Sorry, this offer has expired.

Set up a deal alert and get notified of future deals like this.

AliExpress

$125 / Xiaomi Redmi 7A Global Version / 2 GB RAM / 32 GB Storage / Snapdragon 439 / 5.45" HD+ Screen / 4000 mAh Battery

Last Updated:
Oct 9th, 2019 8:39 pm

Tags:

SCORE
+10?
10
0

Reply to ThreadReply

Search this thread

Search this thread

Aug 5th, 2019 2:45 pm

GabbyWC [OP]: Deal Addict; Oct 29, 2014; 1123 posts; 866 upvotes; Grey County, ON

Aug 5th, 2019 2:45 pm

$125 / Xiaomi Redmi 7A Global Version / 2 GB RAM / 32 GB Storage / Snapdragon 439 / 5.45" HD+ Screen / 4000 mAh Battery

Price:: $125.48
Retailer:: AliExpress

The main deal link through Fantacy Technology is at https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/FcZnzoG.

Update: There's another AliExpress store that sells this phone for a similar price at https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/qYlmcY0 so that listing is also worth a look.

Those of you who are familiar with Xiaomi know that they make great phones at affordable prices. I've been using the Redmi Note 5 (SD636) global version for over a year and it still runs beautifully with the Pixel Experience custom ROM on Fido. I've also been looking for a Xiaomi phone to replace my mother's Moto G4 Play and the Xiaomi Redmi 7A looks like an ideal option.

Here is a detailed review from XDA Developers.

The video reviews below provide plenty of information along with the pros and cons of this device.

The Redmi 7A is priced at slightly less than the Umidigi A5 Pro and here is a comparison video of those phones.

The A5 Pro has some hardware advantages but Xiaomi is more established than Umidigi for quality control and support. Although I'm not a fan of MIUI, I think that the Redmi 7A could have a bright future with custom ROMs because it uses a Qualcomm SoC rather than one from MediaTek.

https://www.qualcomm.com/products/snapd ... e-platform

Expect the XDA forums for the Redmi 7A to become more popular as people get their hands on this device.

https://forum.xda-developers.com/redmi-7a

As for the Redmi 7A's wireless band and carrier support in Canada, this link has the details. It's not suitable for Freedom Mobile but should work well enough as a budget phone on other networks that use common 3G and LTE bands.

Last edited by GabbyWC on Oct 13th, 2019 9:00 pm, edited 15 times in total.

37 replies

Aug 5th, 2019 2:57 pm

Guest9939383742: Deal Addict; Jun 10, 2013; 3914 posts; 2510 upvotes; GrandTheftAutopolis

Aug 5th, 2019 2:57 pm

Price in title please! Thanks!

+3

Aug 5th, 2019 3:05 pm

RoseTech: Deal Addict; Feb 6, 2013; 1037 posts; 1297 upvotes; Ontario

Aug 5th, 2019 3:05 pm

Why do people refer to the storage space as ROM. Makes no fｸｿking sense.

Aug 5th, 2019 3:16 pm

GabbyWC [OP]: Deal Addict; Oct 29, 2014; 1123 posts; 866 upvotes; Grey County, ON

Aug 5th, 2019 3:16 pm

Hobotrader wrote: ↑Price in title please! Thanks!

Done.

RoseTech wrote: ↑Why do people refer to the storage space as ROM. Makes no fｸｿking sense.

I reached the RFD forum's character limit for the subject box but I've since edited the word "ROM" to "storage." There are blog posts at G***Best which answer your question.

+3

Aug 5th, 2019 4:30 pm

ukrainiandude: Deal Addict; Jun 15, 2012; 2837 posts; 1011 upvotes; Saskatoon

Aug 5th, 2019 4:30 pm

Wondering if it is going to work with SaskTel.

No need to type thank you; upvote=thanks.
Buffett, investors are focusing “not on what an asset will produce but rather on what the next fellow will pay for it.”

“Because gold is honest money it is disliked by dishonest men.” – R. Paul

Aug 5th, 2019 4:39 pm

pres_00: Member; Apr 10, 2009; 258 posts; 317 upvotes

Aug 5th, 2019 4:39 pm

What's the typical price for these? $130 for a bezelled phone with 720p screen and low end CPU seems typical to me.

Aug 5th, 2019 5:06 pm

GabbyWC [OP]: Deal Addict; Oct 29, 2014; 1123 posts; 866 upvotes; Grey County, ON

Aug 5th, 2019 5:06 pm

I wouldn't necessarily say that this phone is on sale at the moment but $124 CAD for the 2 GB / 32 GB global version is a fairly low price. I ordered a blue one yesterday when it was priced around $127 and I expect it to arrive in about a month after it departs with free standard shipping. As something compact and affordable that my mother can use, I think that the Redmi 7A is good enough for her. If or when Pixel Experience becomes available for this device, I'll flash that custom ROM on to it for better performance.

