It all started with licensed smartphones of the Mi series for Xiaomi - Redmi and all sorts of variations in the style of Mi Max or Mi Mix began much later. Therefore, it is critically important for the company to release its flagship, ready to compete with “real” A-brands (this concept has been pretty blurred lately) and second-line flagships (Honor, OnePlus).
has absorbed all the key trends of recent times (the continuous increase in the number of rear cameras, the reduction in the size of the notch on the screen) and added traditional values to them, including those presented in Mi 8: a large (6,4-inch) AMOLED display, the latest flagship platform Qualcomm (Snapdragon 855) and glass case. Will this be enough to definitely win the race in a world where just releasing a smartphone on the most powerful platform at half the price of the flagship is no longer enough?
In Russia, at the time of writing the review, Xiaomi Mi 9 is not yet officially sold, moreover, even a “gray” device cannot be quickly obtained. Prices are based on current ones on Aliexpress, where the smartphone is already in stock.
Technical specifications
| Xiaomi Mi 9 | |||||
| Display | 6,39" AMOLED 2340 × 1080 dots, 403 ppi, capacitive multi-touch |
6,21 inches, AMOLED, 2246 × 1080 pixels, 402 ppi, capacitive multi-touch | 6,41" AMOLED 2340 × 1080 dots, 402 ppi, capacitive multi-touch |
6,4" IPS 2310 × 1080 dots, 398 ppi, capacitive multi-touch |
6,4" AMOLED 2340 × 1080 dots, 401 ppi, capacitive multi-touch |
| Protective glass | Corning Gorilla Glass 6 | Corning Gorilla Glass 5 | Corning Gorilla Glass 6 | Corning Gorilla Glass (version unknown) | Corning Gorilla Glass 6 |
| Processor | Qualcomm Snapdragon 855: One Kryo 485 Gold core 2,85GHz + three Kryo 485 Gold cores 2,42GHz + four Kryo 485 Silver cores 1,8GHz | Qualcomm Snapdragon 845: Quad-core Kryo 385 Gold @ 2,8GHz + Quad-core Kryo 385 Silver @ 1,7GHz | Qualcomm Snapdragon 845: Quad-core Kryo 385 Gold @ 2,8GHz + Quad-core Kryo 385 Silver @ 1,7GHz | HiSilicon Kirin 980: eight cores (2 x ARM Cortex A76 @ 2,6GHz + 2 x ARM Cortex A76 @ 1,92GHz + 4 x ARM Cortex A55 @ 1,8GHz); HiAI architecture | Qualcomm Snapdragon 710: two Kryo 360 Gold cores, 2,2 GHz + six Kryo 360 Silver cores, 1,7 GHz |
| Graphics controller | Adreno 640 | Adreno 630, 710 Мц | Adreno 630, 710 Мц | ARM Mali-G76 MP10, 720 MHz | Adreno 616, 750 Мц |
| RAM | 6/8/12 GB | 6 GB | 6/8/10 GB | 6/8 GB | 6 GB |
| Flash memory | 128/256 GB | 64/128/256 GB | 128/256 GB | 128/256 GB | 128 GB |
| Memory card support | No | No | No | No | There is |
| Разъемы | USB Type-C | USB Type-C | USB Type-C | USB Type-C, mini-jack 3,5 mm | USB Type-C |
| SIM cards | Two nano-SIMs | Two nano-SIMs | Two nano-SIMs | Two nano-SIMs | Two nano-SIMs |
| Cellular 2G | GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz CDMA 800 |
GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz | GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz CDMA800/1900 |
GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz | GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz |
| Cellular 3G | HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700 / 1900 / 2100 MHz | UMTS 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100 | HSDPA 800/850/900/1700/1800/1900/2100 MHz | HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700 / 1900 / 2100 MHz | WCDMA 800 / 850 / 900 / 1700 / 1900 / 2100 MHz |
| Cellular 4G | LTE: bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 20, 28, 38, 39, 40 | LTE Cat. 16 (up to 1024 Mbps): bands 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 20, 34, 38, 39, 40, 41 | LTE Cat.16 (up to 1024 Mbps): bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 32 , 34, 38, 39, 40, 41, 46, 66, 71 | LTE Cat. 13 (up to 400 Mbps): bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 19, 20, 28, 38, 39, 40, 41 | LTE Cat.15 (up to 800 Mbps): bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 32, 34, 38, 39 , 40, 41 |
