Price: Rs 20,000 (Flipkart.com)
After taking the Indian mobile market by storm by starting a trend of offering mobile phones with premium features at affordable prices, Xiaomi has offered the Mi 4, which is basically upping the ante from the hugely successful Mi 3. This high-end phone features a Snapdragon quad-core CPU with 3 GB RAM, 5” Full HD IPS screen, and 13 MP camera with up to 4K video recording. Xiaomi has been generous enough to send across a review unit, therefore, a review was in order. Do the high-end specs really translate into a pleasant smartphone experience? Read on.
Accessories
The Mi 4 is priced in the upper mid-range segment, at least from the price point of view. Naturally, the accessories were scant.
Features
The Xiaomi Mi 4 is priced in the upper mid-range, but the company has managed to incorporate the looks of an expensive phone (or should I say – iPhone?). It comes in a unibody design with the glass covering the entire front area, a metal rim around the thinner surface with chamfered edges, and a slightly bulged white (or black) polycarbonate back. Of course, the cover cannot be opened, so the battery is not removable. The design gives the phone an overall premium look. The phone weighs just 149 grams, which is considerably light. Its dimensions of 139.2 mm x 68.5 mm don't allow one-handed operations. At just 8.9 mm, this is quite slim. The build quality is very good and doesn’t feels flimsy in any part.
The front is dominated by a 5" IPS display with Full HD pixel dimensions of 1920x1080. This gives it a very high pixel density of 441 PPI, which makes images appear extremely crisp. It is interesting to note that the touchscreen has a super-sensitivity setting, which basically means that when it is switched on, it is possible to operate it even with gloves on. Of course, it doesn't matter in India, as this is only of use in cold countries where people need to wear gloves in winter.
There are capacitive buttons at the bottom of the screen. The top has a speaker at the centre, a proximity sensor on its right, and the front camera on its left. A silver MI logo adorns the far right of the phone at the top. The entire front area is protected by Corning Concore Glass.
The SIM tray is present at the right of the phone. This requires a SIM eject pin to be opened. The tray accepts a mini SIM, as against a micro SIM required by most new phones.
A 3.5 mm headphone jack is present, which accepts standard headphones and also handsfree headsets. Two noise cancellation microphones are also present, to filter out unwanted noise while you have a conversation, so that the other party hears only your voice clearly. In practice, I found out that this indeed works very well for mobile phone as well as Skype and Viber calls.
A single loudspeaker is present at the bottom, along with the micro-USB port. I must mention here that the micro-USB socket is rectangular, without any demarcation about how to orient the plug while inserting. This may result in some confusion as some may try to forcefully insert the plug in the wrong direction, causing physical damage to either the port or the plug.
The only other buttons on the unit are the volume and power buttons on the phone’s left.
Camera
The Mi 4 comes equipped with dual cameras. The rear camera with is a 13 mp Sony image sensor and has 6 lens elements with a special filter element to reduce infrared light. Image stabilisation is there to reduce the effects of shaky hands. The camera can also snap HDR photos via a built-in mode, although you need to be able to hold it still while it takes a few shots for a split second and combines them internally to produce the HDR photo. Needless to say, the camera can also record up to 4K HD videos. An LED is present to allow flash photography or videography in the dark.
The front camera has an 8 mp image sensor and is also capable of Full HD recording. This is mainly for use in video calling over 3G or in IM applications such as Skype.
The camera performance is quite good even in low light conditions, and definitely better than other smartphones in the price range. The image stabilisation is available only for the rear camera and it does work as it should. The camera app allows you to assign the camera shutter function to the volume buttons, which gives more control over the shot than it is possible via the touch interface shutter button. Of course, there is still no half-press for focus functionality, so you need to use either auto-focus or touch-to-focus.
Technical Features
The Mi 4 is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 chipset, which includes a 2.5 GHz Krait 400 quad-core CPU. Remember, this is not the same as the inexpensive MediaTek quad-core CPUs found in most Android phones. It is more powerful and is usually found in high-end smartphones. Graphics is handled aptly by the 450 MHz Adreno 330 GPU. Xiaomi has equipped the Mi 4 with a generous 3 GB of LPDDR3 RAM to make sure that everything keeps running smoothly. While there is no expandable storage via microSD, there is sufficient amount of internal storage with 16 GB, of which 12.5 GB is actually available for use. This amount of storage is enough for a regular user, unless you dump too many huge movies and HD games onto the phone.
