The Chinese company Xiaomi ("Xiaomi") is sometimes called the "Chinese apple". This nickname was given to her because of the similarity of philosophy with Apple. Both companies strive to create an ecosystem filled with products that are closely related to each other.
However, there is one significant difference between Chinese and American companies - pricing policy. While American Apple positions its products as expensive and elite, the Chinese Apple focuses on the availability of smartphones, offering rich functionality. In this article, we will help you choose a good Xiaomi smartphone for the price of half or even a third of the iPhone.
10. Xiaomi Redmi Note 7
Average price - 13 490 rubles
Characteristics:
- smartphone with Android 9.0
- support for two SIM-cards
- screen 6.3 ″, resolution 2340 × 1080
- dual camera 48 MP / 5 MP, autofocus
- memory 64 GB, memory card slot
- 3G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, GLONASS
- RAM 4 GB
- battery 4000 mAh
- weight 186 g, WxHxT 75.21 × 159.21 × 8.10 mm
The rating of Xiaomi smartphones in 2019 is opened by a model that recently appeared on the Russian market and has already become very popular. If you want a phone with a long battery life, a durable, bright and crisp screen, and the ability to easily pull multiple open apps at the same time, then a better option than the Note 7 is hard to find.
The presence of an energy-efficient and productive Snapdragon 660 chipset and a fingerprint scanner and the ability to install a memory card are also encouraging.
And most of all, many users are pleased with the excellent quality of the pictures taken by the main camera. Especially if you install Google Camera instead of the stock application.
A plus: loud and clear sound, 19.5: 9 aspect ratio, fast charging and 3.5mm headphone jack.
Minuses: glass body looks expensive, but slippery and fragile, no NFC.
9.Xiaomi Mi8 SE
Average price - 19,300 rubles
Characteristics:
- smartphone with Android 8.1
- support for two SIM-cards
- 5.88 ″ screen, 2244 × 1080 resolution
- dual camera 12 MP / 5 MP, autofocus
- memory 128 GB, without slot for memory cards
- 3G, 4G LTE, LTE-A, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, GLONASS
- RAM 6 GB
- battery 3120 mAh
- weight 164 g, WxHxT 73.09 × 147.28 × 7.50 mm
Many of the best Xiaomi smartphones are sacrificing something for the low price. Some don't have fast charging, others have little RAM or an outdated processor. However, the Mi8 SE is not like that. Of course, he also had to make "sacrifices", and we will talk about them below. But for now, let's talk about the advantages of the device.
- The first is the powerful Snapdragon 710 processor and plenty of RAM.
- The second is the availability of fast charging 18W.
- Third - SuperAMOLED-screen with a brightness of 600 nits, clearly visible even in bright sunlight.
- The fourth is the excellent picture quality taken by the rear dual camera. It has HDR, you can manually adjust the ISO and exposure. You can shoot videos up to 4K.
pros: no lags in new games, good sound both from the speaker and headphones.
Minuses: "Monobrow", no NFC, no memory expansion.
8. Xiaomi Mi A2
Average price - 15 200 rubles
Characteristics:
- Android smartphone
- support for two SIM-cards
- screen 5.99 ″, resolution 2160 × 1080
- dual camera 12 MP / 20 MP, autofocus
- memory 128 GB, without slot for memory cards
- 3G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, GLONASS
- RAM 6 GB
- battery 3010 mAh
- weight 168 g, WxHxT 75.40 × 158.70 × 7.30 mm
This is a solid middling in the top Xiaomi smartphones.On the one hand, it has a large amount of RAM, and a bright screen with a modern aspect ratio of 18: 9, and an excellent main camera, which is not inferior to analogues up to 30 thousand rubles in terms of picture detail.
On the other hand, for the sake of price, the manufacturer had to sacrifice features such as contactless payments, wireless charging and a large battery. However, the energy efficient Snapdragon 660 processor in the Mi A2 has a positive effect on battery life.
pros: all-metal body, fast charging, fingerprint scanner.
Minuses: No 3.5mm audio jack, can not expand memory.
7. Xiaomi Mi Mix3
Average price - 31 660 rubles
Characteristics:
- smartphone with Android 9.0
- support for two SIM-cards
- screen 6.39 ″, resolution 2340 × 1080
- dual camera 12 MP / 12 MP, autofocus
- memory 128 GB, without slot for memory cards
- 3G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, GPS, GLONASS
- RAM 6 GB
- battery 3200 mAh
- weight 218 g, WxHxT 74.69 × 157.89 × 8.46 mm
While other manufacturers are figuring out whose phone is more beautiful, Xiaomi took and released top smartphone with a ceramic body and thin bezels around a massive screen. Ceramic is warmer to the touch than glass, provides greater scratch resistance and has a deep glossy sheen.
And to make it seem as if it isn't too little for users, a slider mechanism has been added to all this splendor, which reveals the front camera with two lenses when you slide the screen down.
With the Snapdragon 845 with 6GB of RAM, all games and hardware-intensive apps run smoothly and quickly.
