Time does not forgive, and even less so in the technology sector. Every year new smartphones arrive, more powerful and complete than the previous ones; However, that does not mean that old mobile phones have become obsolete, and even less so with the new market trend of offering more years of support and updates.
In fact, the improvements that new smartphones bring are not always notable; and some old models are still recommended, especially if we find them at a good price. Brands like Xiaomi has a very attractive ‘catalog fund’full of cheap cell phones that have the latest, but that fulfill their function perfectly; Unfortunately, now we have to say goodbye to two of these phones.
And Xiaomi has confirmed that it will have to stop selling two Redmi brand models to comply with the new European regulations. Specifically, we talk about Redmi 12C and the Redmi A2which are going to disappear from the Xiaomi store in Spain; As of this writing, they are still available, but that will change at the end of the year.
The Redmi 12C and the Redmi A2 have in common that they are low-end mobile phones that aim for a price range below 150 euros; Right now, it is possible to get the Redmi 12C for 149.99 euros, while the A2 starts at 119.99 euros. As expected considering those prices, the technical characteristics are not cutting edge, both based on low-end MediaTek processors, the Helio G36 in the A2, and the Helio G85 in the 12C. Besides, They manage to stand out in other aspects such as photography: Both models have two rear cameras and boast of being capable of taking photos with HDR and portrait mode.
Therefore, the Redmi 12C and the A2 can be recommended for those users who need a cheap mobile phone but that can take photos of reasonable quality; and as is usual in this range, both have a large 5,000 mAh battery. Unfortunately, these models are going away, although they are not really that old; both were released in early 2023.
The reason why Xiaomi is going to stop selling these devices is not their age, but the other element they have in common: the micro USB port. Indeed, these phones still use the old connector that was previously common for charging smartphones, but which has already been almost completely replaced by the USB-C connector, which allows, among other things, higher charging power and data transfer. faster.
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Despite the advantages of USB-C, there were still some manufacturers that continued to use micro USB; although only in the lower ranges, where a euro more or less in the production cost can make a big difference in the final price. However, these companies are now forced to abandon micro USB and only use USB-C on their mobile phones, due to the new regulations of the European Union.
Let us remember that in 2022 the European Union decided to implement a single standard for the charging connector in smartphones and other electronic devices; This same year, the Spanish government regulated the single charger with USB-C to adapt to this regulation. Initially, the European Commission resisted forcing manufacturers, hoping that the market itself would adopt a single charger. However, the refusal of companies like Apple to abandon their own connectors led the Commission to establish USB-C as the mandatory standard. This decision now affects brands that have cheap phones like Redmi.
