The first-generation Mi Mix was awe-inspiring, and with its successor, Xiaomi is seeking to retain that ‘wow’ issue whereas making the machine accessible to a wider viewers.

Xiaomi made the remainder of the smartphone trade stand up and take discover with the Mi Mix. The telephone’s all-screen entrance with a 91.three% screen-to-body ratio and ceramic building made it stand out, however with Xiaomi opting to promote the machine primarily in China, most customers needed to resort to third-party choices to get their fingers on the Mi Mix.

Thankfully, that is altering with the Mi Mix 2. The telephone will likely be making its method to over 30 markets the place Xiaomi at the moment has a presence, and with 42 LTE bands onboard, you’ll apply it to most carriers around the globe. Xiaomi additionally made a number of design tweaks to make the telephone extra accessible, together with trimming down the dimensions of the display, and switching again to an earpiece that really works.

The worth is what makes the Mi Mix 2 that rather more engaging: the bottom variant with 6GB of RAM and 64GB storage retails for the equal of $500 in China, and Xiaomi will likely be seeking to introduce it at across the similar worth in different areas. Let’s discover out if the Mi Mix 2 is ready to differentiate itself from the remainder of the telephones on this phase.

About this overview

I (Harish Jonnalagadda) am scripting this overview after utilizing the Mi Mix 2 for 2 weeks, with utilization unfold throughout Beijing and Hyderabad. I used the telephone totally on Airtel’s 4G community, and was on roaming with China Mobile. The machine is working the primary world beta ROM of MIUI ( construct 7.eight.24), and has picked up a single replace with stability fixes, incrementing the construct quantity to 7.9.21. The unit was supplied to Android Central for overview by Xiaomi.

Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 Specs

Category	Spec
Operating System	MIUI 9 Android 7.1.1 Nougat
Display	5.9-inch 18:9 IPS LCD 2160 x 1080 (403ppi) Sunlight mode Reading mode
Processor	Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 2.45GHz octa-core Kryo 280 10nm FinFET
GPU	Adreno 540
RAM	6GB LPDDR4X (8GB LPDDR4X particular version)
Storage	64GB/128GB/256GB UFS 2.1 flash storage (128GB particular version)
Expandable	No
Battery	3400mAh
Charging	USB-C Quick Charge three.zero (9V/2A)
Rear Camera	12MP (Sony IMX 386) f/2.zero, 1.25-micron pixels Four-axis OIS, two-tone flash, PDAF 4K@30fps, 1080p@30fps, 720p@120fps
Front Camera	5MP 1080p video
Connectivity	Wi-Fi 802.11 ac MU MIMO, 2×2 MIMO LTE with VoLTE, Bluetooth 5.zero GPS/AGPS/GLONASS/BeiDou
Network bands	FDD-LTE: Band 1/2/three/Four/5/7/eight/12/13/17/18/19/20/25/26/27/28/29/30 TDD-LTE: Band 34/38/39/40/41 TD-SCDMA: Band 34/39 WCDMA: Band 1/2/three/Four/5/6/eight/9/19 CDMA EVDO: BC0, BC1, BC6, BC10 GSM: Band 2/three/5/eight
Security	One-touch fingerprint sensor on the again
SIM	Dual nano-SIM slot
Dimensions	151.eight x 75.5 x 7.7mm 185g

Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 Hardware

The Mi Mix 2 appears to be like rather a lot like its predecessor, and that is an excellent factor. The first-generation Mi Mix was gorgeous to behold due to its all-screen show, and we’re handled to an analogous design this time round. The Mix 2 has razor-thin bezels on three sides, resulting in an immersive show that is very best for multimedia consumption.

There’s a chin on the backside that homes the 5MP Entrance Digital Camera and the notification LED, with Xiaomi noting that the underside bezel is now 12% thinner than that on the Mi Mix. Xiaomi used a piezoelectric acoustic driver final 12 months, however switched to a normal earpiece that is situated simply above the show this time round. The earpiece itself is first rate sufficient, and you should not have any points for voice calls.