On the back is a 12MP dual-lens setup. The main lens has optical image stabilization, autofocus, HDR, various AI modes and 2x zoom.
The selfie camera captures bokeh-style portraits and has an AI-driven beauty mode.
pros: Slider design, powerful iron, there is a face unlock function. The screen-to-body ratio is 93.4%.
Minuses: no moisture and dust protection, you cannot increase the amount of memory, the back cover quickly gets stuck.
6. Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S
Average price - 26,460 rubles
Characteristics:
- smartphone with Android 8.0
- support for two SIM-cards
- screen 5.99 ″, resolution 2160 × 1080
- dual camera 12 MP / 12 MP, autofocus
- memory 128 GB, without slot for memory cards
- 3G, 4G LTE, LTE-A, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, GPS, GLONASS
- RAM 6 GB
- battery 3400 mAh
- weight 189 g, WxHxT 74.90 × 150.86 × 8.10 mm
This model was included in the list of the best Xiaomi smartphones for four reasons.
The first is a superb IPS LCD screen with an 18: 9 aspect ratio and minimal bezels. And no "monobrow"!
The second is an excellent "filling" for a low price. Inside the phone is a Snapdragon 845 processor, an Adreno 630 video accelerator and 6 GB of RAM. Mi Mix 2S is one of the fastest mobile devices to date. It also has fast and wireless charging.
The third is the ceramic body of the novelty from Xiaomi smartphones in 2019.
The fourth is the main camera with artificial intelligence, which takes very clear and bright pictures even in low light.
pros: Comes with a case, loud sound in headphones, no wheezing or distortion.
Minuses: no possibility to expand the amount of memory, slippery and easily soiled case. The selfie camera is under the screen, which makes it difficult to take good pictures.
5.Xiaomi Redmi 6
Average price - 8 450 rubles
Characteristics:
- smartphone with Android 8.1
- support for two SIM-cards
- screen 5.45 ″, resolution 1440 × 720
- dual camera 12 MP / 5 MP, autofocus
- memory 64 GB, memory card slot
- 3G, 4G LTE, LTE-A, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, GLONASS
- RAM 4 GB
- battery 3000 mAh
- weight 145 g, WxHxT 71.50 × 147.50 × 8.30 mm
The cheapest Xiaomi smartphone in our ranking is the ideal workhorse, which, at its low price, has the functions inherent in more expensive models. Namely: a fingerprint scanner, a slot for memory cards and a classic 3.5 mm audio port.
In terms of cameras, little has changed compared to the Xiaomi Redmi 5. There is still a 12-megapixel lens on the back. But there is one significant difference - the presence of a second 5 MP lens, which deals with the processing of depth of field in portrait mode.The camera takes decent pictures with lots of detail and decent colors in normal lighting conditions.
This model is equipped with a Mediatek Helio P22 processor - a rather unusual solution for such a budget smartphone. Thanks to him, as well as a decent amount of memory, the smartphone can easily run modern games at medium and minimum settings.
pros: large amount of RAM, small size, accurate GPS module operation.
Minuses: no fast charging, outdated micro-USB connector, no possibility to make contactless payments, the main camera does not take pictures well in low light.
4. Xiaomi Pocophone F1
Average price - 19,700 rubles
Characteristics:
- Android smartphone
- support for two SIM-cards
- screen 6.18 ″, resolution 2246 × 1080
- dual camera 12 MP / 5 MP, autofocus
- memory 128 GB, memory card slot
- 3G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, GLONASS
- RAM 6 GB
- battery 4000 mAh
- weight 182 g, WxHxT 75.20 × 155.50 × 8.80 mm
Like other new Xiaomi smartphones, the Pocophone F1 follows the trend of tall, thin displays. Its 6.18-inch screen has an 18: 9 aspect ratio.
This model is equipped with the ex-flagship mobile processor - Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 with a frequency of 2.8 GHz. This is the same chip found in most of the expensive flagships of 2018, and with 6GB of RAM at your disposal, you can expect all games to run smoothly and quickly on medium and maximum settings.
In terms of battery life, the Pocophone F1 lasted 15 hours and 29 minutes in the continuous video playback test with flight mode enabled. It's not nearly as long as the OnePlus 6T or Vivo V11, but you're unlikely to endure nearly an entire day of continuous YouTube browsing yourself.
Rather than offering an optional wide-angle lens or 2x telephoto sensor for the main camera, the Pocophone follows Vivo's lead by providing an optional depth-sensing lens for extraordinary bokeh photography. The shots taken with this smartphone come out very detailed, with accurate colors and a very neutral palette, and the HDR mode successfully illuminates shadowed areas.
pros: instant unlocking by fingerprint or face, there is a 3.5 headphone jack, loud and clear sound in headphones and from external speakers, a branded case is included.
Minuses: No NFC, not certified for dust or water resistance.