| Wi-Fi | 802.11a / b / g / n / ac | 802.11a / b / g / n / ac | 802.11a / b / g / n / ac | 802.11a / b / g / n / ac | 802.11a / b / g / n / ac |
| Bluetooth | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 |
| NFC | There is | There is | There is | There is | There is |
| Navigation | GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, Galileo, QZSS | GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou | GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, Galileo | GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, Galileo | GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, Galileo |
| SENSORS | Illumination, proximity, accelerometer/gyroscope, magnetometer (digital compass) | Illumination, proximity, accelerometer/gyroscope, magnetometer (digital compass) | Illumination, proximity, accelerometer/gyroscope, magnetometer (digital compass) | Light, proximity, accelerometer/gyroscope, magnetometer (digital compass), IR sensor | Illumination, proximity, accelerometer/gyroscope, magnetometer (digital compass) |
| The fingerprint scanner | Yes, on screen | There is | Yes, on screen | There is | Yes, on screen |
| Main camera | Triple module: 48 MP, ƒ / 1,8 + 16 MP, ƒ / 2,2 + 12 MP, ƒ / 2,2, hybrid autofocus, dual LED flash | Dual module: 12 MP, ƒ / 1,8 + 12 MP, ƒ / 2,4, phase detection autofocus, optical stabilization (with main camera), dual LED flash | Dual module, 16 + 20 MP, ƒ / 1,7 + ƒ / 1,7, hybrid autofocus, dual LED flash | Dual module, 48, ƒ/1,8 + 3D-TOF camera, phase detection autofocus, LED flash | Dual module, 12 + 20 MP, ƒ / 1,5-2,4 + ƒ / 2,6, phase detection autofocus, optical stabilization, LED flash |
| Front-camera | 20 MP, ƒ/2,0, fixed focus | 20 MP, ƒ/2,0, fixed focus | 16 MP, ƒ/2,0, fixed focus | 25 MP, ƒ/2,0, fixed focus | 25 MP, ƒ / 2,0, fixed focus, no flash |
| Food | Non-removable battery: 12,54 Wh (3300 mAh, 3,8 V) | Non-removable battery: 12,92 Wh (3400 mAh, 3,8 V) | Non-removable battery: 14,06 Wh (3700 mAh, 3,8 V) | Non-removable battery: 15,2 Wh (4000 mAh, 3,8 V) | Non-removable battery: 14,06 Wh (3700 mAh, 3,8 V) |
| Size | 157,5 × 74,7 × 7,6 mm | 154,9 × 74,8 × 7,6 mm | 157,5 × 74,8 × 8,2 mm | 156,9 × 75,4 × 8,1 mm | 157,6 × 74,6 × 7,9 mm |
| Weight | 173 grams | 175 grams | 185 grams | 180 grams | 183 grams |
| Housing protection | No | No | No | No | No |
| Operating system | Android 9.0 Pie, MIUI shell | Android 8.1.0 Oreo, MIUI shell | Android 9.0 Pie, OxygenOS shell | Android 9.0 Pie, EMUI shell | Android 8.1 Oreo, ColorOS shell |
| Actual price | Approximately 36 rubles for the 000/6 GB version, 128 rubles for the 40/000 GB version, 8 rubles for the transparent 128/60 GB version (all prices are average, from Aliexpress) | , , | , , | , |
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Design, ergonomics and software
The first “droplet” that I happened to encounter was a micro-notch in a modest smartphone - and then I took it rather with modest irony. Who knew that we are talking about a trend and companies will begin to measure those who have less “bangs”, and users will rejoice, because this decision “does not copy Apple”? Xiaomi in the same stream, and after (and many others) she placed the front camera in a very small influx, almost not taking up space on the status bar - there was enough space and time on it, and all the icons, and the cherished figure of the current battery status as a percentage.
Otherwise, Xiaomi Mi 9 very consistently inherits its predecessor, Mi 8: a glass body (with aluminum ribs and a glossy back), a vertically oriented camera unit, and a back with bevelled edges. The frames around the display are minimal - while there is no need to talk about complete framelessness, they are noticeable both from below and above, and along the perimeter.
