Xiaomi Mi line phones. Xiaomi Mi line phones Best buys for Xiaomi laptops

Ivanov Daniil

Advantages:

Design, screen, performance, and almost everything.

Flaws:

Nfc, alas, didn’t help me pay with my phone, android pay didn’t want to work, I cursed at the firmware and root rights, although maybe in the future they’ll fix it with an update...

Nikitkov Vladimir

Advantages:

Bottomless memory +Screen (colors and oleophobic coating) +-Camera +Appearance +Fast charging and “long” battery

Flaws:

Camera +- Speed

Varankin Valery

Good model Usage experience: unknown

Advantages:

Battery and autonomy. On high. 3500 live longer compared to 4000 on the previous device (it’s probably a matter of process). Plus fast charging - in about 70 minutes it charges from 5 to 100%. - Processor. Sufficient for all needs, economical. - Camera. It didn’t give the wow effect, as some ratings promised, but it shoots well, plus there is stabilization. - NFC (Xiaomi often has problems with this). - Price for such functionality.

Flaws:

Glass. This is a real disappointment. The fact that it is also on the back instead of aluminum is (for me) a minus, but known in advance. But at least the case saves the day. But the display glass is like Gorilla Glass, but after 4 days of use several scratches appeared, mostly small...

shkapik mari

Excellent model Experience: several months

Advantages:

Camera, battery life

Flaws:

There is no headphone jack, the glass does not stick to the edges and spoils the appearance.

The user has hidden his data

Excellent model Usage experience: unknown

Advantages:

My first review on the Market, I had only read it before, but now, thanks to you, the people who write reviews, I made the right choice and I can’t help but thank you for it! :) The device is excellent, the previous one was mi 5, it worked on the 835 dragon, 3 Giga RAM. Over the last 6 months it has started to get stupid, + on top of that, the screen is flat and there is no 2.5 D. The battery is weak, although it is 3000 mAmp. In general, there were concerns about this device (Mi 3 is meant), the main concern was the 660 Dragon, but as I read in the end...

Flaws:

Garmanov Danil

Bad model Experience: several months

Advantages:

Good battery. - Convenient fingerprint unlocking. - Pleasant alarm melody.

Flaws:

The standard shell is not usable. - It is impossible to change the SMS application - SMS messages begin to arrive in the old one, then in the new one. - You can’t disable a bunch of pre-installed absolutely unnecessary applications like Mi Drop, Mi Remote, etc. - Standard applications that cannot be disabled constantly spam notifications for me to register in them (why the hell would anyone need Mi-synchronization?). - The standard camera application is crap, unable to do a normal panorama (!!!). The normal camera application from Google from the Market is not installed on the phone. - No...

Maksimov Sergey

Excellent model Experience: several months

Advantages:

Fast, not expensive, the battery lasts a day without problems. The size is good (not a shovel, but not small either). NFC payment works in a fraction of a second. On the same Samsung A5 I thought for a couple of seconds, but there is one But! (In shortcomings)

Flaws:

There were some glitches. The first glitch: randomly pressing the microphone mute button or holding a call during a call, although the screen is not lit and I don’t touch my cheek. I found information that the “in your pocket” function is buggy. I turned it off and it doesn't seem to lag anymore. Glitch two: NFC payment stops working. Cash register...

LEV Ilya

Excellent model Experience: several months

Advantages:

Excellent processor, handles everything. Fast fingerprint scanner, face unlock in custom firmware, works great, even in the dark. Gpay works (even on custom firmware if you download Magisk). The sound from the speakers on miui is excellent, if you unlock the bootloader and install TvRP, you can install a patch to increase the volume. Color rendition is good (it varies on different firmware) but everything is fine for me. The lack of 3.5 didn’t bother me, I bought myself a Sony sbh24 headset that works well (but to save money, I advise you to buy a usb type-c + jack + type-c adapter, it costs 1000 rubles cheaper.) The sound in the headphones is flawless, all frequencies are present, but there is more low-end (adjust the sound Speakers and headphones can also be custom, I have Sony xb50ap headphones). Quick charge 3 is present, charges in a little over an hour. On camera, not everything is so smooth, but good. On the plus side...

Now Xiaomi Mi Note 2 costs approximately $500. Just think about it! 500 bucks and Xiaomi - and all this in one sentence. We made it! Be that as it may, we have a real flagship in front of us. Uber-design, the most advanced characteristics, a worthy replacement for the departed Samsung Galaxy Note 7. Or not? Let's figure it out now.

Alternative Get cashback

Options or where is the premium?

Do you think you'll be treated to some premium packaging since you spent as much as $500 on a smartphone? No matter how it is! Before us is the same box that we have already seen in. That smartphone, by the way, costs about $160. I think no comments are needed here.

Inside, in addition to the power supply (5-12 V and 1.5-2.5 A) and the USB Type-C cable, there was a simple plastic case. It is exactly the same quality as the standard case in the case of .

Only suitable for the first time, it is flimsy and gets scratched very quickly. Look at the photo below. This scratch appeared 30 seconds after I removed the factory films from the case.

The scratch appeared after 30 seconds!

Design for all iPhones

Well, it's just wow! Xiaomi Mi Note 2 is amazing.

From this point of view, this is the best device I have owned this year. This is absolutely the best! Yes.

Neither the iPhone 7 Plus (I haven’t tried Jet Black, I honestly admit), nor the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge, nor any other devices attracted me as much as the appearance of this pepper.

Sleek, large, pleasant to the touch, brushed metal on the sides, smoothly curved glass on the front and back, the main camera looks at you like a Canon 1D X Mark II lens - all this is our hero.

The smartphone looks really expensive and status-worthy.

It’s hard to imagine that it was created not in Cupertino or in Samsung laboratories on the 78th floor underground, but somewhere in China and by a company that is not even one of the top five smartphone suppliers. It’s even harder to imagine that there are people who don’t know and have never heard of Xiaomi. After such and such a device?

You turn on your smartphone and the magic continues.

It seems that screens without an air gap have been used for a long time. They are as close as possible to the protective glass, so it feels like you are touching your finger directly to icons, menu items, text, and so on. So, if you have already experienced this, then Xiaomi Mi Note 2 will prove to you that no, you haven’t. It is with the example of this device that you rediscover the mobile display.

It sounds loud, but that’s exactly how my acquaintance with the device went. The screen here seems to be printed on the front panel and neatly fits onto the rounded sides.

The manufacturer made the welcome screen black and rightly so!

If you are in a room, its boundaries are not visible. They seamlessly blend into the glass body of the smartphone, the smooth edges of which nobly reflect the incident light. It's just space!

Hence a fair remark about the color of the case. Should I take an alternative color - silver-blue? No! Just forget about him. Black and only black!

In general, I am not a supporter of dark smartphones, because they are boring. Most users have just such devices, so they want a breath of fresh air, colors and life among the gloomy “variety” of smartphone colors. However, this is not the case with Mi Note 2.

I want to forgive everything for this smartphone’s appearance. And believe me, he has something to forgive.

Below the screen is a physical home button. Thank you Xiaomi! Thank you for not putting in your flagship those wretched crutches that we saw in . For our hero, the physical Home key with a built-in fingerprint scanner works exactly the same as on Mi 5. And there the button was good.

On the sides there are neat backlighting points for the touch keys. They look decent too.

You become even more imbued with quality when you turn your attention from the glass to the metal frame. Brushed metal, perfectly beveled corners, no gaps or backlashes - the assembly is as monolithic as possible.

The only downside is that, as always, the volume control and screen power buttons are slightly loose. However, this is a completely normal phenomenon and occurs in all modern devices.

The main camera eye protrudes just a little above the surface of the rear glass. I don't think this is critical. At least I wasn't offended by it.

The device is really large, but if it were smaller, I think it would be perceived a little differently. Large, wide, black, men's smartphone.

	Length	Width	Thickness	Weight
Xiaomi Mi Note 2 5.7	156,2	77,3
iPhone 7 Plus 5.5	158,2	77,9
Xiaomi Mi5S Plus 5.7	154,6	77,7	7,95
Asus Zenfone 3 ZE552KL 5.5	152,6	77,4	7,69
Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge	150,9	72,6

It is slightly larger than the Mi5S Plus, but due to the sharply beveled corners on the front and back, it fits better in the hand.

Of course it's slippery. Be careful when using it and especially when taking photos. The side ends are thin and don’t really rest in the palm of your hand, which is why the phone can easily slip out of your hands.

You should also not place the device on an uneven surface. He will definitely move off her to meet the floor.

And there will be no one to blame but himself. Repairing the screen of an iPhone is expensive, but at least it can be done, which cannot be said about our character. Where can I repair it?

The glossy surfaces of the Mi Note 2 also have a downside - fingerprints. Yes, the glass here has a high-quality oleophobic coating, but no one has canceled physics, so traces of use still remain. Yes, they can be easily removed, but they are there and will haunt the device constantly.

Should I carry the device in a case? It's a matter of preference. Personally, I am against it, because the smartphone must be used exactly in the form in which the manufacturer invented it. With all its advantages, edges, glass and, most importantly, thickness. Especially when it comes to such a unit.

Hiding such beauty in a case, and even with a poor flip? Well then, better take the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge. It’s better to use a case there, because the original appearance is so... South Korean.

In general, I give the design of Xiaomi Mi Note 2 a five plus, because this device evokes truly strong emotions. At the same time, I tested Mi5S Plus (), LeEco Le 3 Pro (review to come), Asus Zenfone 3 () and after the second “E-note” they were all kind of faded. Asus, I must admit, is also all so glossy and iridescent, but it’s still not the same. Not the same anymore.