The device runs Android 4.4.3 (Kitkat) with the company's own MIUI interface. The MIUI interface actually makes it easier to use the phone's features and doesn't seem to take away anything from the stock Android interface. There are various nifty features such as the ability to select a system default font.
Some of the other specs include 3G (HSPA+), Wi-Fi with hotspot, Bluetooth 4.0 with A2DP, GPS (assisted), GLONASS, FM Radio, accelerometer, gyroscope, proximity sensor, compass, barometer, and USB OTG.
Additional Features With Screenshots
Swiping down the notification bar reveals a tab called Toggles. This is where there are eleven of the phone features we are used to toggle. This shortcut is great for convenience and saves time.
The Mi 4 allows you to specify notification light colours for default notifications, calls, and messages. You can choose from amongst seven colours as can be seen in the below screenshot.
While the uncalibrated screen colour is good enough, it is possible to calibrate the colour to some extent and preview the setting before applying it.
To keep your system running in top notch condition, Xiaomi provides a set of tools to optimise the system performance. These utilities also include a virus scanner, power manager, data usage controller, and a facility to manage blocked phone numbers.
In addition to this utility, touching the options button opens up a task manager, allowing you to terminate background tasks, thus conserving and extending battery life.
Multimedia Performance
Like any Android device, the Mi 4 supports just about every audio and video format, as long as the proper player is installed, and they are available aplenty in the Google Play Store. Movie playback is smooth. Being capable of recording 4K videos, it is easily able to play 4K videos without even breaking into a sweat.
The audio performance is not bad, although it will depend mostly on the quality of headphones/earphones you plug in.
Mi 4 comes with Dirac technology, which optimises audio quality according to the type of headphones being used. In fact, there are several presets to choose from, depending on the type of headset, altering the way the audio is rendered.
A 7-band equalizer is provided to further control the audio output. There are several presets as well as the ability to create custom settings and save them.
Volume levels can be controlled independently for ringtone and notifications, alarm, voice, music and multimedia, and Bluetooth.
There is an option to configure the buttons of a headset plugged into the phone. You can assign the buttons various functions for volume control as well as music playback.
The loudspeaker is loud and clear as well, in case you don't want to remain shackled to the phone by headphones.
Network Performance
Call quality was found to be excellent. The voice clarity is remarkable and it continues to be so even when the network coverage is weak.
Wi-Fi performance was also found to be superlative to ordinary smartphones. The device remain connected to my home Wi-Fi connection even through several walls. The reason for this is the dual Wi-Fi antenna inside, which is similar to what the Amazon Kindle Fire HD/HDX uses to maintain a high data throughput even when the Wi-Fi signal strength drops due to distance and obstructions.
Gaming Performance and Benchmarks
The Xiaomi Mi 4 is great for gaming. HD games such as GTA San Andreas ran with ease. Probably the only limiting factor to running games with HD graphics is the limited storage capacity of this device, which will not allow you to install too many such games at a time. Mi 4's Immersion vibration technology, which is nothing but haptic feedback, makes gaming all the more fun, leaving you with an experience similar to using a force-feedback joypad, albeit, less forceful.
For those who are interested, here are the scores for the three most intensive and popular benchmarks for Android.
As you might have already noticed, this device is really a beast when it comes to sheer performance.
Battery Life
The 3080 mAh battery lasted for a little over 36 hours without a recharge. This indicates a very efficient battery management under the hood, considering that the device runs power-hungry components such as the quad-core CPU, Adreno 330 GPU, and a 5" Full HD screen.
My Verdict
Cheap iPhone imitation? iPhone wannabe? Say what you may, but if you leave aside the lens of bias, the Xiaomi Mi 4 is a good smartphone option at its price. It looks classy, the build quality is good, and it performs better than what you would expect of a phone in this price range. It falls a little short of the OnePlus One in terms of pure benchmarking performance, but that doesn’t really reflect in its practical usage. There are a few caveats such as the limited storage, coupled with the lack of expandable storage due to the absence of any memory card slot. However, at Rs 20,000, this is still a very good smartphone to go for and I have no qualms recommending it.