The Mi Mix had a loopy 91.three% screen-to-body ratio, however the massive 6.44-inch show made it tough to make use of the telephone one-handed. With the Mi Mix 2, Xiaomi decreased the display measurement to a extra manageable 5.99 inches, making the telephone extra conducive to one-handed utilization. The incontrovertible fact that it’s an 18:9 show implies that the telephone is sort of tall, and you are not going to have the ability to attain all corners of the show.

Whereas the Mi Mix was blocky on the again, its successor has easy edges and rounded corners, leading to a significantly better in-hand really feel. The design on the again is comparatively unchanged from the Mi Mix: there’s an 18-carat gold accent across the digital camera sensor, and the “Mix designed by Xiaomi” tagline continues to be laser-etched onto the again. Xiaomi is as soon as once more utilizing a ceramic again, however the mid-frame is made out of aluminum. There’s a single speaker situated on the backside of the telephone, and a USB-C charging port subsequent to it. There’s no IR sensor on the telephone, and you are not going to discover a three.5mm jack both.

Bezel-less telephones just like the Essential Phone and the iPhone X have a notch or cutout on the high to accommodate the entrance digital camera module. Xiaomi, in the meantime, determined to maneuver the digital camera to the underside proper nook of the telephone, and in doing so the highest of the Mi Mix 2 is seamless and never marred by any cutouts.

The first-generation Mi Mix additionally sported the entrance digital camera on the backside of the display, however this time round Xiaomi is utilizing a good smaller imaging sensor, and the realm across the lens is blacked out. That stated, the identical issues that plagued the first-generation Mi Mix are again with the Mi Mix 2: the place of the entrance digital camera makes it extremely awkward to make use of, and as a rule, you will finish up getting a bizarre chin-first angle when taking selfies. The digital camera app tells you to invert the telephone to take selfies, which is not very best. While it really works for the default digital camera app, there is not any method to change orientation in apps like Duo.

The defining characteristic on the telephone is the all-screen entrance, and whereas Xiaomi would have fared higher with a QHD panel, the FHD+ show with a decision of 2160 x 1080 is de facto good. It would not get as saturated because the AMOLED panels on Samsung’s telephones, nevertheless it is likely one of the greatest LCDs you will discover out there in the present day.

Colors copy is correct, and when you’re in search of punchier colours, there’s an choice to regulate the colour temperature within the settings. The telephone will get sufficiently vibrant for out of doors utilization, and you may scale back the brightness all the way in which right down to 1nit for viewing the display at night time. There’s additionally a devoted studying mode that acts as a blue mild filter.

The Mi Mix 2 is suitable with most carriers around the globe.

The Mi Mix 2 is powered by the 10nm Snapdragon 835, and the bottom variant of the telephone comes with 6GB of RAM. Xiaomi is making three storage configurations out there: 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB (the mannequin I am reviewing). The 64GB mannequin is out there for what quantities to $500 in China, however you will must shell out near $570 to get your fingers on a unit from reseller websites.

As you’d think about from a telephone that has the newest out there in the present day, the Mi Mix 2 completely blazes by way of something you throw at it. I have never seen any slowdowns but, and with MIUI 9 offering much-needed optimization for the UI parts, you will not really feel just like the interface is bloated (which was undoubtedly the case with MIUI eight).

Xiaomi rolled out its first world telephone final 12 months within the Mi Note 2, with the telephone that includes assist for 37 LTE bands in complete. The firm is doing the identical as soon as once more with the Mi Mix 2, providing 42 bands in complete. That implies that you’ll use the Mi Mix 2 on most carriers around the globe, making it a way more engaging choice for these seeking to import the machine.

Aside from the annoyances with the entrance digital camera, the Mi Mix 2 is a well-thought-out telephone that definitely appears to be like significantly better when in comparison with the likes of the OnePlus 5. Xiaomi can be providing a restricted version mannequin crafted out of unibody ceramic that comes with 8GB of RAM and 128GB storage. The telephone will likely be out there in black and white colour choices, and it appears to be like completely gorgeous. You can clearly make out the distinction between the ceramic and the aluminum mid-frame on the common model, however the ceramic unibody version has a seamless design that is evocative, significantly within the white colour choice.

If you are in search of a telephone that stands out, then the unibody ceramic version is the one to get. The telephone will likely be extremely laborious to come up with, nevertheless, and at $720 it prices significantly greater than the common model.