Fingerprint scanner and button

The most important thing is that here we have a normal, physical button that needs to be pressed. It has a built-in fingerprint sensor and, accordingly, there is a touch pad. Touched it - step back, pressed it - went to the main screen. Of course, there is also a hold function, but it is configured additionally in the menu. Optional.

On one forum, someone complained that it was a bit tight. By the way, maybe. On the other hand, its movement is very clear, with a characteristic click, which is pleasant.

The recognition itself is fast and confident. There are no problems with him.

Not at all the fear that was in . There is no scanner there, because it is impossible to use it.

There is additional functionality. You can block not only the device itself, but also individual applications. In principle, this is standard functionality for Xiaomi devices.

Separately, I would like to talk about the Haptic feedback vibration while typing on the keyboard. It's thin, soft, and probably the closest thing to Apple's Taptic Engine that I've ever tried. Believe me, this is praise, because in 7 the vibration feedback is simply fabulous.

The most important thing is that such a response works not only with a proprietary keyboard that is unsuitable for a Russian person, but also with a solution from Google. And there is a language familiar to us, long-familiar tricks, and so on. If the device is black, it sets a dark theme. How else?!

It's not the display, it's the problem

If the screen is curved, and ours is exactly like that, then it is most likely an OLED matrix. This rule also applies in our case. True, there is a South Korean development of POLED (Flex series from LG), but everything is completely scary there. We won't go into details.

• diagonal 5.7 inches
• resolution 1920 x 1080 pixels
• pixel density 386 ppi
• contrast ratio 100000:1
• NTSC color palette matching 110%

Numbers, of course, are good, but they are not the only source of happiness. Many will probably be confused by some kind of Full HD in a flagship, but personally I think that Quad HD in devices with a display diagonal of up to 6 inches is completely unnecessary. Extra load on the processor and power consumption to nowhere.

But installing a high-quality, beautiful screen in Mi Note 2, at the level of some kind of IPS, would be very nice of Xiaomi. But it didn't happen.

The Xiaomi Mi Note 2 display is a disaster.

First up, PenTile. These halos, the looseness of the text and other “charms”. Mmmm!..

Let's move on. Only at an absolutely right angle does the picture remain normal for perception. How to say? It turns green, which is typical for Samsung flagship matrices from 2012-2013. There are no natural flowers here and this is very sad.

If you deviate even a little to the side, the colors will float.

There is not just an inversion here, the colors shimmer two or three times from the bottom edge to the top.

Xiaomi Mi Note 2 (top) and Xiaomi Mi5s Plus (bottom) 2

You open a white picture, deviate, for example, 120 degrees and observe the following “beauty”. The upper third is normal, seemingly white. The middle is either pink or green, and the lower third is distinctly green, and maybe even blue - something in between.

You deviate towards the transverse axis, the entire screen turns blue. In general, a rare horror.

Xiaomi Mi Note 2 (top) and Xiaomi Mi5s Plus (bottom)

Even a smartphone that costs half as much (Xiaomi Redmi Pro) has a much better panel. There are bright, contrasting and very saturated colors. Let me remind you that it also uses an OLED matrix.

Xiaomi Mi Note 2 (left) and Xiaomi Mi5s Plus (right)

Moreover, such a screen curved at the edges also has a reverse side. Two luminous stripes, rounded on the sides, are constantly visible. Against a white background, they have a bluish tint and even have a certain mirror effect. I tried to reflect this in the photo below. I marked the beginning of this “disgrace” with a red line.

Fortunately, after a couple of days of use you don't notice it.

The matrix has one single advantage - displaying black color.

It is as deep as possible, the screen seems to be turned off, and it is really difficult for IPS panels to compete with this (and only this).

Technical specifications of Xiaomi Mi Note 2

• Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor, four Kryo cores with a frequency of 2.35 GHz
• Adreno 530 video chip
• RAM 4 (2380 MB free after reboot) or 6 GB LPDDR4 type
• built-in memory 64 (55.20 GB actually available) or 128 GB UFS 2.0 standard
• Micro SD cards are not supported
• OLED display, curved edges (true 3D glass), 5.7 inches diagonal, 1920 x 1080 pixels, 386 ppi, 100,000:1 contrast ratio, 110% NTSC color gamut
• rear camera 22.56 MP (1/2.6’’ Sony IMX318 sensor, f/2.0 aperture, 80-degree, 6-element lens, electronic stabilization, 4K video recording)
• 8 MP front camera (f/2.0, 76-degree lens, autofocus, Beautify 3.0 face enhancement technology, Full HD recording, 15 fps)
• 4,070 mAh battery with fast charging QC 3.0 (9V, 2A)
• OS Android 6.0.1 (update to 7.0 will be available)
• MIUI 8.0.12.0 Stable proprietary shell
• Ports: USB Type-C (OTG supported), 3.5 mm headphone output
• Sensors: accelerometer, light and proximity sensor, gyroscope, infrared, fingerprint scanner, Hall sensor (for case), electronic compass, barometer
• Dimensions: 156.2 x 77.3 x 7.6 mm
• weight 166 grams

Wireless capabilities:

• 2G, 3G, 4G+ (Cat. 13 up to 600 Mbps)
• Wi-Fi (802.11 ac), Bluetooth 4.2, NFC (full functionality)
• support for two Nano SIM cards
• GPS, Glonass, Beidou

An important clarification needs to be made here. In nature, there are two versions of the smartphone, or rather, even three.

The first is the standard model. It will be sold only in China, with 4 + 64 GB of memory installed inside. This is exactly what I have on the test.

This inscription means that the model is for China

The second is premium. Here we have 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of internal memory. This modification is also sold only in the Middle Kingdom.

The third is a global modification. It has only 6 and 128 GB of memory on board; there will be no other editions. In addition, only this model boasts support for the following LTE frequencies: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 38 , 39, 40, 41.

Chinese models can only work in the following 4G bands: 1, 3, 5, 7, 38, 39, 40, 41.

If you ordered a smartphone from China without specifying that this is a global version, you will receive a smartphone intended for China, that is, without support for the 20th band. It has this inscription on the box.

People on the forums are wondering whether it will be possible to unlock the 20th lane after the release of the global firmware. I think this will work, because similar precedents have been encountered on other models. And I doubt that Xiaomi produces two phones that are different in terms of hardware. It’s easier to “block” unnecessary functionality programmatically.

Powerful but stupid

Definitely nothing to complain about here. The smartphone is simply reactive. Despite the fact that the product was released quite recently, the system is perfectly optimized. Nothing slows down, doesn’t lag, doesn’t upset the psyche.

Despite the fact that the Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 is about 5-10 percent faster than its 820 predecessor, it currently remains the top solution on the Android market. It’s not yet completely clear what kind of solution this Huawei Mate 9 (Kirin 960) has, we’ll wait and see.

The chipset will remain relevant until the spring of 2017, when the Samsung Galaxy S8 with the Snapdragon 835 processor is released. Qualcomm has already shared information that the new product will be 30% faster than the previous generation. Does this mean that everything is lost? Not at all!

The “stone” contains an excellent safety margin, which will definitely be enough for two years ahead. Thus, having bought Mi Note 2 now, you can forget about updating your little animal for the same period.

But from the point of view of RAM performance, everything is not so rosy.

I opened 5 tabs (, one of my reviews, the site of a Russian newspaper, tapes and film search). After that, I opened each application in turn that was on the main screen. CPU-Z showed that about 1,400 MB of RAM remained free, but when I returned to Chrome, I discovered that every (!) tab was reloading.

I don't think that 6 GB of RAM will change the picture much. The point is in the system, in the optimization of MIUI, which in terms of RAM distribution leaves much to be desired.

The other day I did exactly the same trick on LeEco Le 3 Pro (QS821, 4 GB of RAM). So there the tabs did not reload after I opened about 40 applications sequentially! The system cunningly unloaded utilities that were opened earlier than others, but tabs in Chrome remained until the last - up to 750 MB of free RAM. So that!

In addition, some childhood diseases with navigation are observed.

Google maps either cannot detect the location of the device for a long time, or they simply go astray and I suddenly start walking not on the street, but, for example, on the roofs of houses. It’s interesting that with Yandex.Maps there is no such problem in principle.

By the way, an always-on screen and navigation over rough terrain can “eat up” the entire battery charge in about 3-4 hours. Be careful.

Earlier this year, Xiaomi, a well-known manufacturer from China, held a presentation where it presented its new flagship products. The Xiaomi Mi Note smartphone attracted the most attention - the company's flagship device with a 5.7″ screen, built on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 platform. Six months have passed since the release of the previous leader - Xiaomi Mi4 - and the company decided that it was time to update its line . It is difficult to say for sure how the latest announcements of competitors influenced this, but there is certainly a certain connection. Both previous top models (before Mi4 there was Xiaomi Mi3) had a 5″ screen. It is worth noting that this manufacturer’s arsenal already includes products with a 5.5″ screen diagonal, but they belong to the more affordable Redmi (Hongmi) line.

Interestingly, from the point of view of hardware configuration, there are practically no significant changes. The new leader used an already well-known platform, and it does not boast such fashionable technologies as eight processing cores, a fingerprint sensor or a high screen pixel density. Some of these characteristics are more marketing, but some are still useful in practice. So it’s not easy to put the device on par with well-known competitors. Much will be determined by the needs of the individual user.

The second, unfortunately traditional, feature of Xiaomi products is their official availability only in the local market. Despite the long-discussed prospects of entering the markets of other countries and the manufacturer’s ambitious plans to conquer the world, Xiaomi smartphones and tablets are currently sold only in China, some Asian countries and India. The rest of the world has to purchase them through intermediaries.

Fortunately, they have established supply channels, and we got the opportunity to get acquainted with the new product within a couple of months after the announcement. It is interesting that the copy provided to us for testing was produced in March of this year.