3. Xiaomi Mi8 Pro
Average price - 29 940 rubles
Characteristics:
- smartphone with Android 8.1
- support for two SIM-cards
- screen 6.21 ″, resolution 2248 × 1080
- dual camera 12 MP / 12 MP, autofocus
- memory 128 GB, without slot for memory cards
- 3G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, GPS, GLONASS
- RAM 8 GB
- battery 3000 mAh
- weight 177 g, WxHxT 74.80 × 154.90 × 7.60 mm
One of best Chinese smartphones in terms of value for money the front looks pretty much the same as a bunch of other 2019 smartphones. Narrow bezels on the sides and bottom, notch on top, display filling the rest.
But if you turn it over with its "back" to yourself, it becomes immediately clear what makes this phone stand out from a huge number of competitors. Hidden behind a transparent cover is a board - actually a fake one, but it looks like the real one. And even more beautiful.
But the Mi8 Pro can boast of not a single design. For a small price, you get an impressive amount of RAM, the ability to make contactless payments and take detailed and very clear photos. Responsible for the last point is the main camera with a wide-angle lens with 4-axis optical stabilization and a 12-megapixel main lens. It also has “AI Mode” - intelligent scene recognition to make your photos look good without manual override.
The display is a 6.21-inch AMOLED panel that supports DCI-P3 wide color gamut. And the maximum brightness is 600 nits, so you won't have any problems viewing text outdoors.
pros: bright, juicy screen, original back cover design, top-end performance.
Minuses: No wireless charging, not very powerful battery, mono design annoys many users.
2. Xiaomi Mi9 SE
Average price - 28,500 rubles
Characteristics:
- smartphone with Android 9.0
- support for two SIM-cards
- screen 5.97 ″, resolution 2340 × 1080
- three cameras 48 MP / 8 MP / 13 MP, autofocus
- memory 128 GB, without slot for memory cards
- 3G, 4G LTE, LTE-A, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, GPS, GLONASS
- RAM 6 GB
- battery 3070 mAh
- weight 155 g, WxHxT 70.50 × 147.50 × 7.45 mm
The second place in the ranking of Xiaomi smartphones went to the "little brother" of the flagship model Mi 9. It is an ideal option for those who do not want to pay extra money for a larger screen and a slightly more capacious battery. And he wants all applications and games on the smartphone to "fly", to be able to contactlessly pay for purchases in the store, and take gorgeous photos at any time of the day.
All this is offered by the Mi9 SE, powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 712 processor. It is currently the fastest mid-range chipset. It is paired with the Adreno 616 video accelerator.
The triple camera module captures excellently, although the colors in the images may not be as bright as made by the flagships of 2019.
The phone screen is protected by Gorilla Glass 6, and a small cutout for a selfie camera is left at the top. There is a fingerprint scanner under the screen on the front panel.
The bright and vibrant AMOLED screen has an increasingly popular 19.5: 9 aspect ratio and covers 84.1% of the total front panel area.
pros: comfortable in the hand, 18W fast charging, superb AMOLED display, readable even in bright sunlight.
Minuses: No wireless charging, no 3.5mm headphone jack, no moisture and dust resistance.
1. Xiaomi Mi 9
Average price - 38 360 rubles
Characteristics:
- smartphone with Android 9.0
- support for two SIM-cards
- screen 6.39 ″, resolution 2340 × 1080
- three cameras 48 MP / 16 MP / 12 MP, autofocus
- memory 128 GB, without slot for memory cards
- 3G, 4G LTE, LTE-A, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, GPS, GLONASS
- RAM 8 GB
- battery 3300 mAh
- weight 173 g, WxHxT 74.67 × 157.50 × 7.61 mm
Which Xiaomi smartphone is better for a person who needs to charge the phone as quickly as possible and at the same time use a powerful device with all modern functions? The answer is simple - Xiaomi Mi 9.
It is one of the first smartphones released with the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 and the first Xiaomi smartphone to support 20W wireless charging.
It has a triple rear camera including a 48MP Sony IMX586 sensor, a telephoto lens and a wide-angle lens. All three cameras can use phase detection autofocus for fast, accurate focusing. All this allows you to create excellent photos with good color balance and a minimum of digital noise.
In addition, the smartphone is equipped with a fifth generation optical fingerprint scanner. And it boasts a holographic-effect gradient back panel and an almost bezel-less design with a tiny notch.
The front panel of Mi 9 is completely covered with Gorilla Glass 6, and the 6.39-inch AMOLED display with a diagonal of 19.5: 9 has excellent color reproduction and a large supply of brightness up to 600 nits.
pros: there is wireless charging, stable connection quality, soft yet distinct vibration.
Minuses: no 3.5mm headphone jack, no expandable memory, no moisture and dust resistance.
And if you want a unique phone, then the best of the best Xiaomi smartphones of 2019 is the special edition Xiaomi Mi 9 Alita Edition with 12 GB of RAM and 256 GB of internal storage. Its design with a transparent back cover, through which you can see the inside of the device (in fact, it is a realistic drawing) will attract the attention of others faster than the latest iPhone.