Almost three hours. A river event, conducted by the founder Lei Jun all in Chinese with simultaneous translation. Xiaomi has put the resistance of its fans to the test with a mega-presentation that has not disappointed those who expected a lot of news. As per rumors, the Chinese company has introduced new ultra-powerful versions of the Mi 11 5G, two Lite versions of the same series, a 5G router, a smart band, a wireless charger. In the end it was also announced that tomorrow there will be another event – no, we’re not kidding – where maybe we will see more products expected for today. Among these also a foldable Mi Mix, a tablet, a laptop and a smart washing machine, confirming the product ecumenism of the Beijing brand.
Not all of these products, ranging from “strange” to “very interesting”, will arrive in Italy, however. The products destined for the European market introduced today are “only” six in total: the Mi 11 Ultra, Mi 11i, Mi 11 Lite 4G and 5G version smartphones, the Mi Smart Projector 2 Pro and the Mi Smart Band 6. The Mi model 11 Pro, also presented today, will not be distributed outside the Chinese market at the moment.
Mi 11i
Two of the smartphones presented today that will arrive in Italy are high-end and very high-end devices: Mi 11i and Mi 11 Ultra. The first is a revised and corrected version of the Mi 11 but with a more powerful processor, that is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888, and a photographic equipment similar to the model already on sale in Italy. The main 108 Megapixel sensor is flanked by a super wide angle with 119 ° angle of view and a 5MP telemacro with a focal length comparable to a 50mm lens. In addition we find the audio-zoom mode, which allows you to focus the audio on a subject during shooting. There is ultra-wide ISO, which allows for a wider dynamic range (put simply: backlit photos are much better), 8K shooting, Ultra Night Video for night photos and a host of features. to edit images and videos with or without the help of artificial intelligence.
The screen of the Mi 11i is a 6.67 ”AMOLED without rounded edges (deo gratias) with a refresh rate of 120Hz (360Hz for touch sampling on the touch screen). The picture is completed by a very large 4520 mAh battery with the support for ultra-fast charging of 33W (with the charger in the package).
Mi 11 Ultra
The lion’s share, however, belongs to the Mi 11 Ultra, a super-smartphone with which Xiaomi, as Lei Jun repeated several times during the presentation, aims to offer the “definitive Android experience”. The photographic compartment, set in the ceramic back in a dedicated housing as wide as the whole body, immediately catches the eye.
The main 50MP sensor is the GN2 developed by the Chinese company in collaboration with Samsung. It has considerable dimensions compared to the sensors of the competition and thanks to the 4-in-1 pixel binning it manages to create 2.8 micrometer macropixels (it is an important detail, because the size of the sensor is directly related to the final quality of the image processed by the software) . Also new is the laser focusing system based on a Time-of-Flight sensor, which allows you to create a depth map with 64 zones. The result is a camera capable of capturing sharp and always in focus images even in low light conditions. In this regard, we appreciated that during the launch event Xiaomi did not show (as Huawei did) excessively illuminated images, focusing instead on the quality, definition and absence of noise in the dark areas of the example photos. This is a good sign.
The photographic sector also includes a periscope lens with 5x optical zoom that reaches 10X in hybrid mode and 120X in digital mode (practically a telescope) and an ultra-wide angle. Both cameras are equipped with Sony IMX 586 sensors with a resolution of 48 MP. All the phone’s lenses then support 8K video recording at least at 24fps, as well as the already known Dual Native ISO Fusion and Stagger-HDR features that had debuted on the Ultra version of the Mi 10.
The display also fits the name “Ultra”. It is a quad-curved AMOLED (unfortunately means that the short sides are also slightly curved) from 6.81 ”to 120Hz. You get to 1700 Nit of brightness (there are many), there is support for Dolby Vision HDR, a resolution of 3200×1440 pixels and the Gorilla Glass Victus to protect everything. The front one is not the only display: there is a second 1.1 ”OLED, set behind in the photographic sector. It can be used to preview the photo or video when taking a selfie, or even as an always-on display to show notifications.
The Mi Ultra chipset is the same Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 as the MI 11i, the most powerful around for Android smartphones, flanked by UFS 3.1 memory and LPDDR5 RAM and obviously a 5G modem. The chip also enables a new 67 Watt super-charging mode, both wired and wireless (with a special ultra-powerful base). With the charger or induction charging, the 5000mAh battery of the Mi 11 Ultra goes from 0 to 100% in just 36 minutes. These speeds are made possible both by the internal recharging circuit of the phone and by the type of battery, made with second generation “silicon oxide nano cathodes”. The icing on the cake: the IP68 certification, which so far Xiaomi had not guaranteed even on its most famous smartphones.
The Lite versions
Together with the two flagship devices, Xiaomi also presented two mid-range and medium-high-range smartphones, which are the ones that will inevitably sell the most.
They are called Mi 11 Lite and Mi 11 Lite 5G: as the name suggests they are practically the same phone, but with one main difference, and that is the presence (or the absence, if you prefer) of 5G connectivity. For this purpose, the chipset changes, which is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 780G on the 5G model and instead a 732 on the Mi 11 Lite. The only other difference, apart from perhaps a few minor details, is the resolution of the front camera: 20MP on the Mi Lite 5G, 16 on the Mi Lite.
Otherwise the characteristics are the same. The display is a 6.55 ”FLAT AMOLED with 90Hz refresh, while the main rear camera is 64MP, flanked by an 8MP ultra-wide angle and a 5MP telemacro. Both weigh very little (157g the version without 5G, 159g the other) and are only 6.8mm thick. The batteries are 4250mAh, compatible with 33W fast charging (but without wireless charging).
Smart Band and projector
Finally, today’s news includes the Smart Band 6 and the Mi Smart Projector 2 Pro. The first product is a digital sport bracelet with a 1.56 “Amoled display, 50% larger than the previous version. . The device offers the possibility of recording up to 30 different types of training, and above all the measurement of oxygen saturation in the blood. There is also heart rate and sleep monitoring, including the quality of breathing while you sleep. Smart Band 6 does not have GPS, but it can be used for swimming thanks to its water resistance up to 50m depth.
The Mi Smart Projector 2 Pro is instead a very interesting projector, with a brightness that reaches 1300 Ansi Lumen, support for HDR 10 and full HD resolution. It has built-in speakers and is compatible with DTS-HD and Dolby Audio decoding. There is also the useful keystone correction of the projection, to be able to position it without too many constraints.
Xiaomi’s projector is in fact a smart TV integrated into a “beamer”, a bit like the competitors of Anker’s Nebula series. The operating system is Android TV, there is compatibility with Chromecast and the Google Assistant can turn it into a hub for home automation.
Prices and availability
The smartphones presented today by Xiaomi will arrive in Italy from now to May, in different brackets. Mi 11i will start from 649 € for the 8GB + 128GB version. The Lite models will instead cost € 299 in the 6 + 64GB version without 5G and € 369 for the 5G version but with 128GB of memory (it is the model that we think is more convenient).
The top of the range Mi 11 Ultra will officially arrive in May: for now the expected price globally is 1199 € for the version with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of memory. That’s a figure that’s adequate for the features, especially when you compare the device to the competition’s top-tier offering.
The Mi Smart Band 6 will be available starting from the end of April on mi.com, in the Mi Stores and on Amazon at 49.99 €. The Mi Smart Projector 2 Pro instead costs € 999.99 and will arrive in Xiaomi stores and on Amazon starting from May