Note that a modification with the suffix “Pro” was also mentioned at the event, similar in external parameters, but based on the Snapdragon 810 platform, with a higher resolution screen, 4 GB of RAM and LTE Cat 9. It is expected that it will go on sale in this month.

Video review

First, we suggest watching our video review of the Xiaomi Mi Note smartphone:

Now let's take a look at the characteristics of the new product.

Characteristics

As for the platform, as we said above, the manufacturer did not change anything significantly. Four Krait 400 cores operating at frequencies up to 2.5 GHz are more than enough today for the vast majority of mobile applications. So, despite its venerable age by the standards of the IT market, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 platform in the MSM8974AC version still looks very respectable today. The amount of RAM is also satisfactory - 3 GB (diagnostic utilities report 2863 MB).

The company continues to use two flash memory configuration options - you can only choose from 16 and 64 GB. However, there is still no support for memory cards. Honestly, for a solution with such a diagonal, which is clearly in demand as a video player, I would rather have a 32 or 128 GB option, but I don’t have to choose. Our test unit had 16 GB installed. The storage capacity available to the user is 12.2 GB, of which 11.7 GB is available to the user on the new device (figures are based on the Windows Explorer version). There remains, however, a loophole for connecting external drives via USB OTG, but dealing with wires is still not very convenient. It’s better to use a high-capacity, self-powered wireless hard drive.

The most noticeable difference from its predecessor is the screen. The smartphone is equipped with a FulHD matrix with a diagonal of 5.7″, which gives a density of 386 ppi. Formally, the figure is not at all impressive, but in practice for most users this will not be a significant parameter. The quality of the screen is fine, and the selected resolution allows it to be effectively served by the Ardeno 330 graphics controller. The screen sensor is interesting only with support for ten touches. It does not have options for working with gloves or with special styluses.

But what the manufacturer is definitely worth praising for is the implementation of radio modules for cellular networks. For the first time, a smartphone in the Mi line has support for two SIM cards. At the same time, it supports work in networks of all current generations - 2G 850/900/1800/1900 MHz, 3G WCDMA 850/1900/2100 MHz, 4G LTE (bands 3, 7, 38-41). In addition, slots of different formats are used - Micro and Nano, and from a technology point of view they are equal.

Wireless controllers feature Wi-Fi with dual-band support and 802.11a/b/g/n/ac standards and Bluetooth 4.1 with BLE support. There is also a location system capable of working with GPS, Glonass and BeiDou satellite signals. But this model does not have NFC, FM radio or an infrared port.

The main rear camera is again based on a Sony module and has a 13 megapixel format, optical stabilization, autofocus and dual flash. The front camera has lost resolution, it is “only” 4 megapixels, but it wants to gain in quality thanks to the increased pixel size of the matrix. 4K video recording is supported by the main camera, and the second one is capable of FullHD.

For charging and connecting to a computer, the usual Micro-USB 2.0 port is used. The manufacturer has not forgotten about USB OTG support. You can connect storage devices and input devices, as well as use a USB hub. MHL is not supported.

A 2900 mAh (11.1 Wh) battery, similar to that installed in the predecessor, is responsible for autonomous power supply. It will be interesting to see how much the change in screen diagonal will affect the operating time on a single charge. Like other Xiaomi models on the modern Qualcomm platform, the implementation of Qualcomm QuickCharge 2.0 fast battery charge recovery technology is announced. It’s a pity that they didn’t install a wireless version from the same manufacturer. For a device of this format this could be interesting.

Specifications of the Xiaomi Mi Note smartphone

• SoC Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 (MSM8274AC), quad Krait 400 cores, 300 MHz—2.45 GHz
• GPU Adreno 330, 200—578 MHz
• MIUI operating system based on Android 4.4.4
• IPS touch display, 5.7″, 1920×1080, multi-touch
• RAM 3 GB
• Internal memory 16 or 64 GB
• 2 SIM cards (Micro-SIM + Nano-SIM)
• Communications 2G GSM 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz, 3G WCDMA 850, 1900, 2100 MHz, 3G TD-SCDMA 1900, 2000 MHz, 4G TDD-LTE B38, B39, B40, B41, FDD-LTE B3, B7
• Data transmission GPRS, EDGE, HSPA+, DC-HSPA+, LTE
• Bluetooth 4.1, BLE
• Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, 2.4/5 GHz, Wi-Fi Display
• Micro-USB with OTG support
• GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, BeiDou, gyroscope, compass, accelerometer, pressure sensor, temperature sensor
• Cameras: 13 MP (autofocus, optical stabilization, LED flash, 4K video) and 4 MP
• Non-replaceable lithium-ion battery 2900 mAh, 11.1 Wh
• Dimensions 155×78×7.2 mm
• Weight 162 g

Today, almost all large and medium-sized market players are represented in the segment of smartphones with large screens, and it makes no sense to put them in one table for comparison. If we limit ourselves to Android devices based on high-performance modern platforms, equipped with high-resolution screens and support for fourth-generation networks, then the number of participants will become quite foreseeable. All these models are aimed at the upper segment and differ significantly in some of the parameters, in particular the screen, memory card support and additional functions.

In addition, there are differences in both cost and availability in the domestic market. Moreover, even if you look only at the models tested on our resource this year, there will be too many of them for one table. So choosing devices for comparison is very difficult and may seem controversial to some. It used parameters such as announcement date, characteristics, positioning, cost and market presence. In any case, you can always refer to already published articles for more information.

	Xiaomi Mi Note	Google Nexus 6	Lenovo Vibe Z2 Pro	LG G Flex 2	Meizu MX4 Pro	Samsung Galaxy A7
Screen	5.7″, IPS	5.96″, AMOLED	6″, IPS	5.5″, P-OLED	5.5″, IPS	5.5″, Super AMOLED
Permission	1920×1080, 386 ppi	2560×1440, 493 ppi	2560×1440, 490 ppi	1920×1080, 401 ppi	2560×1536, 546 ppi	1920×1080, 401 ppi
SoC		Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 (4 cores Krait 450 @2.7 GHz)	Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 (4 cores Krait 400 @2.5 GHz)	Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 (4x Cortex-A57 @2.0 GHz + 4x Cortex-A53)	Samsung Exynos 5430 (4x Cortex-A15 @2.0 GHz + 4x Cortex-A7 @1.5 GHz)	Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 (8 cores ARM Cortex-A53) @1-1.5 GHz
GPU	Adreno 330	Adreno 420	Adreno 330	Adreno 430	Mali T628 MP6	Adreno 405
RAM	3 GB	3 GB	3 GB	2 GB	3 GB	2 GB
Flash memory	16/64 GB	32/64 GB	32 GB	32 GB	16/32/64 GB	16 GB
Memory card support	No	No	No	microSD	No	microSD
Cellular module	2 SIM, LTE	1 SIM, LTE	2 SIM, LTE	1 SIM, LTE	1 SIM, LTE	2 SIM, LTE
WiFi	802.11a/b/g/n/ac, 2.4/5 GHz	802.11a/b/g/n/ac, 2.4/5 GHz	802.11a/b/g/n/ac, 2.4/5 GHz	802.11a/b/g/n/ac, 2.4/5 GHz	802.11a/b/g/n/ac, 2.4/5 GHz	802.11a/b/g/n, 2.4/5 GHz
operating system	Google Android 4.4	Google Android 5.0	Google Android 4.4	Google Android 5.0	Google Android 4.4	Google Android 4.4
Battery	non-removable, 2900 mAh	non-removable, 3220 mAh	non-removable, 4000 mAh	non-removable, 3000 mAh	non-removable, 3350 mAh	non-removable, 2600 mAh
Cameras	rear (13 MP; 4K video), front (4 MP)		rear (16 MP; 4K video), front (5 MP)	rear (13 MP; 4K video), front (2 MP)	rear (20.7 MP; 4K video), front (5 MP)	rear (13 MP; video 1080p), front (5 MP)
Dimensions and weight	155×78×7.2 mm, 162 g	159×83×10.1 mm, 184 g	156×81×7.7 mm, 181 g	149×75×9.4 mm, 154 g	150×77×9.0 mm, 158 g	151×76×6.3 mm, 141 g
average price	T-11901437	T-11153512	T-11157888	T-11883628	T-11852174	T-11927009
Xiaomi Mi Note offers	L-11901437-10

Equipment

Xiaomi continues to use recognizable boxes made from thick recycled cardboard to package its smartphones. In this case, we can only note its large dimensions corresponding to the device. The design is again made in a minimalist style - the manufacturer’s logo on the front side and a sticker with characteristics on the bottom.

Most of the text is presented only in Chinese, but among the characters you can see English letters and familiar specification numbers. So it’s definitely worth looking at it before purchasing. In addition, there are also security elements that confirm the authenticity of the device. Although, of course, it is better to check this on a branded online service.

The delivery package has also not changed - a switching power supply, a Micro-USB cable, a key for the SIM card tray and leaflets in Chinese. Since the model is not for the European market, the power supply has a “flat” plug and you will need an adapter for a domestic outlet. The power supply meets the Qualcomm QuickCharge 2.0 standard, which is designed to restore battery charge faster. It shows the following output voltage and current parameters - 5 V/2 A, 9 V/1.2 A, 12 V/1 A. However, during our last testing of Xiaomi Mi4, we were unable to notice the effect of this technology. We also note that due to the format of the device, there is unexpectedly a lot of free space in the box. It’s a pity that it wasn’t occupied with a headset or other useful little things.

Appearance and ease of use

If at the beginning of its development this manufacturer clearly paid more attention to the “filling” of its devices, then the latest products show a noticeable shift towards design. For its format, Xiaomi Mi Note looks simply great.

