How many megapixels Xiaomi Redmi Note 8: camera specifications and practical tests

Introduction: Why it is important to know the resolution of the smartphone camera

When choosing a Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 smartphone, many users pay attention to the camera first. And this is not surprising: in the era of social networks and instant messengers, the quality of photos and videos has become one of the key criteria. But what is really behind the numbers "megapixels"? Why 48 MP does not always mean better pictures than 12 MP? In this article, we will understand how many megapixels each camera Redmi Note 8, how this affects the quality of shooting and what else is important to consider when choosing.

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 8, released in 2019, has become one of the most popular models in the lineup due to its price-performance balance. Its camera is not just a marketing ploy, it's a real working tool for everyday shooting. But to understand whether it's right for you, you need to understand the technicalities. For example, did you know that the main camera uses pixel binning technology? Or that the front camera has a non-standard resolution?

Technical characteristics of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 cameras

Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 is equipped with four rear cameras and one front.

• 📷 Main camera: 48 MPP (f/1.79, Samsung GM1, pixel size 0.8 micron)
• 🌄 Wide-angle camera: 8 MPP (f/2.2, angle 120°, Samsung S5K4H7)
• 🔍 Macro camera: 2 MPP (f/2.4, fixed-focus)
• 🎯 Depth sensor: 2 MPP (f/2.4, portrait-mode)
• 🤳 Front camera: 13 MPP (f/2.0, pixel size 1.12 micron)

The 48MP main camera is the model’s main trump card, but it’s important to understand that by default, the smartphone saves photos at 12MP thanks to pixel binning technology (combining 4 pixels into 1 to improve light transmission), which allows you to get more vivid and detailed pictures in low light conditions. If necessary, you can manually turn on the shooting mode in full 48 MP, but such photos will take up much more space in memory.

The 8MP wide-angle camera is suitable for landscapes or large companies, but its resolution is noticeably inferior to the main one. The 2MP macro camera is more a marketing ploy than a useful tool: its quality leaves much to be desired. The depth sensor is also 2 MP and is only needed to create a bokeh effect in portrait mode.

Comparison with competitors: 48 MP vs 12 MP

Many users have wondered why some flagships (such as the iPhone 11 or Google Pixel 4) have a 12 MP main camera, while the Redmi Note 8 offers 48 MP? The answer lies in the approach to image processing. Companies like Apple and Google are betting on computational photography — complex processing algorithms that improve images software. Xiaomi has chosen a way to increase resolution, which gives more detail in good light, but requires a more powerful processor to process.

As you can see from the table, the Redmi Note 8 is not unique in its class – other budget smartphones (like the Realme 5 Pro) have similar resolution. However, the pixel size of the iPhone 11 is much larger (1.4 μm vs. 0.8 μm), which allows it to better cope with night shooting, which once again confirms that megapixels are not the only quality criterion.

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The larger the pixel size, the better the camera copes with shooting in low light. 48 MP with pixels of 0.8 microns lose 12 MP with pixels of 1.4 microns in night conditions.

Practical tests: what 48 megapixels actually give

To understand what the Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 camera is capable of, we ran several tests in different conditions.

• ☀️ Daylight: 48 MPs give noticeably more detail when zoomed in (e.g., you can read fine text on signage). However, the difference from 12 MP is only visible at 100% scale.
• 🌃 Low light: Automatically, the smartphone switches to 12 MP binning. Less noise, but less detail. Night mode improves, but not dramatically.
• 🌈 Color rendering: Colors are saturated but sometimes overstated (especially green and blue) and can be manually corrected in the camera settings.
• 📐 Wide-angle camera: 8 MP is enough for social networks, but the edges of the frame are noticeably distorted ("barrel" distortion).

Especially interesting is the full shooting mode. 48 MP: It's useful if you're planning to crop a photo or print it in a large format, like a snapshot in a small format. 48 MR allows you to make a crop to 25% It's not a loss of quality, but it's a photograph that takes up a lot of quality. ~15-20 MB each, which will fill up the memory of the smartphone quickly. 48 MP shuts down HDR and some processing algorithms, so the quality can even deteriorate compared to the 12 Automatic MP.