Pros: Excellent specs and performance, Crisp and dazzling screen, Classy looks good, Good camera with image stabilisation – records 4K videos, Good battery life, Good pricing.
Cons: Only 16 GB internal storage, No expandable memory option.
Features: 4.5/5
Performance: 4.5/5
Build Quality: 4.5/5
Ease Of Use: 4.5/5
Value For Money: 5/5
Overall: 4.5/5
After taking the Indian mobile market by storm by starting a trend of offering mobile phones with premium features at affordable prices, Xiaomi has offered the Mi 4, which is basically upping the ante from the hugely successful Mi 3. This high-end phone features a Snapdragon quad-core CPU with 3 GB RAM, 5” Full HD IPS screen, and 13 MP camera with up to 4K video recording. Xiaomi has been generous enough to send across a review unit, therefore, a review was in order. Do the high-end specs really translate into a pleasant smartphone experience? Read on.
Accessories
The Mi 4 is priced in the upper mid-range segment, at least from the price point of view. Naturally, the accessories were scant.
- USB Charger (100-240V ~ 50/60 Hz 0.5 A AC to 5 V 2 A, 9 V 1.2 A, 12 V 1 A DC)
- Micro-USB data/charging cable
- SIM card tray eject pin
- Manuals and warranty card
Features
The Xiaomi Mi 4 is priced in the upper mid-range, but the company has managed to incorporate the looks of an expensive phone (or should I say – iPhone?). It comes in a unibody design with the glass covering the entire front area, a metal rim around the thinner surface with chamfered edges, and a slightly bulged white (or black) polycarbonate back. Of course, the cover cannot be opened, so the battery is not removable. The design gives the phone an overall premium look. The phone weighs just 149 grams, which is considerably light. Its dimensions of 139.2 mm x 68.5 mm don't allow one-handed operations. At just 8.9 mm, this is quite slim. The build quality is very good and doesn’t feels flimsy in any part.
The front is dominated by a 5" IPS display with Full HD pixel dimensions of 1920x1080. This gives it a very high pixel density of 441 PPI, which makes images appear extremely crisp. It is interesting to note that the touchscreen has a super-sensitivity setting, which basically means that when it is switched on, it is possible to operate it even with gloves on. Of course, it doesn't matter in India, as this is only of use in cold countries where people need to wear gloves in winter.
There are capacitive buttons at the bottom of the screen. The top has a speaker at the centre, a proximity sensor on its right, and the front camera on its left. A silver MI logo adorns the far right of the phone at the top. The entire front area is protected by Corning Concore Glass.
The SIM tray is present at the right of the phone. This requires a SIM eject pin to be opened. The tray accepts a mini SIM, as against a micro SIM required by most new phones.
A 3.5 mm headphone jack is present, which accepts standard headphones and also handsfree headsets. Two noise cancellation microphones are also present, to filter out unwanted noise while you have a conversation, so that the other party hears only your voice clearly. In practice, I found out that this indeed works very well for mobile phone as well as Skype and Viber calls.
A single loudspeaker is present at the bottom, along with the micro-USB port. I must mention here that the micro-USB socket is rectangular, without any demarcation about how to orient the plug while inserting. This may result in some confusion as some may try to forcefully insert the plug in the wrong direction, causing physical damage to either the port or the plug.
The only other buttons on the unit are the volume and power buttons on the phone’s left.
Camera
The Mi 4 comes equipped with dual cameras. The rear camera with is a 13 mp Sony image sensor and has 6 lens elements with a special filter element to reduce infrared light. Image stabilisation is there to reduce the effects of shaky hands. The camera can also snap HDR photos via a built-in mode, although you need to be able to hold it still while it takes a few shots for a split second and combines them internally to produce the HDR photo. Needless to say, the camera can also record up to 4K HD videos. An LED is present to allow flash photography or videography in the dark.
The front camera has an 8 mp image sensor and is also capable of Full HD recording. This is mainly for use in video calling over 3G or in IM applications such as Skype.