Last edited by GabbyWC on Aug 31st, 2019 8:59 pm, edited 4 times in total.

+1

Aug 5th, 2019 5:08 pm

ukrainiandude: Deal Addict; Jun 15, 2012; 2837 posts; 1011 upvotes; Saskatoon

Aug 5th, 2019 5:08 pm

Do they deliver it via Canada Post ? Important to know that brokerage fee and import taxes can be substantial especially if delivered by DHL

Aug 5th, 2019 5:13 pm

GabbyWC [OP]: Deal Addict; Oct 29, 2014; 1123 posts; 866 upvotes; Grey County, ON

Aug 5th, 2019 5:13 pm

Yes, AliExpress standard shipping uses Canada Post after it arrives in this country. It took about 6 weeks for my Redmi Note 5 to arrive after it shipped out of China but I didn't have to pay any taxes or import fees on it.

+2

Aug 5th, 2019 5:51 pm

blackbirdman: Deal Addict; Feb 13, 2015; 3785 posts; 5274 upvotes; Toronto, Ontario

Aug 5th, 2019 5:51 pm

RoseTech wrote: ↑ Why do people refer to the storage space as ROM. Makes no fｸｿking sense.

Think ROM means read only memory and RAM means random access memory. Think it was established long ago the terms are obvious

Thanks RFD

Aug 5th, 2019 6:36 pm

RoseTech: Deal Addict; Feb 6, 2013; 1037 posts; 1297 upvotes; Ontario

Aug 5th, 2019 6:36 pm

blackbirdman wrote: ↑ Think ROM means read only memory and RAM means random access memory. Think it was established long ago the terms are obvious

That's not what I'm arguing. What you said is correct obviously, but you misunderstand what I'm saying. The usage here is wrong. Storage space is not ROM nor RAM.

The only ROM in consumer technology these days are the chips that contain the firmware of individual components. Even then, a lot of time they are upgrade-able and so are not truly ROM (such as EPROM). With PC motherboards, the BIOS firmware is stored on ROM (a mere few MB at most), and a CMOS chip contains the editable settings that adjust the BIOS.

+6

Aug 5th, 2019 10:08 pm

Guest9939383742: Deal Addict; Jun 10, 2013; 3914 posts; 2510 upvotes; GrandTheftAutopolis

Aug 5th, 2019 10:08 pm

Yeah, Read Only Memory means that you can't write to it. You clearly can in the context of how they're using the term with these phones - wrong term.

Aug 5th, 2019 11:09 pm

GabbyWC [OP]: Deal Addict; Oct 29, 2014; 1123 posts; 866 upvotes; Grey County, ON

Aug 5th, 2019 11:09 pm

Since we agree that ROM is not a correct term for the internal storage on a phone, let's please get this thread back on topic.

My Redmi 7A order has shipped out just two days after placing the order with the Fantacy Technology store on AliExpress. The estimated delivery time with standard shipping is between August 19 to September 3 but of course there's also the 60-day buyer protection policy which will refund my money if this order does not arrive in the next two months. I'll post tracking updates here from time to time as well as my impressions after I receive the shipment.

Aside from the phone itself, I also ordered these nano-clear screen protectors and this clear TPU case about two weeks ago. I chose the China Post Ordinary Small Packet Plus shipping option for those orders and I hope to receive them before or around the same time as the phone itself.

Aug 6th, 2019 10:39 am

crockpot: Member; Oct 3, 2014; 303 posts; 266 upvotes

Aug 6th, 2019 10:39 am

what's the cheapest chinese phone that can shoot videos in high fps/slow motion. The 7a can only do 30fps.

Aug 6th, 2019 8:01 pm

baseline: Sr. Member; Aug 29, 2001; 554 posts; 330 upvotes; Toronto

Aug 6th, 2019 8:01 pm

can this do android auto and waze? I saw a lot of posts about gps issues with xiaomi phones but for older but similar models

+2

Aug 6th, 2019 10:47 pm

GabbyWC [OP]: Deal Addict; Oct 29, 2014; 1123 posts; 866 upvotes; Grey County, ON

Aug 6th, 2019 10:47 pm

crockpot wrote: ↑what's the cheapest chinese phone that can shoot videos in high fps/slow motion. The 7a can only do 30fps.

