infinix Note 12, Infinix Note 12 Turbo and now the 5G models called Infinix Note 12 5G and the Infinix 12 Pro 5G.

And while the core offering of these smartphones are not vastly different from one another, they are smartly distinguished through very specific features that the other smartphones do not offer. The latest addition to the Note 12 series does that with its 5G support, a 108MP camera and a MediaTek Dimensity 810 processor. But marketing strategies aside, for a buyer what really matters is whether the offerings by the brand at its given price makes it a worthy investment or not. After using the smartphone for more than two weeks, this is what our findings were. Read on for the full review.

Infinix Note 12 Pro Design

The Infinix Note 12 Pro follows the same design schematics of the month old Infinix Note 12 Turbo complete with a plastic unibody build, a large camera panel on top and a lightly textured pattern that improves the grip and minimizes fingerprint smudges. The design does not stand out much, but for those of you who prefer a rather minimalist design and matte finish, this will feel nice.

The plastic body does make the build quality feel cheap but we found it to be sturdy and comfortable to hold thanks to its lightweight frame of just 185 grams. The smartphone is also comfortable for one hand usage, although if you have small hands, the 6.7-inch display size can be a bit tricky to deal with. On the front, it has a notch design to house the front camera which I’m not a fan of. I believe punch-hole display was warranted at its price point and some of its more popular competitors like Realme 9 and Poco X4 Pro offer. It has a side mounted fingerprint sensor which works reliably and fast enough. It also comes with stereo speakers, a headphone jack and a USB Type-C port for charging.

The Infinix Note 12 Pro has also been released in collaboration with Marvel’s Dr. Strange and the smartphone box shows off graphics from the recently released movie. The company also offers some cool-looking thematic stickers, so if Dr. Strange is your favorite superhero, this might be an extra incentive for you.

Infinix Note 12 Pro Display

The Infinix Note 12 Pro features a 6.7-inch FHD AMOLED display with a refresh rate of 60Hz, exactly like the Note 12 Turbo. The display offers a slightly boosted color spectrum but it looks sharp and vivid when watching videos or playing games. The refresh rate is capped at 60Hz, which I could feel while scrolling through social media. While for average daily usage, this is definitely not a deal breaker but most competing brands offer at least 90Hz refresh rate at its price like Realme 9. The iQOO Z6 and Samsung Galaxy M33 even offer 120Hz rate but at a compromise of LCD display. So, if a higher refresh rate is important for you, those are your options.

In terms of brightness, the smartphone does not disappoint. It is bright enough to be comfortably used outdoors. Additionally, it comes with the WideVine L1 certificate, which means you can stream HD content from Amazon Prime and Netflix. The viewing angles are also great. Overall, the display is definitely one of the strongest suits of the Infinix Note 12 Pro and if your primary needs include binge watching videos, this smartphone will not disappoint you.

Infinix Note 12 Pro Performance

The Infinix Note 12 Pro is equipped with MediaTek Dimensity 810 5G. The processor is known for offering power-efficient performance but is also quite dated and is not up to the mark in terms of speed. You will likely not feel the difference in regular usage, even if you end up multitasking on the device for short periods of time. But it is during sustained periods of heavy usage and playing demanding games like BGMI and CoD Mobile when the cracks begin to appear.

The smartphone can run the above-mentioned games without a hitch and I was also able to play BGMI at ultra frame rate along with HDR graphics, but playing games for long periods would give you occasional frame freeze and frame drops which can be enough to lose a winning combat situation. Similarly, there is a slight response delay when you quickly switch between heavy apps or try to multitask for a long period of time. So, do keep your needs in mind when considering the smartphone. If power and gaming are your requirements, then you can consider Realme 9 with Snapdragon 680, Poco X4 or iQOO Z6 with Snapdragon 695 or even Note 10 Pro Max”>Redmi Note 10 Pro Max with Snapdragon 732G.

The smartphone runs Infinix’s native XOS which is based on Android 12. Getting Android 12 out-of-the-box is a big positive but using XOS can be a hassle due to all the notifications it keeps throwing at you and multiple preloaded Infinix apps that you cannot uninstall. A cleaner OS would have made it a much more enjoyable experience. The lack of optimisation of the software also gives out a clunky experience with slowed app openings.

Addition of stereo speakers is a nice plus, especially since it makes watching videos on the device fun. The speakers are loud enough and the audio quality is crisp.

Overall, while it should be remembered that this is not a performance-centric smartphone, it will manage most of the everyday tasks and casual gaming without any hiccup.

Infinix Note 12 Pro Camera

The Infinix Note 12 Pro sports a triple rear camera setup with a 108MP primary camera, a 2MP macro camera and a 2MP depth sensor. On the front, it has a 16MP selfie camera.

One of the major selling points of the smartphone is its 108MP camera and for most parts, it does manage to take sharp images with good dynamic range and enough details. During low-light conditions, the images suffer from distortions and blurriness, but that is not uncommon in this price segment. With enough light and patience, you can click impressive shots from the camera.

This is a big improvement from the other Note 12 series smartphones, which at max, flaunt a 50MP camera. However, the camera performance is not not distinguished enough to make the “108MP camera” tag a worthy reason to buy. The image processing is above average but there are better camera phones available in the market like Realme 9.

The other two cameras are basic 2MP lenses and they do not offer anything worth writing home about. The lack of a wide angle camera was also missed. The camera app comes with multiple modes including super night mode, AR shot, slow motion, panorama and others but these are simply party tricks. There seems to be an in-built filter in portrait mode that cannot be turned off.

Overall, the camera comes off as a one-trick pony which relies massively on its megapixel weightage to hide the lack of versatility. If photography is not your primary need and you only click an occasional image to send to your friends or post on social media, this should suffice.

Check the shots taken from the camera of the phone to get a better understanding of its performance.

Infinix Note 12 Pro Battery

The smartphone comes with a 5,000 mAh battery. The battery life is pretty good and even after heavy usage, I would have some charge left at the end of the day. With average usage, the smartphone consistently gave me between 1.5 to 2 days of battery life consistently.

The smartphone supports fast charging of up to 33W and takes about 70 minutes to take the phone from 0 to 100.

Infinix Note 12 Pro Verdict

At the beginning of the review, we said that what would make the smartphone a good investment is its offerings at its price range. While I feel the features and components of this smartphone are not bad at all, it is the price factor which makes it a little less attractive deal. The combination of MediaTek Dimensity 810 processor, a 6.7-inch AMOLED display and a 108MP camera makes it sound like an impressive smartphone, but only till you read its price at Rs. 17,999.

I feel that Infinix missed a trick by not giving the smartphone a more powerful processor as it has a great display and stereo speakers which could have made it a decent gaming smartphone in the mid-range segment and given the Infinix Note 12 Pro a distinctive appeal. Lack of a wide angle lens and 60Hz refresh rate and lack of optimised software also did not help its case.

But where it stands right now, I feel the smartphone will be a worthy deal only for those who use their smartphones for basic usage and love to watch videos but even then, Realme 9 does offer all that and then some more. Some other good options include Redmi Note 11 Pro and Poco X4 Pro, both of which cost less than Infinix Note 12 Pro. Consider the smartphone if you are a hardcore Infinix fan, but otherwise it can be skipped.