However, there are some changes, in addition to the very notorious "droplet". The fingerprint scanner disappeared from the rear panel, moving, as is now customary, to the screen. And the colored (not black, as we tested) versions of Mi 9 received a special texture that changes color depending on the lighting. We have seen this, for example, in - this is not about a gradient in the style of Huawei / Honor, but about a special type of even fill.
The Mi 9 looks really good in the end, and perhaps it really is “the most beautiful Xiaomi smartphone in history,” as the company’s representatives stated before its announcement. But this rather speaks of the not very high bar of beauty set by the Chinese than of a real achievement in industrial design. First of all, Xiaomi Mi 9 looks ordinary. Just as you would expect from him.
Well, it’s also very slippery - it just so happened with glass smartphones, with rare exceptions. There is a silicone case in the kit - I recommend putting the device into it right away, especially if you have a black Mi 9: there is nothing special to brag about.
Compared to Mi 8, the new flagship is almost the same in size (it has become a little more elongated, but has not changed in thickness), and weighs only two grams less. We can safely say that the sensations of working with him are exactly the same - this is a large, two-handed smartphone, which at the same time fits freely in almost any pocket.
The front panel is covered with tempered glass Gorilla Glass 6, as in the Samsung Galaxy S10 mentioned above. I already noted in the review of the Korean smartphone that the latest version of the famous glass is much more resistant to micro-scratches than the previous one, and the experience of using Mi 9 reinforces this impression. Another thing is that an unexpectedly weak oleophobic coating is used here (or was it forgotten at all?) - the screen is very easily covered with prints, which are then very difficult to wipe off.
As in Xiaomi Mi 8 or , there is neither a mini-jack nor the declared moisture and dust protection. The manufacturer does not even try to hide the purpose of abandoning the analog connector: it is both a tribute to fashion and an attempt to make money on wireless accessories.
A new control has been added - the power and volume keys on the right side have received a partner on the left. It activates the voice assistant by default, but you can assign other functions to it - we have already seen this in . There are options with on-screen navigation - three virtual keys can be removed and work with the smartphone exclusively with gestures.
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A small notch looks nice and interferes less with full-screen video playback, but its use also has a downside - Mi 9 has lost additional sensors that were previously placed on a large “monobrow”. Face unlock is available, but only the front camera is used for it, without IR illumination. As a result, this unlocking system is ineffective in the dark. Xiaomi itself warns about the insecurity of this method - they say, use a better fingerprint sensor, a password or a graphic key.
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The fingerprint scanner here is ultrasonic, located under the screen - this solution can already be officially called generally used. The sensor works very well at the same time - the percentage of successful operations, in my opinion, is the best among all competitors. In terms of speed, of course, it is inferior to almost any capacitive sensor, but in its league it is, if not a champion, then at least a contender for a medal. The same, by the way, applies to face recognition - it works instantly, you just have to pick up a smartphone. Probably, there is also the merit of the latest hardware platform, better adapted for these tasks.
Xiaomi Mi 9 out of the box runs Android 9.0 Pie with MIUI 10 shell. I already wrote about it in a very recent . For Mi 9, two details are important. The first is the work of software with a notch: the problems that we talked about in relation to Mi 8 are not here. The “droplet” is neatly integrated into the operating system and does not get in the way anywhere. The second - here, of course, there is no separate screen that turns on when the smartphone is pulled apart (activation of the slider mechanism). The rest is the same shell, fast and not bad in appearance (but with the very ugly frames around applications).
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True, other problems arose that I did not encounter in the third "mix" - in some places the shell turned out to be undertranslated. On the lock screen, for example, information about the current location and weather, as well as some notifications are displayed in hieroglyphs - despite the fact that, of course, the global version of the smartphone was tested and immediately after the start of testing, a big update “flew” on it, which I immediately installed. In general, there is a classic Xiaomi trouble with the dampness of smartphone software at the start of their sales. A strange and unpleasant problem, given that the company started out as a shell developer for mobile devices on Android and entered the gadget market later. Other very controversial points are also familiar from previous versions of MIUI - I'm talking about advertising built into various basic applications and the lack of a coherent search system inside the device.
Source: 3dnews.ru