Infinix NOTE 40 Pro Review, The Best Deal Under $400!?

Nowadays, a lot of people will agree that phones are pretty much the same. Something is a version of something. They share specs, they share lenses, they share software, and many times the pricing is quite similar. So, how does a company stand out in such a market? How does a company get recognition for its new devices? How do they get people buying their phones and not competitor devices? Well, I guess these are some of the questions Infinix asked itself as it worked on the new Infinix NOTE 40 Pro, which is now available in the Kenyan market. There’s a lot that Infinix is doing to make sure they stand out, and we are going to discuss that in this review.

I have had a significant amount of time with the device, and in this review, I will be highlighting its pros and its cons. I will be sharing my experience with it, and hopefully, giving you a full picture of what this specific device is like to use on a daily basis. Each section of this review – which I am dividing into 4 parts – will dive deep to give you a proper understanding of the device to help you see if it will work for you if it’s on your consideration list, or if you’ve already bought it, perhaps helping you make proper use of it.

The 4 Sections in this review are:

1. Battery and Charging
2. Design and display
3. Software
4. Cameras

One thing that you should keep in mind throughout this review is the pricing. This is the NOTE 40 Pro. According to information shared, it costs KES 38,700. In the series, there’s a NOTE 40 for 31,100 shillings and two more devices: a NOTE 40 Pro 5G and a NOTE 40 PRO Plus 5G.

Battery and Charging

You’re probably wondering why Battery and Charging would be the first section for a review. Well, it’s because this is the main conversation point for this device.

Last year, Infinix debuted what they called “All Round Fast Charging”. The idea behind this is that Infinix devices would be able to give users incredible charging speeds all through the day, in different environments and temperatures, regardless of the method of charging.

So when you unbox your NOTE 40 Pro, you will find a 70W charger and a 15W wireless charging pad called MagPad. Infinix calls their wireless charging tech MagCharge. I don’t know of any company in the market that includes a wireless charger for free as standard.

The MagCharge technology uses magnets – just like Apple’s MagSafe. So the Magpad attaches magnetically to the phone – including the included back-cover – to ensure when wirelessly charging, contact is always maintained.

Infinix has a robust charging system that gives you lots of things to tinker around with. Under Battery Management Settings, there are lots of profiles to play with. You can set speed for charging, you can toggle wireless reverse charging allowing you to top up other devices wirelessly, and you can even toggle on Bypass charging – which allows you to have your phone plugged in but not charging the battery, or charging the battery at slower speeds. This is very cool when gaming or when driving and using something like wired Android Auto.

Design and Display:

There’s not much companies can do nowadays in terms of phone designs. These are glass sandwiches with a metallic rail around them. But I feel like the NOTE 40 Pro stands out because of a couple of things:

First, the green leather finish is incredible. It feels good. It looks good. And you don’t have the fear that the back will scratch or shatter. I love that the included case is also made of the same material. Also, if you love light phones, this is super light. With both the case and the protector – which is also included in the box – you’re carrying a device that weighs less than similar-sized devices.

Secondly, the display is pretty good. It is an AMOLED panel that refreshes at 120Hz, and you can choose to bring it down to 60Hz. It gets plenty bright outdoors, and the curves make it a joy to use and look at. I’ve always loved curved displays. Infinix includes a free glass protector in the box, which I appreciate since finding protectors for curved screens is a hassle. Also, if you accidentally break your screen within 180 days of purchase, Infinix will repair it for free.

Other things that I must mention here are the onboard fingerprint scanner, which is fast and accurate, and the availability of both a rear and front LED flashlight – which you can use either independently or at the same time.

Software:

There’s a ton of stuff to cover under software. Which I see as a very good thing. It shows that XOS is maturing.

First of all, the Helio G99 Ultimate processor can handle many of the tasks you will require pretty well. I’ve had a smooth experience. I will only complain of delays when you open resource-intensive apps like Asphalt. But once you’re on, things go well. The 8GB of RAM is okay if like me, you mostly just use social media apps, and the camera.