The external elements of the case use a combination of glass on the back and front panels and brushed metal on the frame. The glass used is Gorilla Glass 3. The thickness, slightly exceeding seven millimeters, puts the model on a par with the best examples of this market segment.

The testing used was a device with white panels and a silver frame. The presentation also showed a black version with a dark, probably painted, frame. Other colors and a model with a bamboo back cover were mentioned in the news. But in any case, these are all exclusively factory options. The user will not be able to change anything on his own, since the cover is not removable. As a result, the monolithic body of the smartphone has no cracks and does not creak at all.

The model lies very comfortably in the hand, as much as possible for a device with a 5.7″ screen. The materials are selected in such a way that you don’t have to worry too much about the possibility of slipping. Of course, there is little chance of reaching the buttons without moving your hand. But they themselves protrude comfortably above the frame and are easy to find by touch. Note that the buttons themselves are also made of metal.

Perhaps the only criticism regarding the case may concern the placement of the device on a glass, stone or metal surface. In this case, the smartphone may slide, and the combination of materials may result in sounds that are uncomfortable for some users.

Several elements add elegance to the body. The sloping side edges of the rear panel result in a noticeable reduction in the width of the frame along the long edge. There was no need to sacrifice the top and bottom edges. The company calls this solution “3D glass.” And the front panel, according to the manufacturer, deserves the designation “2.5D” due to the rounded shape of the edges of the top glass. Let's not forget about the shiny chamfers on the edges of the frame and buttons. As a result, the smartphone not only looks attractive in photographs, but also makes a great impression in real life.

The side frames are about three millimeters wide. The space above and below the screen is 13 and 15 mm respectively and generally does not feel too large.

Above the screen there is a proximity and light sensor, a small speaker grille and a front camera. There is also a multi-color LED indicator and the manufacturer's logo on the left. You can set the indicator to different colors for missed calls, received messages, and general notifications.

There are three touch buttons at the bottom of the panel. The manufacturer did not save space at the cost of reducing convenience by displaying controls on the screen. The buttons have beautiful and optimally visible icons, which can be illuminated with dim white LEDs. The functions of the buttons and the duration of the backlight are configured in the device menu.

On the left side in the upper third there is a slot for a SIM card frame. The quality of its production is not inferior to the products of the famous American company. The scheme for using cards is interestingly implemented - one of the slots is in Micro format, and the second is Nano.

At the top end of the case we see a standard 3.5 mm jack for connecting a headset and an additional microphone hole. On the bottom left side there is a Micro-USB connector. Thanks to the design of the case, it will likely last you a long time. However, installing it at the very edge may make it inconvenient to work with some accessories.

In the bottom center we see the main speaker grille. This arrangement allows for good sound in almost any usage scenario. Also behind this grille is a conversational microphone.

The rear panel of the smartphone contains only the main camera with a dual LED flash in the upper left corner and a silver manufacturer's logo in the center at the bottom. We especially note that the camera block does not protrude above the surface, which gives the device a complete look.

Today it is very difficult to talk about the originality of the design, but it is worth admitting that Xiaomi Mi Note looks very good compared to its competitors. A combination of glass and metal was chosen for the body, the dimensions and weight are well coordinated, and the small thickness does not reduce the usability of the device.

Screen

The device is equipped with a high-quality screen with a resolution of 1920×1080 pixels and a diagonal of 5.7″ from Sharp or JDI. Its actual dimensions are about 127x71 mm. The touch layer recognizes 10 simultaneous touches. In the settings, in addition to traditional brightness adjustment (including automatic mode from the light sensor), there are items for selecting contrast and color control modes.

A detailed examination using measuring instruments was carried out by the editor of the “Monitors” and “Projectors and TV” sections Alexey Kudryavtsev. You can read an expert opinion on this screen below.

The front surface of the screen is made in the form of a glass plate with a mirror-smooth surface that is scratch-resistant. Judging by the reflection of objects, the anti-glare properties of the screen are no worse than those of the Google Nexus 7 (2013) screen (hereinafter simply Nexus 7). For clarity, here is a photo in which a white surface is reflected in the switched off screens (on the left - Nexus 7, on the right - Xiaomi Mi Note, then they can be distinguished by size):

The screen of the Xiaomi Mi Note is just a little brighter (brightness according to photographs is 87 versus 86 for the Nexus 7). The ghosting of reflected objects in the Xiaomi Mi Note screen is very weak, this indicates that there is no air gap between the layers of the screen (more specifically, between the outer glass and the surface of the LCD matrix) (OGS - One Glass Solution type screen). Due to the smaller number of boundaries (glass/air type) with very different refractive indices, such screens look better in conditions of strong external illumination, but their repair in the case of cracked external glass is much more expensive, since the entire screen has to be replaced. The outer surface of the screen has a special oleophobic (grease-repellent) coating (effective, slightly better than that of the Nexus 7), so fingerprints are removed much more easily and appear at a lower speed than with regular glass.

When manually controlling the brightness and displaying the white field on the entire screen, the maximum brightness value was about 500 cd/m², the minimum was 3 cd/m². The maximum brightness is very high, and, given the excellent anti-glare properties, readability even on a sunny day outdoors will be at a high level. In complete darkness, the brightness can be reduced to a comfortable value. There is automatic brightness adjustment based on the light sensor (it is located above the front speaker slot). In automatic mode, as external lighting conditions change, the screen brightness both increases and decreases. The operation of this function depends on the position of the brightness adjustment slider. If it is 100%, then in complete darkness the automatic brightness adjustment function reduces the brightness to 155 cd/m² (excessively bright), in an office illuminated by artificial light (about 400 lux) the brightness increases to 380 cd/m² (too much), in very in a bright environment (corresponding to lighting on a clear day outdoors, but without direct sunlight - 20,000 lux or a little more) is set to 500 cd/m² (which is what you need). Brightness slider at 50% - the values ​​are as follows: 10, 208 and 500 cd/m² (acceptable values), at 0% - 3, 29 and 500 cd/m² (the logic is clear). That is, the auto-brightness function works absolutely adequately. At any brightness level, there is virtually no backlight modulation, so there is no screen flickering.

This smartphone uses an IPS matrix. The microphotographs show a typical IPS subpixel structure:

For comparison, you can see the gallery of microphotographs of screens used in mobile technology.

The screen has good viewing angles without significant color shift even with large viewing deviations from perpendicular to the screen and without inverting shades. For comparison, here are photographs in which the same images are displayed on the screens of Xiaomi Mi Note and Nexus 7, while the brightness of the screens is initially set to approximately 200 cd/m² (over a white field in the entire screen), and the color balance on the camera is forcibly switched to 6500 K There is a white field perpendicular to the screens:

Note the good uniformity of brightness and color tone of the white field. And a test picture:

The colors on the Xiaomi Mi Note screen are oversaturated, the color balance differs insignificantly. Now at an angle of approximately 45 degrees to the plane and to the side of the screen:

It can be seen that the colors have not changed much on both screens, but on the Xiaomi Mi Note the contrast has decreased to a greater extent due to a strong brightening of blacks and a greater decrease in brightness. And a white field:

The brightness at an angle of the screens decreased (by at least 5 times, based on the difference in shutter speed). However, the Xiaomi Mi Note screen is slightly darker at this angle. When deviated diagonally, the black field brightens greatly and acquires a red-violet hue. The photographs below demonstrate this (the brightness of the white areas in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the screens is approximately the same!):

And from another angle:

When viewed perpendicularly, the uniformity of the black field is excellent, and even the white frame does not really shine through, but only slightly reflects light from the black at an angle:

The contrast (approximately in the center of the screen) is high - about 1400:1. The response time for the black-white-black transition is 23 ms (12 ms on + 11 ms off). The transition between halftones of gray 25% and 75% (based on the numerical value of the color) and back takes a total of 36 ms. The gamma curve, constructed using 32 points with equal intervals based on the numerical value of the shade of gray, did not reveal any blockage in either the highlights or the shadows. The exponent of the approximating power function is 2.23, which is slightly higher than the standard value of 2.2. In this case, the real gamma curve deviates slightly from the power-law dependence:

This device allows you to change the color balance by choosing one of three saturation profiles and one of three color temperature profiles:

All data and photographs above are for the brightest option - Increase contrast And Cold. In this version, the color gamut is noticeably wider than sRGB:

Let's look at the spectra:

They are atypical, but we have already seen them in the case of Sony Xperia Z2 and Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet. Sony indicates that these screens use LEDs with a blue emitter and green and red phosphors (usually a blue emitter and a yellow phosphor), which, in combination with special matrix filters, allows for a wide color gamut. Most likely, this statement is true in the case of Xiaomi Mi Note. In the characteristics of this smartphone they simply write that the coverage is very wide and is 95% of NTSC coverage, presenting this fact as an undeniable advantage. This is a marketing ploy aimed at the average person who believes that bigger is always better. In fact, it’s not better, since as a result, the colors of images - drawings, photographs and films - oriented to the sRGB space (which are the vast majority) have an unnatural saturation. This is especially noticeable on recognizable shades, such as skin tones. The result is shown in the photo above. Okay, let's select the “Default” profile, in which you can count on standard sRGB coverage. We get the following:

Yes, the coverage has become closer to sRGB, but the triangle is distorted, since the top of the red is shifted too much inward. Well, the developers couldn’t cope with simple matrix operations, although they tried. Let's look at the spectra:

Yes, colors are mixed, which reduces the coverage. The question is, was it worth installing a screen with extended coverage and then trying to adjust it to sRGB? The company's marketers know exactly the answer. In fact, it's even worse, as shown in the ΔE and color temperature graphs:

If you understand this jumble of dots and lines, it will become clear that when you switch the coverage, the color balance also changes greatly (who would have thought!). Worse, in the profile with reduced coverage there is a strong imbalance in the white shade relative to the other shades of gray - the first point (white color) on the ΔE graph flies up. This is very noticeable and unpleasant. Therefore, there is actually only one way out: select the “Warm” option and the “Increasing Contrast” profile, and try to get used to the oversaturated colors. (Remember that the darkest areas of the gray scale can be ignored, since color balance there is not very important, and the error in measuring color characteristics at low brightness is large.)

