Infinix NOTE 40X 5G Review With Pros and Cons

The Infinix NOTE 40X 5G is making some waves with its 256 GB of UFS 2.2 storage. In terms of this aspect, it outshines many competitors still offering 128 GB storage. Aside from the storage, the Infinix NOTE 40X 5G starts at 8 GB RAM and goes up to 12 GB RAM. 

It’s powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 6300 chipset, which is a budget chipset. It’s also got a 5,000 mAh battery and support for 18W fast charging. 

So, is the Infinix Note 40X 5G worth buying? Should you get it just for the extra storage? Let’s dive into this review, where I’ll be covering everything from design and display to performance and software.

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Infinix NOTE 40X 5G Review – Design & Build

First off, it’s hard to ignore how closely the Infinix NOTE 40X 5G resembles the iPhone 15 Pro, especially with its camera island. While it looks like it has a triple camera array, it’s not a true triple camera setup (more on this later).

The phone has the Infinix logo on the bottom left, written vertically. On the front, there’s a punch-hole display with uneven bezels—the chin at the bottom is thicker than the top, left, and right bezels.

The right of the phone houses the power button and volume rockers. Up top, there’s a secondary speaker. At the bottom, you’ll find a headphone jack, microphone, USB 2.0 Type-C port, and the primary speaker. 

Oh, and the left side has the SIM tray, which can hold two nano-SIM cards and a microSD card at the same time. This means you can expand the storage up to 1 TB.

The phone is made entirely of plastic and comes in three colors: Palm Blue, Lime Green, and Starlit Black. The one we have for review is the Starlit Black variant. This has a soft glass-like texture on the back, with a glossy camera module and matte finish elsewhere. 

The Infinix NOTE 40X has a side-mounted fingerprint scanner that is fast and accurate. It also has an IP52 rating that protects against dust and water splashes. Connectivity options include 5G (SA/NSA), 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 5, Bluetooth 5.3, and NFC. 

The phone comes with a pre-installed screen protector, although it doesn’t fit perfectly due to a water drop cutout and uneven placement. There’s also a transparent case included in the box.

Infinix NOTE 40X 5G Review – Display and Speakers

The Infinix NOTE 40X has a 6.7” FHD+ LCD screen. Yes, it’s not AMOLED, but you get a 120 Hz high refresh rate. There’s dynamic refresh that is supposed to switch between 60 Hz, 90 Hz, and 120 Hz, though I never actually saw it hit 90 Hz. 

In auto-switch mode, apps like Twitter, Telegram, Google, Amazon, and Chrome usually run at 60 Hz. But if you want, you can force them to 120 Hz. Also, when you’re not using the device, it’ll drop down to 60 Hz to save power.

For the punch-hole cutout, Infinix has integrated an interactive Dynamic Port which works very similar to the Dynamic Island on the iPhone 15. It displays a pop-up for timers, music, face unlock, and more.

The display hits 500 Nits of brightness, which is alright indoors, but outside? It’s a struggle. Reading text on this screen in direct sunlight is not ideal, especially in 2024. An OLED display would’ve been much better.

The saturation is a bit off, with an orangish tone. You can adjust the warmth (temperature) of the display, but there’s no option to change the color tone. 

Adjusting to a cooler tone helps a bit, but it’s still not ideal. Infinix needs to add a feature to adjust the color tone, like switching from vivid to natural or something similar. All in all, the display is just fine, but there are definitely better options out there.

The speakers on the Infinix NOTE 40X are clear with an emphasis on the lower frequencies. The speakers can get very loud but at the expense of clarity.

Infinix NOTE 40X 5G Review - Software and Haptics

The Infinix NOTE 40X runs on the company’s XOS 14 skin, based on Android 14. The company promises one year of OS updates, though the frequency of security updates is uncertain. 

XOS is alright—not the best in terms of design or user experience. There are no fancy animations for opening or closing apps, which can make the device feel a bit slow at times. 

But for this price, it’s not a dealbreaker. Infinix has done a decent job optimizing the software, but there’s room for improvement. Occasionally, some apps crash or stop responding, which could be fixed with better optimization.

There are 46 apps pre-installed, including AHA Games, Messenger, Instagram, Facebook, Palm Store, Visha Player, WPS Office, Snapchat, xClub, xArena, and more. The good thing is that most can be uninstalled. There are no ads in the UI, which is a relief. 

The haptics are basic, fine for calls and alarms, but not great for typing or other interactions. You might prefer to turn off the haptics altogether. Overall, the software experience is standard for this price range.

Infinix NOTE 40X 5G Review – Performance

Now, let’s talk about the performance. The Infinix NOTE 40X is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 6300 SoC with options for 8 GB or 12 GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 256 GB of UFS 2.2 storage. The unit I tested had 8 GB RAM and 256 GB storage.

Synthetic Benchmarks

Running AnTuTu, the Infinix NOTE 40X scored 415,570 on AnTuTu v10. For Geekbench 6, it posted a single-core score of 762 and a multi-core score of 2001.

On the GPU front, Geekbench 6 gave it 1469 for OpenCL and 1463 for Vulkan.

