Xiaomi today held the Chinese launch announcement of the new Mi 11 – the new mainstream flagship phone for 2021. The new phone has a new super-high-end OLED screen that ticks off every checkmark feature you would expect from a 2021 design. The new Snapdragon 888 SoC features 1440p resolution and 120Hz refresh rates at its heart – as well as a new thinner, lighter and more stylish industrial design compared to its predecessors.
| Xiaomi Mi Series | |||
| Wed 10 | Wed 11 | ||
| SoC | Qualcomm Snapdragon 865
1x Cortex-A77 @ 2.84GHz Adreno 640 @ 587MHz |
Qualcomm Snapdragon 888
1x Cortex-X1 @ 2.84 GHz Adreno 660 @ 747MHz |
|
| DRAM | 8GB LPDDR5-5500 | 8 / 12GB LPDDR5-6400 | |
| Show | 6.67 “AMOLED 2340 x 1080 (19.5: 9) 90Hz Refresh |
6.81 “AMOLED
3200 x 1440 120Hz Refresh 480Hz Touch |
|
| Size | Height | 162.58mm | 164.3 mm |
| Width | 74.80mm | 74.6 mm | |
| Depth | 8.96 mm | 8.06mm | |
| Weight | 208g | 196g | |
| Battery capacity | 4780mAh (typical)
30W charge |
4600mAh (typical)
55W charge |
|
| Wireless charging | 30W | 50W | |
| Rear Cameras | |||
| Head | 108MP 1 / 1.3 “0.8 urn 4: 1 Binding up to 27MP / 1.6 μm f / 1.69 w / OIS |
108MP module
f / 1.85 w / OIS |
|
| Telephoto | – | 5MP
50mm eq. |
|
| Extra Telephoto |
– | – | |
| Ultra-wide | 13MP 1.12 urn
f / 2.4 |
13MP
f / 2.4 |
|
| Extra | 2MP depth camera
2MP macro camera |
– | |
| Front camera | 20MP 0.8 urn f / 2.3 |
f / 2.2 | |
| Storage | 128 / 256GB UV 3.0 |
128 / 256GB | |
| I / O | USB-C | ||
| Wireless (local) | 802.11byl (Wifi 6), Bluetooth 5.1 |
||
| Cellular | 4G + 5G NR NSA + SA Sub-6GHz | ||
| Special features | Fingerprint sensor below the screen Full stereo speakers |
||
| Splash, water, dust resistance | No rating | ||
| Dual SIM | 2x nano-SIM | ||
| Start OS | Android 10 w / MIUI | Android 11 w / MIUI | |
| Introductory price | 8 + 128 GB: 799 € 8 + 256 GB: 899 € |
? | |
At the heart of the new Mi 11 lies the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 SoC. The new 5nm chip is the first to use Arm’s new Cortex-X1 core, and Qualcomm also claims that this generation gives a great GPU performance. What’s more different from the previous Snapdragon 865 flagship design is that the new S888 returns to a monolithic SoC design that integrates the 5G modem into the SoC – this in turn means that there is more PCB component space available in the phone, and the merchants can optimize their designs better.
The new Mi 11 also features 8 GB or 12 GB of the new LPDDR5 memory at its full 3200 MHz speed (6400 MT / s), and has 128 GB or 256 GB storage variants, although we do not have information on the specifications of the modules used here are not missing. .
The new Mi 11 also features 8 GB or 12 GB of the new LPDDR5 memory at its full 3200 MHz speed (6400 MT / s), and has 128 GB or 256 GB storage variants, although we do not have information on the specifications of the modules used here are not missing. .
In terms of design, the new Mi 11 is quite a departure from the Mi 10, as it is a much slimmer device than its predecessor. Xiaomi has been able to reduce the edge of the device on all sides, and still uses a curved glass design on the front and back that fits snugly in the palms of your hands. The new design is actually 0.9 mm thinner than its predecessor, now it comes to 8.06 mm, and also shaves 12 g of its weight at 196 g – still relatively heavy, but not as much as its predecessor.
The most exciting feature of the Mi 11 is the new OLED screen. It has grown a bit compared to its predecessor, and fills the space in place of the rings, from 6.67 “to 6.81”, but the most important aspect of the phone is the fact that it is now a QHD class resolution is at 3200 x 1440 – a first of the Xiaomi OLED screen and a resolution we have not used by the company since the LCD days.
Furthermore, it is a continuous display with a refresh rate of 120Hz and is advertised as a new generation 10-bit panel that also contains up to 8192 brightness levels – a new generation DDIC. The panel is also being advertised using a new next-generation emitter material, and Xiaomi claims it’s rising to 1500 net’s brightness, which is higher than what we saw from 2020 phones.
Lastly, like a cherry on top of the cake, the panel has a staggering 480Hz feed rate, which is the highest we’ve heard about in the mobile industry, and hopefully leads to excellent touch input and scrolling smoothness.
Other features of the new design include a redesigned camera setup, which transitions from a completely vertical camera setup to a new rounded square element with three camera modules.
Instead of having a large camera edge and a single glass element that protects the entire camera setup, Xiaomi uses a three-step glass element, each thicker than the other, that protects the three camera modules. It looks very interesting and gives a much more organic feel compared to other rectangular or more symmetrical camera arrangements out there.
Unfortunately for today’s announcement, the Mi 11’s camera specifications were pretty sparse. What we do know is that the main camera is again a 108MP module, similar to that of its predecessor, but we do not know if it is exactly the same sensor, or a newer version. What we do know is that the optics are definitely different, as the aperture now ends up at f / 1.89 instead of f / 1.69 – a real positive change in my view because the optics of the Mi 10 were one of the main weaknesses .
Next to the main camera there is a 13MP ultra-wide angle with a 123 ° FoV and F / 2.4 aperture, as well as a 5MP 2x optical 50 mm equivalent telephoto module with f / 2.2. The last module sounds a bit faint – maybe we’ll see a final Mi 11 Pro with a stronger tele module.
Today’s announcement is about the Chinese version of the phone, with the global and European variants definitely to follow in the next few weeks. Pre-orders for the Chinese models start today with the delivery of the 1st of January, with the Mi 11 with an 8 + 128 GB variant at at 3999.00, or $ 611 USD. Western prices will certainly be different, but this is already a very promising start for the new flagship.
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