Let's summarize. The screen has a high maximum brightness and has good anti-glare properties, so the device can be used outdoors without any problems, even on a sunny summer day. In complete darkness, the brightness can be reduced to a comfortable level. It is also possible to use a mode with automatic brightness adjustment, which works adequately. The advantages of the screen include an effective oleophobic coating, the absence of flicker and air gaps in the layers of the screen, excellent uniformity of the black field and high contrast, as well as acceptable color balance when choosing the right profiles. Significant disadvantages include low black stability in response to gaze deviation from perpendicular to the screen plane and an excessively wide color gamut, which cannot be corrected to sRGB using standard tools without distorting the color balance. Nevertheless, taking into account the importance of characteristics for this particular class of devices, the quality of the screen can be considered high.

Sound

Like its predecessor, the main speaker is installed at the bottom end. This made it possible to eliminate its overlap in the main variants of the device’s location, including if you put the smartphone in your pocket with the speaker down. Although, of course, pockets are different. In addition, you should pay attention to possible blocking during games. In this model, the sound comes exclusively from the grille and when it is blocked it stops completely. The maximum volume level of the speaker is quite high for its size and call signals can be heard very well. However, it makes sense to listen to musical compositions when the volume is not set to more than ¾ of the maximum. When this threshold is exceeded, the relative level of mid and high frequencies sharply increases and the recording is no longer recognizable.

Using headphones, as usual, significantly changes the picture towards improvement. They provide equalizer settings and various technologies for “improving” sound, and there are also presets for certain models of Xiaomi itself. So any user can surely choose the option that suits them. Note that in the settings there is an item for selecting the mode of operation of buttons on headsets. However, with the tested models from Apple and HTC, only the central one functioned as start/pause out of the three present. The microphone worked for models from Apple and Sony. At the same time, on a headset from an Acer smartphone that came to hand, you could use three buttons and a microphone.

Note that in the product presentation, the manufacturer talks about the use of ESS ES9018K2M, TI OPA1612 and ADI ADA4896 microcircuits in the audio path of this model, which, combined with support for lossless music compression formats, increases the attractiveness of the device among supporters of high-quality sound.

There are no comments regarding the quality of speech transmission by the speaker and microphone during telephone calls. The system has support for external noise suppression technology thanks to the presence of a second microphone. At the same time, the algorithm settings allow you to effectively use it both during a normal conversation and in speakerphone mode.

The smartphone has a traditional vibration alert. For such a large device, in our opinion, it turned out to be very “calm”. Don't expect to notice it in your bag or coat pocket. It is also used to confirm system operations; in this case, you can choose one of three levels of strength of its operation.

Camera

The device inherited the main rear camera module from its predecessor - a Sony IMX214 with a 13 megapixel matrix is ​​installed here. In addition to autofocus, dual LED flash and f/2.0 aperture, it is stated to use six lenses and have optical stabilization. The front camera with a 4 MP matrix has 2 micron pixels.

The main camera supports panorama mode, delayed shooting, refocus (the ability to select an object to focus after shooting), manually adjusting shooting parameters, facial enhancement, night photography, and applying filters. In the program window you can quickly change the flash and HDR settings. The front camera only supports timer, filters and face enhancement.

The frame size is determined by the format and is 4208×3120 (13 MP, 4:3) and 4208×2368 (10 MP, 16:9) for the main camera, 2688×1520 (4 MP, 16:9) and 1600×1200 (2 MP, 4:3) for the front.

It is convenient to use the volume buttons for shooting or zooming. Tapping the screen allows you to select the focus point (including for video). The program settings include recording geographic coordinates, turning off the shutter sound, selecting the frame format and image quality, setting image parameters and other options. There are fewer options for the front camera.

Examples of photographs and comments from our specialist Anton Solovyov are given below.

It should be noted that the front camera copes well with taking selfies in difficult conditions. Actually, this is its main purpose. In other scenarios, it copes noticeably worse, at least due to the fixed focus.
	Good sharpness in almost all plans.
	There is no drop in sharpness visible at the edges of the image.
	The camera handles shadows well, while the noise reduction work is almost invisible.
	Good sharpness in the background, despite the soft focus and lack of noticeable sharpening.
	The tone of the sky is quite even, and the wall as a whole looks good.
	The camera practically does not lose small details in the background and in the shadows.
	Even the license plates of cars that are not closest are clearly visible.
	Sharping on the wires is barely noticeable.
	The text in room lighting is well done.
	The camera copes worse with macro photography.
	However, the camera is quite capable of taking good shots indoors.
	Sometimes even at a fairly high level.
	In such wide shots, you can sometimes even distinguish people by their faces. Especially if you know them.
	In such difficult lighting, the camera also produces results that are quite decent for a smartphone.

We also tested the camera on a laboratory bench using our method.

Despite the slightly soft focus, the camera's sharpness is good. However, the “softness” of focus is only a consequence of moderate sharpening, thanks to which the image looks natural. The camera practically does not suffer from classic problems: the sharpness is uniform across the field of the frame, and only with the removal of the shot does the image soften somewhat, but the sharpness remains decent. Noise in the shadows is not visible, although it is felt that the noise reduction is having a hard time.

A laboratory test confirms that the sensor is weak. Even with a slight deterioration in lighting, the resolution drops quite sharply. Although in general, despite the unpleasant shape of the curve, the camera manages to maintain a decent level. In good lighting, it can compete with flagships. Despite the significant drop-off in low light, the camera manages to capture a lot of detail in real-life situations. As a result, the camera can be considered a flagship, although with some stretch, but the result of its work in real conditions is impressive. It is well suited for documentary and artistic photography.

Among other things, the camera has a Refocus mode, in which it takes two pictures with focus on the far and near plans. When viewing, you can switch between them, or you can select them into separate pictures. Of course, there is no deep meaning in this mode; it's just a "trick" for the sake of a "trick".

It is also necessary to mention that the described image quality corresponds to the setting in the highest shooting quality settings. Otherwise, the pictures will be approximately three times smaller in size and often of much lower quality overall.

When working with video on the main camera, you can turn on the flash light, HDR mode, autofocus, Fast-motion and Slow-motion modes (not available for all resolutions). In the settings menu you can find a choice of video quality (four positions for frame resolution) and some other options. The front camera does not have any modes or settings for video shooting. Let us also pay attention to the fact that the device records the housing orientation flag in the video during shooting.

Despite the presence of two microphones, in all modes the sound for videos is recorded only from the main one and is presented in the recording format AAC LC, 2 channels, 96 Kbps. Video stream parameters are shown in the table. Compared to its predecessor, we can note an increase in resolution for the front camera and frame rate for the main one.

Mode	Video stream parameters
Front-camera
Main camera, SD Video clip	720×480, ≈30 fps, AVC, [email protected], 2 Mbit/s
Main camera, HD Video clip	1280×720, ≈30 fps, AVC, [email protected], 8 Mbit/s
Main camera, FullHD Roller 1, Roller 2	1920×1080, ≈30 fps, AVC, [email protected], 15 Mbit/s
Main camera, 4K Movie 1, Movie 2, Movie 3, Movie 4, Movie 5, Movie 5 (HDR)	3840×2160, ≈30 fps, AVC, [email protected], 40 Mbit/s

Examples of videos are available via the links in the table. They are clearly not distinguished by high quality. We see all the usual “features” for mobile devices, including low sensitivity, high noise levels, lack of sharpness, and poor processing of dynamic scenes. The 4K format clearly does not have any noticeable advantages and is more of a marketing decision.

Software

The smartphone, like other models of the company, uses the popular MIUI software. The standard version has only Chinese and English languages. If desired, you can find several localized alternative firmware versions. In this material, the device was tested with version 6.4.2.0 (KXECNCB), based on Android 4.4.4. The system provides for updating via the Internet, rebooting into the original Recovery, two copies of the system partition. Note that the texts in Russian in this version do not look the best. Please note that during the photo shoot, localized firmware was installed on the smartphone, and the main testing and screenshots correspond to the official version.

MIUI looks great on a device of this format. The firmware works very quickly, it is beautiful and easy to use. There is a branded store, backup services, information protection, traffic control, application rights management, rich options for changing the appearance of the interface, Mi account support and other useful functions. True, when switching from regular Android, you will have to spend some time getting used to both the interface organization option and the available options for customizing the smartphone.

There are no Google services in the firmware. Unfortunately, the Google Installer program could not be found in the Mi App Store catalog. I had to use its installation via an apk file. Then through it you can install all the necessary programs and components for using Google Play and other services.

Basic smartphone settings include choosing an interface language, connecting to a wireless network, specifying a Mi account (you don’t have to do this, but many services will not work), activating positioning services, setting up a traffic control system and other usual actions.

On the lock screen, in addition to the date and time, missed calls and SMS are displayed. From there you can go to the camera application and proprietary home automation control program pre-installed on the device. The menu called up by the lock button contains the items for shutdown, reboot, airplane mode and silent profile.

All installed programs are presented on desktops. There is no separate item with a general list. The screen can accommodate up to six rows of four icons. There are five shortcuts you can set in the bottom shortcut bar. For convenience, you can group programs into folders by topic. You can also install various widgets on desktops, both built into the firmware and installed additionally.

