Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G was launched in India late last month. The smartphone comes as a successor to the Mi 11 Lite and, as the name suggests, brings 5G support. The Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE price starts 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. However, the smartphone can be bought for as low as Rs 21,999 during the Diwali with Mi sale. Of course, this price is for the base 6GB RAM and 128GB storage variant.

The Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G is still listed at Rs 26,999 on Xiaomi India’s official website. However, users can get an instant discount of Rs 2,000 using ICICI Bank credit and debit cards. On top of this, Xiaomi is also giving a Rs 3,000 discount with Reward Mi Coupon. This brings the effective cost of the phone down to Rs 21,999 after a collective discount of Rs 5,000.

The only thing you need to consider is that the Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G is positioned in a very crowded market. It competes with the OnePlus Nord 2, Realme GT Master Edition and iQOO Z5 – all of which are really capable devices. Then, there is also the Mi 11X which has been selling at around Rs 20,000 during the festive season sales. That smartphone, in fact, comes with an even better Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 SoC.

This brings us to the question – Is the Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G worth buying?

The Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G looks very similar to the Mi 11 Lite 4G variant which was launched in India. It also comes in the same colour variants – Tuscany Coral, Vinyl Black, and Jazz Blue. Only Xiaomi has added a new Diamond Dazzle colour. The phone is lightweight and slim as Xiaomi promises, but also has a broad design. A good addition here are the stereo speakers, which are loud and clear.

The smartphone 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. One of the reasons why I would ask you to seriously consider the Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G is its display. The phone features the best screen in this segment. Xiaomi has given support for Dolby Vision on Netflix and the smartphone is also HDR 10+ certified.

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. You can check the image samples and read our full review of the Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G here.

Two reasons why you can possibly skip this phone despite the discount are – performance and battery. The smartphone is equipped with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G SoC. As I mentioned, you can get the Mi 11X with a better processor for even less. 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.