Storage-wise, the AnTuTu v10 storage test gave me a score of 31,427. Sequential read speeds were at 525 Mbps, and write speeds hit 498 Mbps. Random read and write speeds clocked in at 278 Mbps and 248 Mbps, respectively.

In the 3DMark Wildlife Extreme test, the NOTE 40X scored 381 with an average frame rate of 2.29 FPS. The Wildlife Extreme Stress test showed 99% stability, with best and lowest loop scores at 384 and 380, respectively. The temperature rose by 3°C, and the battery dropped by 4%.

In my regular 50-thread, 30-minute CPU throttling test, the NOTE 40X performed well with 70% stability and an average GIPS score of 198,450. The device also stayed pretty cool throughout the test.

Benchmark	Score/Result
AnTuTu v10	415,570
Geekbench 6 CPU	762 (Single-Core), 2,001 (Multi-Core)
Geekbench 6 GPU	1,469 (OpenCL), 1,463 (Vulkan)
AnTuTu v10 Storage Test	31,930
3DMark Wildlife Extreme	381, 2.29 (Average FPS)
Wildlife Extreme Stability	99% (384 Best, 380 Lowest)
CPU Throttling Test	70%, 198,450 (Average GIPS)

Gaming Performance

Gaming on this device is decent if you play at optimal settings. Running Genshin Impact on default settings, I got an average FPS of 28.6. Switching to custom 60 FPS mode, it averaged 32.3 FPS. Graphics weren’t stellar, but it’s playable if you’re not too picky.

I also tested BGMI (Battlegrounds Mobile India) on the Infinix NOTE 40X. In Smooth + Ultra settings, it averaged 32.5 FPS. With Balanced + Ultra settings, the average FPS went up to 37.59. On HD + High settings, it gave me an average of 29.25 FPS. 

For Call of Duty, the highest option available is Medium + High graphics settings, where it achieved an average of 57.97 FPS—fairly good. In Asphalt 9, with Performance mode enabled, the average FPS was 28.72, which is decent for this price.

Game	Settings	Average FPS
Genshin Impact	Default Settings (Lowest)	28.6 FPS
	Custom 60 FPS Mode	32.3 FPS
BGMI (Battlegrounds Mobile India)	Smooth + Ultra	32.5 FPS
	Balanced + Ultra	37.59 FPS
	HD + High	29.25 FPS
Call of Duty	Medium + High Graphics	57.97 FPS
Asphalt 9	Performance Mode Enabled	28.72 FPS

The Infinix NOTE 40X is suited for casual gaming and everyday tasks like watching videos, chatting, and social media. If you’re looking to do anything more demanding, you might want to look elsewhere.

Infinix NOTE 40X 5G Review – Cameras

Now, let’s dive into the camera setup on the Infinix NOTE 40X. On the rear, there’s a 108 MP + 2 MP setup and an 8 MP shooter on the front. Here are the camera specs:

• Main: 108 MP Samsung S5KHM2SP. f/1.89 1/1.52” 25 mm equivalent focal length
• Front: 8 MP GalaxyCore GC08A8 f/2.0 1/3.5” 26 mm equivalent focal length 
• Video: 
  • Main: 2K/1080p/720p at 30 fps, 1080p at 60 fps
  • Front: 2K/1080p/720p at 30 fps

Main 

For daylight performance, the rear camera delivers good detail with decent shadow and highlight preservation. However, the saturation tends to be a bit high, and color accuracy can be off, particularly with boosted reds and greens. 

HDR performance is average, and focusing can be challenging in low light. In low light, there’s much noise and less detail and saturation is as high as daylight photos.

The rear camera’s natural bokeh works well in daylight. This results in good edge detection and background separation. Portrait shots can be taken at 1x or 2x magnification. Shutter speed is good with no noticeable lag.

Front 

Front camera performance in daylight is comparable to the rear camera, with good detail and sharpness but similar saturation issues. Low light selfies are usable but noisy, and HDR performance can be inconsistent between consecutive shots.

Video

For video, the Infinix NOTE 40X provides usable 2K, 1080p, and 720p footage, all at 30 fos. Video detail is adequate, though stabilization and HDR performance are mediocre. 

You have the option to record with the bokeh effect but the resolution and frame rate, then, will be limited to 720p at 30 fps. The edge detection in bokeh video is pretty average. Also, low-light video quality is acceptable but not outstanding.

Infinix NOTE 40X 5G Review – Battery Life and Charging

When it comes to battery life, the Infinix NOTE 40X holds its ground. On average, it delivers about 7 to 8 hours of screen-on time, whether you’re on Wi-Fi or 5G. This is based on moderate usage, including social media, typing documents, and streaming videos.

For charging, the Infinix NOTE 40X supports 18W fast charging. The included USB-A to USB-C charger takes approximately 2 hours and 20 minutes to fully charge the phone from 0 to 100%. While the charging speed might feel a bit sluggish, it’s in line with what you’d expect for this price range.

Review Verdict: Should You Buy the Infinix NOTE 40X 5G?