Xiaomi’s latest flagship smartphone is definitely a looker. From a squircle-shaped camera tray that houses powerful shooters, to the iridescent gradient finish on the glass sandwich body, the Mi 11 is a premium smartphone that looks the part.
This handset combines some of the brand’s top-of-the-line features – the strongest glass protection to date, the latest MIUI skin on top of the new Android 11, an AMOLED screen that excels in both brightness and color reproduction, cameras capable of 8K resolution recording, and many more.
The newer model is 12 grams lighter than its predecessor, the Mi 10. It is also slimmer and feels more natural to hold, less bulky, but 2mm longer. Since the width remains identical between the two, the Mi 11 is still not one-handed mode friendly. It retains the use of an aluminum frame but is sandwiched by a Gorilla Glass 5 back glass and a Gorilla Glass Victus front, allowing it to withstand up to 2-meter drops unscathed.
In real-world scenarios, the Mi 11 can handle being placed in a pocket with keys and coins but is a fingerprint magnet without a phone case on. The curved glass on the edge of the display is a nice touch although when coupled with a curved back panel, it becomes slippery and awkward to hold. Xiaomi also ditched the hybrid SIM tray and opted for a dual-card slot on the Mi 11 which is an added bonus for its connectivity department, but the device still lacks memory expansion.
Beside the SIM tray located on the bottom is a USB Type-C 2.0 that charges a 4600mAh battery at 55W capacity. It can also charge other devices through a 10W reverse charging function. Upon testing, the Mi 11 can last up to six hours of continued play time when running titles like Genshin Impact and Call of Duty Mobile at maxed settings.
Gaming on the Mi 11 is also a picnic since it can run all demanding mobile games available for Android with ease. Even on max settings, the device produces fluid graphics and less heat generation while the visual elements are further enhanced by a display with 120Hz refresh rate and HDR10+. This flagship phone can also display games under direct sunlight outdoors thanks to its 1500 nits of peak brightness.
Photos taken on by the Mi 11 are undeniably clear, vibrant, and have balanced exposure levels. The stock camera app is responsive and snaps photos instantly without any delay, thanks partly to the heavy hitting Snapdragon 888 5nm processor and the Adreno 660 under the hood. Compared to its predecessor, the triple image signal processor inside the chipset is now 35% faster and can capture 4K HDR with Computational HD, as well as 8K at 30 frames-per-second.
Conclusion
The Xiaomi Mi 11 is a well-designed phone that packs more punch than its price, rivaling some of the more premium brands like Samsung when it comes to how a flagship device should look and feel. Aside from a well-implemented design language, its processors and cameras are also an attractive point, while the screen just brings life to any content it displays. A telephoto lens would have made its camera setup a complete package, and the eye-catching design is just waiting to be obscured by a case, no thanks to its slippery back surface.
The Xiaomi Mi 11 retails for P36,990 and can be purchased at select Mi authorized stores.
Pros
- Eye-catching design
- Excellent videography and photography
- Long battery life
- Vivid display
Cons
- Fingerprint magnet
- Slippery coating
- Lack of telephoto lens