I think you'd have to spend above $160 for phones that can shoot video in more advanced modes. The Redmi 7 (SD632) can record 1080p video at 30 and 60 FPS while the Redmi Note 7 (SD660) can record 1080p video at 30, 60 and 120 FPS.

baseline wrote: ↑can this do android auto and waze? I saw a lot of posts about gps issues with xiaomi phones but for older but similar models

I don't know about Android Auto as my car deck does not support that. As for GPS navigation, I experienced serious issues early on when I started using Google Maps and Waze on my Redmi Note 5. Those apps would randomly freeze and close for no apparent reason (sometimes causing my phone to restart) and it was incredibly frustrating to deal with while driving. I was concerned that my phone might even be defective but after performing extensive troubleshooting with clean installs of different ROMs, I realized that an anti-theft app called Cerberus was responsible for the problematic GPS behavior. I uninstalled Cerberus and have not had any GPS navigation issues since then on my Redmi Note 5.

+4

Aug 7th, 2019 8:09 am

tkddad: Deal Addict; Aug 24, 2005; 1896 posts; 995 upvotes

Aug 7th, 2019 8:09 am

GabbyWC wrote: ↑ Yes, AliExpress standard shipping uses Canada Post after it arrives in this country. It took about 6 weeks for my Redmi Note 5 to arrive after it shipped out of China but I didn't have to pay any taxes or import fees on it.

Does it come with tracking with Canada Post? Thanks.

Aug 7th, 2019 9:10 am

Kurtz7834: Deal Expert; Oct 27, 2003; 17501 posts; 8392 upvotes; Toronto

Aug 7th, 2019 9:10 am

Get the Umidigi A5 Pro instead, much better hardware and better deal for a similar price, under Canadian $140 shipped.

+2

Aug 7th, 2019 2:26 pm

GabbyWC [OP]: Deal Addict; Oct 29, 2014; 1123 posts; 866 upvotes; Grey County, ON

Aug 7th, 2019 2:26 pm

tkddad wrote: ↑
Does it come with tracking with Canada Post? Thanks.

The tracking number provided with AliExpress standard shipping is valid internationally. It works in Canada Post's system once the package enters this country.

Kurtz7834 wrote: ↑Get the Umidigi A5 Pro instead, much better hardware and better deal for a similar price, under Canadian $140 shipped.

It's not that simple. Yes, the A5 Pro has some better hardware such as the 1080p screen and 4 GB of RAM but its main rear camera still takes inferior photos. Both devices have batteries rated at or near 4000 mAh but the Redmi 7A's 720p screen requires less power than a 1080p screen and the Snapdragon 439 SoC is manufactured on a 12 nanometer process which is more efficient than the 16 nanometer process of the Helio P23. A smaller and lighter phone appeals to people who want to comfortably use the device with one hand. As for software, I prefer stock Android over MIUI but for how long will Umidigi provide OS and security updates? Xiaomi's software support may last for years. Even if the the Redmi 7A's official support period is not that long, a phone with a Qualcomm SoC will certainly be more appealing to custom ROM developers. Freedom Mobile users would obviously benefit from a phone with LTE band 66 support such as the A5 Pro. I linked to a detailed comparison video in my original post that shows advantages and disadvantages for both phones.

+2

Aug 8th, 2019 9:13 pm

Samwfive: Deal Addict; Nov 21, 2007; 3370 posts; 1320 upvotes; Scarborough

Aug 8th, 2019 9:13 pm

GabbyWC wrote: ↑
.... Yes, the A5 Pro has some better hardware such as the 1080p screen and 4 GB of RAM but its main rear camera still takes inferior photos. Both devices have batteries rated at or near 4000 mAh but the Redmi 7A's 720p screen requires less power than a 1080p screen and the Snapdragon 439 SoC is manufactured on a 12 nanometer process which is more efficient than the 16 nanometer process of the Helio P23. A smaller and lighter phone appeals to people who want to comfortably use the device with one hand. As for software, I prefer stock Android over MIUI but for how long will Umidigi provide OS and security updates? Xiaomi's software support may last for years.Even if the the Redmi 7A's official support period is not that long, a phone with a Qualcomm SoC will certainly be more appealing to custom ROM developers. Freedom Mobile users would obviously benefit from a phone with LTE band 66 support such as the A5 Pro. I linked to a detailed comparison video in my original post that shows advantages and disadvantages for both phones.

That's what holding me back from picking up a Umidigi. It looks like it has the same practice as the Blu, zero security updates.

So OP, did you have security updates on your redme note 5 to date? I bought a 2017 in 2017, zero update, disappointing.

Reply to Thread

Top