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Xiaomi Mi 11 6.8” OLED Display, Flagship Features at ~$615
The Xiaomi Mi 11 began shipping in mainland China last week. The Xiaomi Mi 11 in China starts at CNY 3,999, which is roughly $615. For this price, Xiaomi provides a flagship-level screen, the best Android processor of the year, premium build quality, and a really great main camera that can hold its own against any other phone released so far. Xiaomi has knocked it out of the park again in terms of offering great value. In terms of specs, it is equivalent to the iPhone 12 Pro/Pro Max and the Galaxy S21/Ultra and is around 78% of the price.
Figure 1: Xiaomi M1 11
The Xiaomi Mi 11 began shipping in mainland China last week. The Xiaomi Mi 11 in China starts at CNY 3,999, which is roughly $615. For this price, Xiaomi provides a flagship-level screen, the best Android processor of the year, premium build quality, and a really great main camera that can hold its own against any other phone released so far. Xiaomi has knocked it out of the park again in terms of offering great value. In terms of specs, it is equivalent to the iPhone 12 Pro/Pro Max and the Galaxy S21/Ultra and is around 78% of the price.
Figure 1: Xiaomi M1 11
Table 1: Xiaomi Mi 11: Specifications
The Xiaomi Mi 11 is like a Xiaomi Mi 10 Ultra with a Snapdragon 888.” Xiaomi has carried over many of the Mi 10 Ultra’s features, from the 2K 120Hz OLED screen to the subtle curvature on all four sides of the screen to even that “squircle” shaped camera module, this device feels very similar in look and feel to the Xiaomi Mi 10 Ultra.
Figure 2: Xiaomi M1 11 Rear Camera
Figure 2: Xiaomi M1 11 Rear Camera
The Xiaomi Mi 11’s screen is a stunner — a 1440 x 3200 OLED display that refreshes at 120Hz and curves on all four sides. While the curvature at the top and bottom of the screen is relatively subtle (unlike, say, the Huawei P40 Pro), it still adds an illusion of an even slimmer bezel, as well as make for a very pleasant in-hand feel. Underneath the screen is an in-display fingerprint scanner, which apparently doubles as a heart rate sensor.Goodix provided the sensor and has a track record of making breakthroughs in in-display fingerprint tech.
Construction includes aluminum railings wrapped with Gorilla Glass Victus on the front. The back glass is also Gorilla Glass, Similar to the Huawei Mate 40 Pro, the Xiaomi Mi 11’s back has a frosted matte finish that is soft to the touch yet remains grippy and is virtually fingerprint smudge-proof. Light reflects off of my unit in various tones depending on the angle and intensity of the light, so in some angles, the phone looks blue, while in others, it looks almost silver. The top-notch speaker system in the Mi 10 Pro series returns, this time fine-tuned by audio equipment brand Harman Kardon. Inside the device is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 SoC. Running Geekbench 5, the Xiaomi Mi 11’s scores bested the Snapdragon 865+ powered Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 pretty easily.
The Xiaomi Mi 11 features three cameras around the back, consisting of a 108MP main camera, a 13MP ultra-wide, and a 5MP macro. The lack of any zoom lens is jarring in 2021, but this is a clear sign that the Mi 11 is just Xiaomi’s mid-tier device in this series. Xiaomi has not announced anything as of the time of writing this article, but it is almost a foregone conclusion there will be a Xiaomi Mi 11 Pro (or Ultra?) model with a zoom lens.
This is Xiaomi’s fourth time using the Samsung ISOCELL Bright HMX 108MP sensor (following the Mi Note 10, Mi 10, and Mi 10T), and Xiaomi has figured out all the tricks to optimize the sensor. Focusing is razor-sharp and fast too. Video performance is excellent, likely thanks to that triple ISP that’s part of the Snapdragon 888. Zooming in and out — meaning toggling between the ultra-wide and main camera — no longer results in a slight lag, which has been the case for almost all Android phones up until now. This is a level of zoom fluidity that only the iPhone 11 and iPhone 12 had offered.
Video stabilization is excellent with both main and ultra-wide angle camera, but the latter suffers in dynamic range a bit.
Construction includes aluminum railings wrapped with Gorilla Glass Victus on the front. The back glass is also Gorilla Glass, Similar to the Huawei Mate 40 Pro, the Xiaomi Mi 11’s back has a frosted matte finish that is soft to the touch yet remains grippy and is virtually fingerprint smudge-proof. Light reflects off of my unit in various tones depending on the angle and intensity of the light, so in some angles, the phone looks blue, while in others, it looks almost silver. The top-notch speaker system in the Mi 10 Pro series returns, this time fine-tuned by audio equipment brand Harman Kardon. Inside the device is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 SoC. Running Geekbench 5, the Xiaomi Mi 11’s scores bested the Snapdragon 865+ powered Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 pretty easily.
The Xiaomi Mi 11 features three cameras around the back, consisting of a 108MP main camera, a 13MP ultra-wide, and a 5MP macro. The lack of any zoom lens is jarring in 2021, but this is a clear sign that the Mi 11 is just Xiaomi’s mid-tier device in this series. Xiaomi has not announced anything as of the time of writing this article, but it is almost a foregone conclusion there will be a Xiaomi Mi 11 Pro (or Ultra?) model with a zoom lens.
This is Xiaomi’s fourth time using the Samsung ISOCELL Bright HMX 108MP sensor (following the Mi Note 10, Mi 10, and Mi 10T), and Xiaomi has figured out all the tricks to optimize the sensor. Focusing is razor-sharp and fast too. Video performance is excellent, likely thanks to that triple ISP that’s part of the Snapdragon 888. Zooming in and out — meaning toggling between the ultra-wide and main camera — no longer results in a slight lag, which has been the case for almost all Android phones up until now. This is a level of zoom fluidity that only the iPhone 11 and iPhone 12 had offered.
Video stabilization is excellent with both main and ultra-wide angle camera, but the latter suffers in dynamic range a bit.