The easiest way to radically change the appearance of your smartphone is to use themes. Many of them are free, but there are also options that require Mi Credits. The firmware provides display of additional information in the status bar, end-to-end search, customizable switch panel, backup, quick cleaning of RAM and other useful functions.

The settings menu is presented in the form of a single list, the items of which are grouped by meaning. In addition to system parameters, through it you can also access the settings of installed proprietary programs, such as mail or a video player. The system has quite a lot of convenient features, for example, flexible settings for program notifications. However, we found almost nothing related to gestures, which is somewhat strange for a smartphone of this format.

True, one of the built-in options is worth a lot - a special mode for one-handed operation. It is turned on by moving the home touch button to the right or left. After this action, the screen image is scaled to 3.5, 4 or 4.5 inches and placed in the corresponding lower corner, allowing you to use one hand to perform the required operations. Screenshots in this mode show the full screen, so you have to be content with a text description. It should be noted that the mode activation gesture is not so easy to perform with one hand, since you need to reach the bottom edge of the case with your thumb. You will have to practice lifting the device from the table, holding it in the right place.

The standard set of programs is not very diverse. Most of the standard utilities are implemented by versions from MIUI, including dialing, clock, gallery, contacts, mail and others. There is practically no Chinese software, and what is there can be removed in the usual way.

Among the useful utilities, we mention a file browser with support for FTP server mode, a code scanner, and a note-taking utility. But the Security program, familiar from past publications, is of greatest practical interest. It contains such useful functions as system cleaning, call and SMS blacklists, traffic control, antivirus, application privilege management, and setting up energy consumption profiles.

Telephone and communications

The smartphone has two slots for SIM cards - Micro and Nano format. This model has only one radio module. Operation in networks of second, third and fourth generations is supported, including frequencies and ranges used in the domestic market.

In the settings, the user can select which card should be used for data transfer. It is the connection status of its network that is displayed in the status bar. In this case, switching is possible at any time without any delays.

We checked the smartphone's operation with Megafon and MTS operators and did not encounter any connection problems. As for speed, there’s nothing much to brag about this time. Despite the strong signal, LTE wasn't as fast as we expected. Only once did we see the familiar large numbers. Unfortunately, the short duration of the test did not allow us to study this issue in detail. In any case, there were no comments regarding the reliability of the connection. Note that the traffic counting system works separately for each card.

The settings also indicate the default card for voice calls. At the same time, when dialing a number, two “green handsets” easily fit on the screen at once, which allows you to instantly select the desired line to make a call. When calling from your contacts, the default line is used. Note that the smartphone has a standard function of recording telephone conversations from the line.

The Bluetooth controller complies with version 4.1 and supports the BLE (Low Energy) standard, which allows it to work with modern gadgets such as fitness trackers and home automation devices. Profiles for data exchange, input devices, audio transmission, headsets and others are supported. But the speed of exchanging files with a computer was not encouraging - only 20-30 KB/s.

The device has a dual-band wireless module supporting 802.11a/b/g/n/ac standards. In the 2.4 GHz band, the maximum connection speed is 72 Mbit/s, while for 5 GHz and 802.11ac it is significantly higher - 433 Mbit/s. These figures correspond to the use of one internal antenna. Real performance in the first case does not exceed 50 Mbit/s. The second option is noticeably more interesting. When testing with the Asus RT-AC68U router, we were able to get about 280 Mbps when placing the smartphone at a distance of four meters of line of sight from the router. Increasing the distance to eight meters with the addition of two walls, of course, reduces the performance, but it still remains excellent for this class of devices - 180 Mbit/s. So for this device, especially if you plan to intensively exchange data with it (for example, from a desktop computer or network drive), we highly recommend purchasing a router that supports 802.11ac and gigabit network ports. Moreover, 802.11n at 5 GHz is noticeably less interesting here. Please note that the operating system displays the wireless network connection speed incorrectly.

The smartphone has support for wireless displays. We tested this feature with a Netgear receiver. The test showed that for some tasks it may well be in demand. In particular, viewing photos, presentations, and websites on a large screen looks very good. You can also use some types of video files, but it is not suitable for dynamic games due to noticeable delays and microfreezes. In this case, the image was not displayed on the full screen and it is impossible to talk about full FullHD resolution in this case.

The product has a signal receiver for three navigation systems - GPS, Glonass and BeiDou. In urban environments, the speed and sensitivity of the coordinate determination system allows you to comfortably use all navigation applications.

There is no FM radio, infrared port or NFC installed in the smartphone in question.

Performance

Like the previously reviewed Xiaomi models on the Qualcomm platform, Mi Note has the function of selecting a mode for controlling the frequency of processor cores. If you want to show off high performance in synthetic benchmarks, use the “Performance” option, in which the cores operate at a maximum frequency of 2.5 GHz.

Note that in this mode the smartphone body heated up quite noticeably in tests. If you are more interested in battery life, and you don’t need higher frequencies in a smartphone than in a laptop, set the “Balanced” option. In it, the frequency of the cores dynamically changes depending on the load. In particular, in the Epic Citadel tests we saw no more than 1.2 GHz, and in Geekbench - up to 1.9 GHz. It is quite expected that the situation with the temperature regime in this case is significantly better.

On the other hand, the Qualcomm Snapdragon platform in its various modifications has already participated in tests so many times that we do not expect any discoveries in this material. Moreover, its performance is clearly more than sufficient in the vast majority of scenarios for using modern mobile devices. The list of tests given is significantly reduced, since many of them show maximum results. The main results for Xiaomi Mi Note are shown for the “Performance” mode, and the values ​​for the “Balanced” mode are given in parentheses.

	Xiaomi Mi Note	Google Nexus 6	Lenovo Vibe Z2 Pro	LG G Flex 2	Meizu MX4 Pro	Samsung Galaxy A7
AnTuTu 5.x (points, more is better)	46299 (37655)	50641	42096	46410	47218	31137
GeekBench 3 Single (scores, more is better)	983 (953)	1047	982	1155	968	641
GeekBench 3 Multi (scores, higher is better)	3045 (2272)	3162	2876	3616	3299	2791
3DMark Ice Storm Unlimited (scores, more is better)	20178 (16889)	23234	16609	24102	18043	7700
GFXBench 3.x T-Rex (onscreen, fps, more is better)	28 (28)	29	20	46	25	14
SunSpider (ms, less is better)	966 (1514)	N/A	789	N/A	N/A	N/A
Octane 2.0 (points, more is better)	5592 (4917)	4854	5510	6846	6793	2468
Kraken (ms, less is better)	6548 (7743)	5953	5812	4449	4816	13089

As we can see, the performance of the smartphone is fine. The results in maximum performance mode are quite expected. There are no unusual indicators here, which is not surprising given the age of the platform and the optimization of the software for it. However, switching to balanced mode in some cases significantly reduces the speed. However, do not forget that all this mainly concerns synthetic tests. In real work, the interface remains just as responsive, and games do not lose their dynamics.

Considering the large screen and relatively low battery capacity, perhaps the manufacturer should have implemented, in addition to the processor core frequency control modes described above, an even more economical option or even allowed the user to create their own profiles.

The built-in wireless controller of the device has a fairly high speed when working with an 802.11ac access point. And when using a wired connection, you can get 16 MB/s write and 21 MB/s read in MTP access mode.

Playing video

As with performance, we don’t expect anything new from the platform used in the smartphone when working in the video viewing scenario. Support for 4K format playback in this case is more of a support for the device's video camera than a real necessity.

Using files from our methodology showed that the smartphone copes with all current formats, including high-profile options, high bitrates and resolutions up to 4096x2160 inclusive. Note that the standard player cannot switch audio tracks, and MX Player has recently needed to use an external codec for AC3. The standard table of results is given below.

Format	Container, video, sound	Standard video player	Video player MX Player
DVDRip	AVI, XviD 720×400 2200 Kbps, MP3+AC3		plays normally
Web-DL SD	AVI, XviD 720×400 1400 Kbps, MP3+AC3	plays normally, no subtitles	plays normally
Web-DL HD	MKV, H.264 1280×720 3000 Kbps, AC3	plays normally	plays normally
BDRip 720p	MKV, H.264 1280×720 4000 Kbps, AC3	plays normally	plays normally
BDRip 1080p	MKV, H.264 1920×1080 8000 Kbps, AC3	plays normally	plays normally

Video output quality research carried out Alexey Kudryavtsev.

We did not find the MHL interface, like Mobility DisplayPort, in this smartphone, so we had to limit ourselves to testing the output of video files on the screen of the device itself. To do this, we used a set of test files with an arrow and a rectangle moving one division per frame (see “Method for testing video playback and display devices. Version 1 (for mobile devices)”). Screenshots with a shutter speed of 1 s helped determine the nature of the output of frames of video files with various parameters: the resolution varied (1280 by 720 (720p), 1920 by 1080 (1080p) and 3840 by 2160 (4K) pixels) and frame rate (24, 25, 30, 50 and 60 fps). In the tests we used the MX Player video player in the “Hardware” mode. The test results are summarized in the table: Red marks indicate possible problems associated with the playback of the corresponding files.

According to the frame output criterion, the quality of video playback on the smartphone screen itself is excellent, since frames (or groups of frames) can (but are not required) be output with uniform alternation of intervals and without skipping frames. The smartphone can even display files with a resolution of 4K up to 30 fps inclusive. When playing video files with a resolution of 1920 by 1080 pixels (1080p), the image of the video file itself is displayed one-on-one, exactly along the edge of the screen and in true Full HD resolution. The brightness range displayed on the screen corresponds to the standard range of 16-235, which is required for correct playback of typical video files. In the shadows, only a couple of shades are indistinguishable in brightness from black, but in the highlights all gradations of shades are displayed.