Battery life

Xiaomi telephones are identified for his or her battery longevity, and the Mi Mix 2 is not any completely different. I simply acquired a day’s value of utilization out of the 3400mAh battery constantly, even on days after I was utilizing mobile knowledge all through. I routinely averaged screen-on-time in extra of 5 hours. And once you do have to high up, the telephone has Quick Charge three.zero.

Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 Software

The Mi Mix 2 runs the newest model of MIUI 9, which is predicated on Android 7.1.2 Nougat. MIUI 9 has a number of new additions, however the user-facing ones are (for now) restricted to the Chinese ROM. If you are shopping for the telephone from a reseller like GearBest, you will get the worldwide ROM pre-installed, which comes with the Play Store and Google’s suite of apps out of the field.

Xiaomi was one of many first manufacturers to totally embrace a theming engine, and in MIUI 9 the engine is significantly better. You’ll be capable of change each aspect of the consumer interface with themes, and there are a whole bunch of various theming choices out there from the Mi Store. Then there are the MIUI mainstays: an easy-to-use one-handed mode, Quick Ball shortcuts on the display, Second Space, Dual Apps for working two cases of an app concurrently. Xiaomi additionally launched a split-screen mode, and it really works simply as you’d think about — choose Split Screen from the multitasking pane, and drag apps into the highest and backside halves of the display.

There’s rather a lot to love in MIUI 9, however it is rather buggy in its present iteration.

One of the primary highlights in MIUI 9 is system-wide optimization, which makes the UI really feel far more responsive. If you are used a Xiaomi machine working MIUI eight, you will instantly discover the distinction. That stated, MIUI 9 doesn’t deliver any visible adjustments, and the notification shade specifically must be overhauled. Although the brand new panel with the built-in toggles made its debut in MIUI eight (Xiaomi had a ghastly two-pane format in MIUI 7), it appears to be like dated. And though the telephone is working Nougat, you lose out on options like inline replies and actionable notifications.

Then there’s the difficulty of receiving notifications. For some cause, the Mi Mix 2 wouldn’t present incoming Slack notifications, and there is not any method to increase notifications within the lock display. The world ROM continues to be in beta, and there is a lengthy method to go earlier than we get to a completed construct. However, with a worldwide launch slated for subsequent month, these points must be resolved in forthcoming updates.

Xiaomi continues to ship weekly updates with bug fixes and stability tweaks, and hopefully notification-related issues will likely be ironed out earlier than the telephone makes its approach exterior of China. I am going to replace the overview as soon as a steady model of MIUI 9 is out there for the Mi Mix 2.

Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 Camera

This 12 months was outlined by twin cameras making their approach into telephones across price points, and whereas Xiaomi rolled out twin rear cameras within the Mi 6, the corporate is sticking to a single shooter with the Mi Mix 2.

The main 12MP imaging sensor itself is similar as what we have seen on the Mi 6, and it equally gives Four-axis OIS and the power to file 4K video at 30fps. And just like the Mi 6, the digital camera on the Mi Mix 2 does an awesome job in daylight circumstances, nevertheless it loses out on element in low-light situations.

Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 Bottom line

The Mi Mix 2 has the identical fundamentals as its predecessor: an all-screen entrance with just about no bezels on three sides, and a ceramic physique. By shrinking the display measurement down to five.99 inches, Xiaomi has created a tool that is simpler to make use of on a day-to-day foundation.

For now, the Mi Mix 2 is proscribed to the Chinese market, however Xiaomi will likely be rolling it out in different Asian international locations shortly. The firm has introduced that it’ll launch the telephone in India someday subsequent month, and with Indonesia additionally turning into a key marketplace for the model, an eventual launch in that nation can be possible within the coming months.

The incontrovertible fact that the Mi Mix 2 has world LTE bands makes it a simple suggestion when you’re in search of a sub-$600 telephone that manages to face out. The similar caveats as earlier than apply although: you are not going to see any after-sales assist in markets the place Xiaomi would not promote telephones, and if that is your first Xiaomi buy, it will take you awhile to get used to MIUI. If you are keen to place up with that, the Mi Mix 2 is a unbelievable telephone for the value.

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