Android

Xiaomi Mi 4i Review

It’s almost the end of the year and I’m betting there are still some people left who hasn’t spent their Christmas money. Maybe I can change your mind as we take a close look at the Xiaomi Mi 4i. Granted these devices are not that easy to get, but they’re pretty good considering the PHP9,799 price tag.

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Xiaomi Mi 4i specs:

  • 5.0 inch IPS LCD display (1080 x 1920, 441 ppi), Corning scratch-resistant glass
  • 64-bit Octa-core Qualcomm MSM8939 Snapdragon 615 (1.7 GHz quad-core Cortex-A53 & quad-core 1.0 GHz Cortex-A53)
  • Adreno 405
  • 2 GB RAM / 16 GB storage
  • 13 MP main camera, autofocus, dual tone LED flash
  • 5 MP front camera
  • Dual micro-SIM / Dual Stand-by
  • GSM / HSPA / LTE
  • Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, WiFi Direct, hotspot
  • Bluetooth v4.1, A2DP
  • GPS with A-GPS, GLONASS, Beidou
  • Radio FM radio
  • Dimensions 5.44 x 2.74 x 0.31 in; 130 g
  • Android OS, v5.0.2 (Lollipop) with MIUI 6.0
  • 3120 mAh Li-Ion battery (non-removable)

Design

The Xiaomi Mi 4i is a mid-range device with a simple look. It features an all plastic construction with a rectangular shape that can be described as ordinary. Nevertheless, it looks good. It’s minimalist approach to design works well. It’s streamlined profile is punctuated by smooth lines and curved corners.

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The front is dominated by the 5 inch IPS display. The earpiece is flanked by the Mi logo on the upper left and the 5MP front camera on the right. While at the bottom bezel you’ll find the capacitive buttons for home, back and app switcher. It lights up when in use.

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The back panel has a smooth matte surface. It envelopes the device from the back all the way to the sides. The camera and dual tone LED flash is on the upper left side, while the speaker grill is on the lower half. The back is adorned by a shiny embossed Mi logo.

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For a 5 inch phone, the Mi 4i feels good in the hand and easy to grip. Thanks to the screen’s small bezels, the device managed to keep a respectable measurement of 5.44 x 2.74 x 0.31 in. The build quality is good as well. The device feels very solid and sturdy. It is light too at only 130 g.

Going around the device, you’ll find the power button and the volume rocker on the right panel. On the left is the dual SIM card tray. The headphone jack is on top, and the microSD port and the mic is at the bottom.

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Benchmarks

We also ran benchmark apps to see how well the hardware runs. The Mi 4i got a score of 40,130 in AnTuTu Benchmark. On Geekbench 3, it got a score of 616 in the single-core test and a 1,992 on the multi-core test.

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Display and Performance

The Mi 4i uses a full HD 5 inch IPS display with a resolution of 1920 by 1080 and a pixel density of 441 ppi. It is protected by a scratch resistant glass by Corning. It wasn’t specified if it is Gorilla Glass or otherwise.

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That being said, the display is great. It is bright and, thanks to the NTSC 95% color gamut, has accurate color reproduction. Text and images are crisp and colors are well saturated.

Performance wise, the Mi 4i runs great. It is fast and fluid, and very responsive. Although, I noticed a few lags after an update, but it was greatly minimized after another update was issued. Seeing as this is a Xiaomi device, regular updates are to be expected. But in my experience, it may affect performance from time to time.

Camera

When the Mi 4i was launched locally, Xiaomi was heavily promoting it’s screen and it’s camera. We already know about the screen, but the 13 MP camera surprised me. It was better than what I was expecting.

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The photos taken by the Mi 4i look great. The colors are nicely saturated, and details look sharp. Low-light shots are acceptable as well. A respectable amount of noise did appear on the images, but you really can’t complain at this price point.

Here are some sample photos for your reference. The images were resized in Photoshop to Web with quality set at 60. You can click on the images for a larger version.

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Conclusion

If you haven’t realized it yet at this point, then I’ll make it clear: I think the Xiaomi Mi 4i is a steal at PHP9,799. The smartphone may have a simple design, but it has a good size and weight to it. Besides that, it has a lot of other good things going for it: an amazing 1080p display, good build quality, and a very good camera.

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Bryan is a geek at heart and a tech enthusiast by choice. He has a strong background in corporate communications, marketing services, and customer relations having worked in the telecommunications and banking sectors for over two decades. In his spare time, he enjoys watching clips on YouTube and binge watching shows on Netflix.

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