Battery life

The smartphone is equipped with a non-removable battery with a capacity of 11.1 Wh/2900 mAh. This is similar to its predecessor with a significantly larger screen area and may cause some concerns in terms of battery life. Moreover, the larger the screen, the more likely you will use it.

In addition to the performance mode settings for processor cores described above, the smartphone provides a battery profile management utility. In it you can program your own options for different use cases, for example “on the road” or “at home”. The options indicate the processor operating mode, interface activity, screen brightness and other parameters. In addition to manually turning on profiles, you can program their switching on a schedule. True, there is only one time range for all days of the week and only two profiles are involved. There is also an option to activate the energy-saving profile when the battery level drops and switch back when it is restored. Additionally, the power supply of the smartphone itself is controlled according to a schedule.

In the device specifications, we again see Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0 technology, which was designed to improve the speed of battery recovery. And the marking of the power supply indicates this. However, this model was not listed on the Qualcomm website. For testing, we used three chargers - a standard one and two 2 A models. The charging speed results are shown in the following graph.

Despite the fact that the standard model provides less time, we would not talk about its significant advantage. “30 minutes from 0% to 60% for a 3300 mAh battery” is not here again, and the differences in charges are due to the difference in the currents used for them. For the standard model, the full charging time when turned on is two hours, for alternative options - two hours fifteen minutes and two hours forty minutes.

Given the limited testing time and the lack of practical sense in operating the device in “Performance” mode, the battery life test was carried out only for the “Balanced” mode. Of course, we should not forget that outwardly this looks like one option, but internally the algorithms can differ significantly both for different devices and for different firmware versions. The testing used a screen brightness setting of 100 cd/m².

In reading mode in the MoonReader+ program with auto-scrolling, the device showed quite decent results in the selected group. Watching video over a wireless network (MX Player, YouTube 720p file format) is also good for this model. The gaming load (Epic Citadel) is the most difficult in our set, but the Xiaomi Mi Note looks good here too.

Additionally, we tested a website browsing scenario in which three dozen articles on our site were downloaded in a cycle from the Internet via a wireless network, each viewing time was thirty seconds. In this mode, the smartphone lasted a little more than six and a half hours. Interestingly, this value differs little from its predecessor, for which we also conducted this test. Perhaps this is due to a newer version of the browser or differences in processor algorithms.

In general, you can see that against the background of competitors and in comparison with its predecessor, the new product looks good. With an increase in screen area relative to Mi4 by about a third and a similar battery capacity, the lag in battery life in the three main scenarios was 10-20%.

Prices

During the presentation of the devices, the following prices were announced: 2299 and 2799 yuan for models with 16 and 64 GB of memory. Formal recalculation gives in more familiar currencies $347/21,255 rubles and $455/25,880 rubles, respectively, at the exchange rate at the time of writing. However, this cost is only relevant for the local market and purchases in the official store. For the vast majority of our readers, unfortunately, these are completely virtual numbers.

Offers on foreign Internet sites for the junior model start at about 25 thousand rubles, but perhaps 28 thousand rubles should be considered a more realistic value. In Moscow stores they offer it for 30-35 thousand rubles.

And if you focus specifically on this price tag, the situation becomes quite interesting. Previously, Xiaomi accustomed users to offering devices with good technical characteristics at a reasonable cost. The latter usually remained this way even with the difficult purchasing process. Apparently, Mi Note is changing this stereotype.

As we wrote above, the situation with the selection of possible competitors is not easy. For some, a 5.2″ screen is enough, for others it is necessary to have a memory card, for others there is no need for a slot for a second SIM card, for others a warranty is important. In addition, many devices in this segment are clearly supplied unofficially, and the price range is very wide. In any case, it is no longer possible to say that the new products are significantly more attractive than other devices with similar characteristics.

Possible competitors include models from Huawei, Lenovo, LG, Meizu, OnePlus, Samsung, Sony and other manufacturers. Some of them are noticeably more accessible, others are more interesting in their hardware capabilities. So, to make the optimal choice, you will have to take into account not only the main parameters of the product, but also many secondary ones.

Conclusion

There is no doubt that the Xiaomi Mi Note smartphone turned out to be very interesting. For a company that has been on the market for only five years, the release of such a product is a serious bid to join the group of leaders. However, in this segment there are devices that differ significantly in technical and consumer characteristics, so it is very difficult to give an unambiguous assessment of the product.

On the one hand, we have an attractive design, a high-quality screen, a fast and reliable platform, convenient firmware, support for two SIM cards and LTE/4G, a dual-band wireless module, specialized chips in the audio path and a normal battery. On the other hand, there is a lack of support for memory cards and NFC, questionable quality of cameras, lack of software optimization for a large screen and lack of gesture support. To the disadvantages we can add difficulties with acquisition and the availability of only the English-Chinese version of the official firmware, although these are even more subjective assessments.

At the same time, unlike previous models, the manufacturer’s pricing policy no longer allows us to say that the devices are offered noticeably cheaper than competitors or that due to the relatively low cost one can turn a blind eye to some technical characteristics. Most likely, the model will not become a bestseller, but it will certainly find its buyers.

Display	5.7″, flexible, curved, 1,920 × 1,080 pixels, 110% NTSC color gamut, 100,000:1 contrast ratio, Gorilla Glass 4, OLED
CPU	Qualcomm Snapdragon 821, quad core, 2.35 GHz
Video accelerator	Adreno 530, 653 MHz
operating system	Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow, MIUI 8
RAM	4 / 6 GB, LPDDR4, 1 866 MHz
Inner memory	64 / 128 GB, UFS 2.0
Memory card support	No
Main camera	23 MP, Sony IMX318 sensor, six lenses, 1/2.6″, f/2.0, LED flash, hybrid autofocus, electronic stabilization, 4K video recording
Front-camera	8 MP, f/2.0, five lenses, autofocus
Audio system	AQSTIC
Wireless interfaces	GSM / GPRS / EDGE, WCDMA / HSPA, LTE; GPS and GLONASS; Bluetooth 4.2, NFC; Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g/n/ac)
Wired Interfaces	Two nanoSIM slots; USB Type-C (USB 3.0 controller); 3.5 mm audio jack; Fingerprint's scanner
Battery	4,070 mAh, built-in, Quick Charge 3.0 fast charging
Size	156.2 × 77.3 × 7.6 mm
Weight	166 g

Appearance

Recently, the company has taken a course to improve the appearance of its products. The same one showed that Xiaomi designers do not eat their bread in vain.

Of course, this affected the flagship even more. Xiaomi Mi Note 2 is stylish. Smooth curves of polished glass in a metal frame - what could be better?

In black, the smartphone is very beautiful. Subjectively, the Samsung S7 Edge looks simpler. So thoughts about the Chinese origin of Mi Note 2 immediately go to the side.

The first inclusion surprises even more. A feeling of absolute presence is created, as if you are touching directly the icons and menu items. The screen borders are almost invisible. Beveled edges smoothly move the display beyond the visible area.

The presence effect is complemented by a physical Home key with a built-in fingerprint scanner. Interacting with a mechanical button is not only more pleasant - it allows you to perform multiple functions (touch - “Back”, press - “Home”) and use the scanner more efficiently to unlock the device.

Despite the multifunctionality of the central key, it is complemented by neatly illuminated dots of the touch buttons. Their functions may change.

The volume rocker and power button are located on the right side. The left one is decorated only with a slot for two SIM cards (memory cards are not supported). The gaps are minimal, all elements are made perfectly. And even the logo looks attractive.

Despite its size (and this is the company's largest smartphone, not counting Max), Xiaomi Mi Note 2 is very convenient. In the palm of your hand, but not in use. The fact is that the gadget fits perfectly in the hand, but is very slippery and tends to fall out.

What complicates the situation is that the included case looks poor. And it’s strange to put such beauty in it: why do you need a stylish toy if you can’t see its main advantage?

And you can’t do it without a cover. Firstly, Xiaomi Mi Note 2 slides off any uneven surface. Secondly, the glass perfectly collects fingerprints, despite the oleophobic coating. It allows you to easily erase traces of use, but does not protect completely.

Finally, the third problem, traditional for all glass devices. Even tempered or synthetic glass breaks. Therefore, Xiaomi Mi Note 2 can only be recommended to very careful people.

Display

All curved screens are OLED. It just so happened due to the specifics of their production. Some may say that organic LEDs have incorrect color rendering. I think you need to decide for yourself. For example, I like such panels much more than even high-quality IPS.

The screen diagonal of Xiaomi Mi Note 2 is 5.7 inches, which with a resolution of 1,920 × 1,080 gives a pixel density of 386 ppi. By modern standards, not the highest, but the most optimal solution. And it will save the battery and prevent you from seeing the pixels (if you don’t get carried away with mobile devices for viewing VR content).

It is also worth mentioning that this display can reproduce NTSC colors at 110%. That is, more than standard digital television transmits. So the Note 2's color reproduction is simply excellent.

Other technical parameters of the screen are no worse. Clear, contrasting. Everything in order to get the full effect of immersion in what is happening on the screen. Even the ubiquitous PenTile is missing. And this is the most important thing for an OLED display.

Performance

The Xiaomi Mi Note 2 uses Qualcomm's flagship Snapdragon 821 chipset. It is about 10% faster than the Snapdragon 820 and is currently the fastest mobile processor. Probably before the release of the first devices with processor number 835. They will appear quite soon, but they are unlikely to be a reason to replace the Mi Note 2 with another device.

Why? The current combination of the fastest processor, Adreno 530 graphics accelerator and the fastest UFS 2.0 mobile memory will allow the smartphone to confidently cope with any tasks for another 1-2 years. And today it shows simply phenomenal results, although in synthetic tests it loses to its closest competitors: , LeEco Le 3 and .