The 13MP front camera performs well in the daytime, but in artificially lit rooms it often smooths out the texture of the skin. For selfies on social media, that's enough, but for professional tasks, it's better to use the main camera.

How to improve the quality of photos on Redmi Note 8

Even with 48 megapixels, the Redmi Note 8 isn't perfect, but there are a few tricks that can make it as good as possible.

Clean the lens of prints and dust | Turn off digital zoom (use your feet!) | Turn on the grid for the right composition |Experiment with manual mode (ISO, shutter speed) |Use low-light night mode-->

One of the most effective ways is to use the Manual Mode, which allows you to manually configure:

• 📸 ISO (Sensitivity to light: optimal 100-400 for daylight, before 1600 roomly.
• ⏱️ Extract: For night photography try 1/10c (use a tripod!).
• 🎯 Focus: Manually adjust sharpness for macro or portrait photography.
• 🔄 White Balance: Automated Mode Often Wrong With Hues.

Another life hack is the use of third-party camera apps like Google Camera (GCam), which allows ported versions of Google’s processing algorithms to activate, which often yield more natural colors and better detail, but keep in mind that GCam may not work smoothly and doesn’t support all the features of the original camera.

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Before shooting in 48 MP, check the available space on your smartphone. One photo in this mode takes ~15-20 MB, and 4K video up to 375 MB / min.

Common Camera Problems and Their Solutions

Despite the good specs, Redmi Note 8 users sometimes face problems, and here are the most common ones and ways to fix them:

⚠️ Warning: If the camera starts to lag or give out a green tint in all the shots, it could be a sign of hardware malfunction, in which case only the service center will help.

• 🔄 The camera focuses long: Clean the lens of dirt and turn off the Facial Improvement feature in the settings. If the problem persists, reset the camera settings to the factory.
• 🌓 Dark pictures in the room: Enable Night Mode or enlarge ISO Also check if the case covers the flash.
• 📱 Camera app crashes: Clear the app's cache in Settings → Annexes → Camera. → If it doesn't work, update the firmware.
• 🔍 Macro camera not focusing: Hold object to distance 2-4 Macro camera has a fixed focus and does not support autofocus.

Another common problem is that the camera overheats when you're shooting 4K video for long periods, because the Snapdragon 665 processor is not optimized for long-term loads, so you can avoid overheating.

1. Close all background applications before shooting.
2. Remove the cover (it worsens the heat sink).
3. Use 1080p resolution instead of 4K if you don’t need maximum detail.

Should I buy a Redmi Note 8 in 2026 for the camera?

When the Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 was released in 2019, it was one of the best deals in its price segment. But it's been 5 years - is this model relevant today? If your priority is the camera, then the answer depends on your tasks:

• ✅ Suitable if: you need a budget model for shooting in the daytime, selfies for social networks and videos in the video 1080p.
• ❌ It is not suitable if you are planning a professional shooting, often taking photos in the dark, or need to stabilize the video.

The latest models are the Redmi Note 12 Pro.+ POCO X5 Pro offers more advanced cameras with better processing, optical stabilization and support 8K-But if you have a budget and 48 MP is enough for everyday tasks, the Redmi Note 8 may still be a good choice, especially in the secondary market.

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In 2026, the Redmi Note 8 is inferior to new models in night shooting and video, but remains a competitive option for daytime photos in the budget segment.

The price of a used Redmi Note 8 today ranges from 8 000-12,000 rubles (depending on the condition).

• The battery may require replacement (capacity of the new 4000 mAh, but after 5 years it decreases).
• MIUI firmware can slow down due to a lack of RAM (3/4 GB in the basic version).
• There is no support for 5G and modern Wi-Fi 6 standards.

FAQ: answers to frequent questions about the Redmi Note 8 camera