The latest Xiaomi-branded smartphone to launch in India, the Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G is selling with an exciting discount. The smartphone was launched in India late September and is positioned in the mid-premium category alongside The OnePlus Nord 2, Realme GT Master Edition, iQOO Z5 and others. The smartphone is now selling with a discount of Rs 5,499 as part of the ‘Big Game Sale’.

The Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G is priced at Rs 26,999 for the base 6GB RAM and 128GB storage variant while the 8GB RAM and 128GB storage model costs Rs 28,999. The smartphone can be bought for as low as Rs 20,499 during the Big Game Sale. The said price is for the base variant with 6GB RAM and 128GB of internal storage.

The discount is a mix of bank and exchange offers. The customers can get a discount of Rs 1,000 using the ICICI Bank Credit Cards or through EMI transactions. There is an additional discount of Rs 4,000 as part of the Mi Exchange program. A similar discount is also available on the 8GB RAM variant of the phone.

Interestingly, the sale comes just days before Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge launch in India. The smartphone will be introduced on January 6 and is expected to be positioned between Rs 25,000 and Rs 30,000 in the country. This leaves you to wonder whether it’s the right time to purchase the Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G – even with the discount!

Probably, yes. The Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G positions itself differently from any other Xiaomi smartphone. It bets big on the design and in-hand feel instead of hardware. It carries the same philosophy as the Mi 11 Lite. The latter was a 4G phone while the Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G brought 5G connectivity to the series.

The phone comes in four colour options – Tuscany Coral, Vinyl Black, Jazz Blue and Diamond Dazzle. The phone is lightweight and slim as Xiaomi promises, but also has a broad design. The smartphone is easy to carry and handle. It features a 6.55-inch 10-bit AMOLED display with full HD+ resolution and an aspect ratio of 20:9. The panel supports up to 90Hz refresh rate and a touch sampling rate of 240Hz.

The display is probably the best at this price point. Xiaomi has given support for Dolby Vision on Netflix and the smartphone is also HDR 10+ certified. It is ideal for streaming content. A good addition here are the stereo speakers, which are loud and clear.

The triple rear camera system includes a 64-megapixel primary sensor, an 8-megapixel ultra-wide shooter and a 5-megapixel telemacro shooter. The Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE comes with a 20-megapixel selfie camera sensor at the front. The camera performance is satisfactory and what you ideally expect from a mid-premium smartphone.

The main sensor captures good close-up and wide shots with ample detail and sharpness. The colours are largely true and look vibrant on the display.

The only major reason to skip this deal could be to wait for the Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge. The latter will bring 120W fast charging support to the phone. It will be the first smartphone from Xiaomi to support this charging tech in the country.

For context, the Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE packs a 4,250mAh battery which, again, is the same as the Mi 11 Lite and not the biggest considering the current standards. Is it enough though? For most users. The phone supports 33W fast charging.

Apart from this, the Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G is an excellent deal at this price.