I usually avoid reviewing phones from brands for which I lack context. So when the courier came in with the Infinix Note 50S 5G+. I was not sure if this was something I wanted to review. But then I thought it would be good for me to have context of what the other brands were up to these days. And out of the box, the design of the Infinix Note 50S looked refreshing enough for me to take it for a spin.
The Infinix Note 50S has an interesting design and is maybe among the thinnest and lightest phones I have used recently. The phone feels thinner than it actually is because of the curved AMOLED display, with the edges also offering a good grip. The camera module is also very different and gives the phone a futuristic look, especially with the titanium grey finish I got for review.
Curved display with 120Hz refresh rate feels snappy and bright. (Image credit: Nandgopal Rajan/The Indian Express)
The SIM slot and port are at the bottom, while the volume rocker and power button are on the right. Overall, the build quality seems robust, and the company claims an IP64 rating, making it dust and sweat proof.
The 6.78-inch FHD+ display is very vibrant and bright, making it great for consuming content and even gaming. In fact, the 144Hz refresh rate and 10-bit colour depth make this a phone gamers could take seriously. I found that it worked well indoors as well as when you were under the bright Kerala summer sun.
The phone is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 7300 ULTIMATE processor, which gives it the power to manage gaming, as well as multitasking and on-device AI capabilities. In the two weeks I used the phone, the performance was never an issue with regular browsing, camera usage and video consumption. The phone also did not heat up even once.
The camera is naturally an area where a lot of focus will go, given how people use their smartphones these days. The Infinix Note 50S has a 64MP Sony IMX682 Dual Camera and 13MP front camera. I found it interesting that the default camera itself is an AI Cam. This could be because of the AI focus option or the large number of present camera styles. But while the images were pretty decent, I could not see any actual impact of the AI.
I took the camera for a walk along the beach and found that it does well with regular shots and when you are sticking to within the 2X optical zoom. Anything beyond that gets a bit pixelated. In low light, the camera struggles with details. But the night mode works reasonably well, given you are not going to check the photos on a laptop screen.
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Infinix Note 50S 5G+ camera sample. (Image credit: Nandagopal Rajan/The Indian Express)
Infinix Note 50S 5G+ camera sample. (Image credit: Nandagopal Rajan/The Indian Express)
Infinix Note 50S 5G+ camera sample. (Image credit: Nandagopal Rajan/The Indian Express)
Infinix Note 50S 5G+ camera sample. (Image credit: Nandagopal Rajan/The Indian Express)
Infinix Note 50S 5G+ camera sample. (Image credit: Nandagopal Rajan/The Indian Express)
Infinix Note 50S 5G+ camera sample. (Image credit: Nandagopal Rajan/The Indian Express)
Infinix Note 50S 5G+ camera sample. (Image credit: Nandagopal Rajan/The Indian Express)
The video quality is also good enough to make reels and even some YouTube posts. Interestingly, there is even a vlog mode with some built-in templates for those who want to take their creator game to the next level.
There is a GCAI mode that can apparently turn your images into AI avatars. However, this mode did not work for me at all and the results were not even funny. Similarly, the AI generated Home Screen images also seemed like they were pulled off the net and not really based on the photos I had given as prompt. This part of the phone certainly needs some more work.
Despite its thin build, the phone has a 5500mAh battery that can easily last 36 hours with rigorous usage. The phone gets charged reasonably fast too.
The phone does not run pure Android, but the XOS 15 based on Android 15 avoids unnecessary distractions and skins. It also has limited bloatware. This is a big plus in my books.
At a selling price of Rs 15,999, the Infinix Note 50S 5G+ offers good value for money as well as features that were current and practical. Yes, this is no flagship phone, but this is clearly for people who don’t want to miss out because they can’t afford one.
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