Secondly, the XOS UI feels way lighter and smoother. The bloatware situation is not bad with fewer intrusive apps this time around. I just need these default apps to be easier to deal with from the first time you’re setting the phone. Because many of them are uninstallable, even though many people will never use them. I also wish instead we saw Google Cards on the Homepage.

In terms of customizations, you have lots of things you can change to make the phone uniquely yours. There are personalization settings that allow you to play with icons, themes, wallpapers, the AlwaysON display, and the lock-screen shortcuts. The issue I’ve had is that arranging the home screen is hard since you can’t mass remove apps or switch off apps going to the home screen when they’re installed.

Under personalization, you will also find AI Wallpapers, which allow you to create up to 6 wallpapers per day. These are uniquely yours. And the AI is currently allowing you to go pretty nuts with your prompts – so that’s something.

There’s a special function tab that allows you to manage things like RAM Expansion, Floating Windows, Gaming Mode, and the Magic Ring. The magic ring appears as a pill similar to Apple’s Dynamic Island. It currently shows up when you charge the phone or when making phone calls.

Under SIM and Networks, there’s a toggle for Network Optimization that does something I think many people will like. You can choose to have data be prioritized for active apps. This helps when you’re in places where the network is slow and you don’t want background apps slowing down resource access. There’s also the option for using mobile data to accelerate speeds when on slow WiFi, and while that’s not unique, the unique bit is that you can choose the apps that can do that. Pretty cool.

Finally, under software, there are three inclusions that are really interesting:

• First, the IR Blaster. This is the first time I believe I’ve used an Infinix phone with an IR Blaster. It’s a game-changer. Previously only Xiaomi included this. But now, here it is. And it allows me to control home appliances – from TVs to lamps, to fans, to home theatre systems, all from my phone without needing data or WiFi – whether they’re smart or not.
• Secondly, ULife. This is a feature built into the default dialer. It allows you quick access to USSD Shortcodes in Kenya. From banks to data, to airtime scanning or purchases. It is also a quick way to access the SIM toolkit.
• Software updates. This time around Infinix is promising updates up to Android 16. Since the phone comes with Android 14 out of the box, that means 2 to three years of Android upgrades.

Cameras:

There’s a 108MP main lens at the back, and a 32MP front selfie camera. The best things from my usage are night mode and video stabilization. Focus is fast with both cameras. And as you can see from images shared, it’s a pretty solid experience for this price point.

The weird thing missing is the lack of 4K video support. The maximum you can get with both lenses is 2K 30fps. There’s also SlowMo support, but this is capped at 720p where you can shoot either 120fps or 240fps.

From all footage included, you can see it is a capable camera for the usual sharing of photos on Instagram or other social platforms. It is also quite stable when you record videos with it. However, stabilization means video quality is capped at 1080p 30fps.

Finally, if you’re someone who finds it weird that scanning QR codes isn’t baked into camera apps on Android phones, that shouldn’t be an issue as this phone has that toggle. You just need to activate it yourself under camera settings.

Things Infinix needs to deal with:

• You won’t like the vibration motor on this device though. It’s very weak. And even when you enable haptic feedback for typing, you don’t really feel it when using the device. I hope this is dealt with on the next version.
• The desktop needs to be easier to customize. Settings should allow for easier removal of apps from the homepage. I also need those default apps to be easily deleted if someone doesn’t want to ever use them.
• Also, I really wish this model as is supported 5G. At this price point, I feel that 5G – which is now available widely across Kenya – should be available as standard.
• Finally, 4K should be doable with this camera lens. Even though many people still consume 1080p content, I think a 108MP camera should do 4K without any issues.

Concluding:

I think at the asking price of KES 36,700, this is a good recommendation mainly because of all the accessories that are included for free. I think the looks and the design of the phone present it to be even more expensive than it looks. And I believe people getting it will love it.

Let me know what you think.