Xiaomi's latest budget smartphone, the Redmi 12, has made its debut in Malaysia, offering a large screen and a powerful battery. During its upcoming open sale next week, the Redmi 12 will be available for as low as RM499. In Malaysia, the Redmi 12 comes in two variants, and here are the official prices. The Redmi 12 will be released for sale on Saturday, July 15, 2023, and can be purchased at authorized Xiaomi stores, as well as the official stores on Lazada and Shopee. Please note that the lower-spec Redmi 12 model with 4GB RAM and 128GB storage will be exclusively sold online, and you can take advantage of the early bird promotion to get it for only RM499, saving RM100, on July 15, 2023. The devices are available in three color options: Midnight Black, Sky Blue, and Polar Silver.

Despite not being a "Note" model, the Redmi 12 features a large 6.79" Full HD+ display with a resolution of 2460x1080 pixels. It boasts an adaptive refresh rate of up to 90Hz and a brightness of up to 500 nits. Xiaomi claims that, despite being a budget phone, the Redmi 12 features a premium glass back design and has an upmarket look with its flat-edged exterior.

Under the hood, the Redmi 12 is powered by a 12nm MediaTek Helio G88 processor. It comes with options of 4GB or 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM and either 128GB or 256GB of eMMC 5.1 storage. If you need more storage space, it supports microSD card expansion of up to 1TB. The Redmi 12 features a triple-camera setup on the rear, including a 50MP f/1.8 main camera, an 8MP f/2.2 ultra-wide-angle camera, and a 2MP f/2.4 macro shooter. For selfies, it has an 8MP front camera housed within a small punch-hole on the display. Both the front and rear cameras are capable of recording 1080p videos at 30fps.

Connectivity-wise, the Redmi 12 is a 4G device and comes with a hybrid SIM tray that can accommodate either two physical SIM cards or one SIM card plus one microSD card. It supports 5GHz WiFi, Bluetooth 5.3, and features FM radio with a headphone jack. The Redmi 12 is also equipped with an IP53 rating for basic splash and dust resistance. It includes a side-mounted fingerprint sensor and AI face unlock for added security. The device is powered by a 5,000mAh battery and supports 18W fast charging via USB-C. It runs on MIUI 14, based on Android 13, out of the box.