Unofficially, there are two versions of Xiaomi Mi Note 2. Two modifications of the first version are intended exclusively for the Chinese market and those users who do not travel outside the country. The younger model is equipped with 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of internal memory (remember, memory cards are not supported). The older one is 6 and 128 GB, respectively.

The global version for sale in other Asian countries has 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of internal memory. This option is expensive, but for many there is no alternative. The fact is that it supports all LTE bands: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 38, 39 , 40, 41.

The modification for the domestic market only works in eight bands of fourth generation networks: 1, 3, 5, 7, 38, 39, 40, 41. As the experience of Reddit and XPDA users shows, the smartphone does not allow you to unlock additional frequencies. Apparently, there is a hardware difference between the modifications (perhaps different antennas are used, as was the case with Xiaomi Redmi 3 Pro and Pro SE).

Multimedia capabilities

Main camera

All fans of the brand are waiting for the flagships. Why? Only they have modified cameras and allow you to take high-quality photographs.

Xiaomi Mi Note 2 is still unpleasantly surprising. Formally, the smartphone is equipped with an excellent module with a resolution of 22.56 megapixels (5,488 × 4,112 pixels), based on a Sony IMX318 matrix with a pixel size of 1/2.6″. In addition, the gadget’s camera boasts a good f/2.0 aperture and an 80-degree (wide-angle) 6-lens lens. There is even electronic stabilization!

But everything, as usual, depends on implementation. There is no optical stabilization. Therefore, the video turns out bright, high-quality and with good sound, but shaking processing can ruin everything. When taking photos with Xiaomi Mi Note 2, blurry shots are not uncommon. By the way, there is no EIS switch in the settings. It is likely that this function was not implemented in the test firmware.

Compared to other flagship devices (Samsung S7, iPhone 6 SE), many frames are replete with overexposure or local dimming. There are no problems with color rendering. There are slight noises. Xiaomi engineers could not eliminate this drawback even in the dual-chamber Mi5S Plus.

Focusing is snappy, but may miss slightly in HDR mode and in difficult lighting conditions. The automatic launch of HDR shooting occurs at random; it has to be controlled manually.

But with high-quality lighting, the pictures are bright and juicy. No worse than any other Chinese smartphones with a similar price. Complex artificial lighting is not a hindrance; in this scenario, the pictures turn out normal.

Front-camera

As you know, the Chinese are big fans of selfies. And since the smartphone is primarily aimed at the local market, the Mi Note 2's front camera is excellent.

It uses a module with a resolution of 8 megapixels and a fast (f/2.0) lens. But most importantly, there is working autofocus. It cannot be configured: the automation independently finds a face in the frame and focuses on it. This turns on the effect of an SLR camera: the foreground of the photo is clear, and the background is slightly blurred.

Sound

Unlike most Xiaomi devices, Mi Note 2 is equipped with a dedicated audio path. Other devices in the Mi line are deprived of such mercy from developers. And this is not without reason. Qualcomm's current built-in codec capabilities are very good.

It was not possible to recognize whether a separate DAC and amplifier are enabled in third-party programs. The fact is that there were no separate settings for this audio path. System add-ons are limited to the standard HD Sound audio checkbox and the already familiar Mi Sound Enhancer utility with add-ons for branded headphones and a uniform equalizer for the entire OS.

There is no effect when using HD Sound. The equalizer and presets affect the sound in exactly the same way as other smartphones from the company. The sound... Not Meizu, I'll tell you.

Better than most small brand devices. Juicier, brighter, richer. Wider stage, slightly raised high and low frequencies. But this is very similar to equalizing. Apparently, the problem will be resolved in the upcoming global update of the operating system. This is exactly what happened with the previous version of Xiaomi Mi Note Pro.

The volume reserve is small (by the standards of a slightly deaf person who prefers loud electric guitars). There are more. Other sound characteristics are also slightly above average. This applies to the interlocutor’s voice, the microphone’s operation, and the sound of ringtones. But psychologically, you expect more from a device for $500–900.

Software

The smartphone runs MIUI 8 based on Android 6.0.1 with all its advantages and disadvantages.

But this operating system, like many Xiaomi creations, has two versions. One is Chinese with local applications and services. It has only two languages: English and Chinese. For all other users, global firmware with a lot of language packs and pre-installed Google services is offered.

But there is no global firmware for Xiaomi Mi Note 2 yet. Only custom builds from the official fan communities Xiaomi.eu and Multi.ROM are available. Therefore, many of the benefits of Xiaomi’s proprietary add-on remain unavailable to Russian-speaking users.

Unfortunately, the company has not adapted the OS for a curved screen. For now, without third-party applications, you can only use the edges on the stock lock screen.

It is planned that the upcoming MIUI 9 based on Android 7 Nougat will feature screen interaction algorithms similar to those used in the Samsung Galaxy S7. Moreover, the Chinese and Korean companies have experience working together on Mi5S. For now, all we have to do is wait and look for third-party applications.

Other functionality of the Mi Note 2 firmware is exactly the same as that of other Xiaomi smartphones. A bunch of intuitively arranged menus and sliders that let you customize everything from the detail of sound profiles to the color temperature of the screen.

There is a simplified mode of use, a well-developed battery saving mode and excellent interface scaling.

Of the unique functions already implemented, I will mention only one - Haptic Feedback. It improves responsiveness while typing, bringing the tactile experience closer to what you'd experience on a physical keyboard or iPhone 7. Very nice, and works across all apps.

Autonomous operation

Once again Xiaomi convinces us that it thinks about the user. What does the user need? Good operating time away from the socket.

Under the polished body of Xiaomi Mi Note 2 there is a capacious 4,070 mAh battery. The energy consumption of OLED screens is lower than that of conventional IPS/TN panels. Well-developed firmware also makes its contribution, positively affecting the operating time of the device.

All this leads to the fact that the smartphone can work up to two days without recharging. Of course, in standard use mode - no more than 5 hours of screen operation.

Other use cases show consistently high results:

• reading at medium brightness in airplane mode - up to 14 hours;
• watching a movie in airplane mode at medium brightness - up to 12 hours, at maximum brightness - up to 10 hours;
• web surfing (4G) - up to 10 hours;
• 3D games - up to 7 hours.

At the same time, Xiaomi Mi Note 2 supports fast charging according to the QC 3.0 standard. So, replenishing energy reserves from a standard charger takes only an hour and a half.

conclusions

So far, the overall appearance of Xiaomi Mi Note 2 is quite contradictory. This is a very beautiful device. I want to buy it, I want to use it. But many may not like the current state of affairs. The camera is a little flawed. The audio path practically does not manifest itself (this problem was solved in the first version of Xiaomi Note after a considerable time).

Xiaomi Mi Note 2 has every chance to become the most desirable Chinese smartphone. But for this we need a fresh operating system, which is waiting for us in the spring.

For now, I would recommend the device only to true fans of the company. The main reason for this is the indecently high cost for Xiaomi products. The international version with 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage, global firmware and support for all LTE bands costs $700!

Mi Note 2 has much cheaper competitors - less stylish, but balanced: OnePlus 3T ($450 for the 6/64 GB version), Xiaomi Mi5S Plus ($380 for the 4/64 GB version and $530 for 6/128 GB) . And then there’s the Samsung Galaxy S7, whose price in offline stores has dropped to 30,000 rubles ($500). The choice is obvious, and, alas, it is not in favor of the Xiaomi smartphone.

Ideal for selfies!

Screen 5.5 inches

Aluminum
frame

Optical
stabilization

Camera for 16
megapixels

High
performance

It's easy to be photogenic

Automatic correction of portrait photos is on the verge of fantasy: a 3D facelift in a photo is the least that the Mi Note 3 camera can do. It eliminates shadows, makes the color as realistic as possible, emphasizes the contours of the lips and eyes - this is exclusive beauty without Photoshop!

16 megapixel camera

It allows you to take high-quality pictures even in poor lighting. Automatic synthesis of black pixels into a larger 2 micron format increases resolution and allows you to take excellent photos at night, even outside the city.

Special portrait mode

Bringing the face to the foreground and blurring the background. Nothing else can distract the eye from an attractive and, most importantly, clear portrait photo.

2x zoom

Taking clear pictures from a long distance is no longer a problem. Zooming twice does not affect the quality of the photo in any way, even when it comes to its small details.

4-axis optical stabilization

Want to shoot moving objects? No problem! A special stabilization system eliminates not only hand shake, but also clearly captures a moving object, eliminating motion blur.

No complicated unlocking via passwords or fingerprint

The front camera easily recognizes your facial features and automatically unlocks your smartphone. Neither wet hands nor a forgotten password at the wrong time will become a hindrance. In winter you don't even have to take off your gloves!

Large 5.5 inch screen

Excellent color rendition, contrast and clarity. Smooth start, no irritation to the eyes. It has a reliable shockproof coating that protects the device from accidental falls.

Slim aluminum body

Thanks to its rounded corners, it fits comfortably in your hand, and the unique coating of the metal body prevents it from slipping out. The thickness of the device is only 7 mm.

High technical characteristics and capabilities

• High-performance Qualcomm Xiaolong 660 processor. Operates at a frequency of 2.2 GHz and has low power consumption.
• Capacious 3500mAh battery with fast charging function - 50% in half an hour.
• Secure mobile payments with custom settings.
• Lightning fast MIUI 9 operating system.
• Universal IR remote control for all household appliances.

You can buy Xiaomi Mi Note 3 in two color options – bright blue and bright black. This is the optimal solution not only for selfie lovers, but also for travelers who want to capture themselves against the backdrop of a particular landmark.