The camera performance is quite good even in low light conditions, and definitely better than other smartphones in the price range. The image stabilisation is available only for the rear camera and it does work as it should. The camera app allows you to assign the camera shutter function to the volume buttons, which gives more control over the shot than it is possible via the touch interface shutter button. Of course, there is still no half-press for focus functionality, so you need to use either auto-focus or touch-to-focus.
Technical Features
The Mi 4 is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 chipset, which includes a 2.5 GHz Krait 400 quad-core CPU. Remember, this is not the same as the inexpensive MediaTek quad-core CPUs found in most Android phones. It is more powerful and is usually found in high-end smartphones. Graphics is handled aptly by the 450 MHz Adreno 330 GPU. Xiaomi has equipped the Mi 4 with a generous 3 GB of LPDDR3 RAM to make sure that everything keeps running smoothly. While there is no expandable storage via microSD, there is sufficient amount of internal storage with 16 GB, of which 12.5 GB is actually available for use. This amount of storage is enough for a regular user, unless you dump too many huge movies and HD games onto the phone.
The device runs Android 4.4.3 (Kitkat) with the company's own MIUI interface. The MIUI interface actually makes it easier to use the phone's features and doesn't seem to take away anything from the stock Android interface. There are various nifty features such as the ability to select a system default font.
Some of the other specs include 3G (HSPA+), Wi-Fi with hotspot, Bluetooth 4.0 with A2DP, GPS (assisted), GLONASS, FM Radio, accelerometer, gyroscope, proximity sensor, compass, barometer, and USB OTG.
Additional Features With Screenshots
Swiping down the notification bar reveals a tab called Toggles. This is where there are eleven of the phone features we are used to toggle. This shortcut is great for convenience and saves time.
The Mi 4 allows you to specify notification light colours for default notifications, calls, and messages. You can choose from amongst seven colours as can be seen in the below screenshot.
While the uncalibrated screen colour is good enough, it is possible to calibrate the colour to some extent and preview the setting before applying it.
To keep your system running in top notch condition, Xiaomi provides a set of tools to optimise the system performance. These utilities also include a virus scanner, power manager, data usage controller, and a facility to manage blocked phone numbers.
In addition to this utility, touching the options button opens up a task manager, allowing you to terminate background tasks, thus conserving and extending battery life.
Multimedia Performance
Like any Android device, the Mi 4 supports just about every audio and video format, as long as the proper player is installed, and they are available aplenty in the Google Play Store. Movie playback is smooth. Being capable of recording 4K videos, it is easily able to play 4K videos without even breaking into a sweat.
The audio performance is not bad, although it will depend mostly on the quality of headphones/earphones you plug in.
Mi 4 comes with Dirac technology, which optimises audio quality according to the type of headphones being used. In fact, there are several presets to choose from, depending on the type of headset, altering the way the audio is rendered.
A 7-band equalizer is provided to further control the audio output. There are several presets as well as the ability to create custom settings and save them.
Volume levels can be controlled independently for ringtone and notifications, alarm, voice, music and multimedia, and Bluetooth.
There is an option to configure the buttons of a headset plugged into the phone. You can assign the buttons various functions for volume control as well as music playback.
The loudspeaker is loud and clear as well, in case you don't want to remain shackled to the phone by headphones.
Network Performance
Call quality was found to be excellent. The voice clarity is remarkable and it continues to be so even when the network coverage is weak.
Wi-Fi performance was also found to be superlative to ordinary smartphones. The device remain connected to my home Wi-Fi connection even through several walls. The reason for this is the dual Wi-Fi antenna inside, which is similar to what the Amazon Kindle Fire HD/HDX uses to maintain a high data throughput even when the Wi-Fi signal strength drops due to distance and obstructions.
Gaming Performance and Benchmarks
The Xiaomi Mi 4 is great for gaming. HD games such as GTA San Andreas ran with ease. Probably the only limiting factor to running games with HD graphics is the limited storage capacity of this device, which will not allow you to install too many such games at a time. Mi 4's Immersion vibration technology, which is nothing but haptic feedback, makes gaming all the more fun, leaving you with an experience similar to using a force-feedback joypad, albeit, less forceful.
For those who are interested, here are the scores for the three most intensive and popular benchmarks for Android.
Antutu
Quadrant
3DMark - Ice Storm Unlimited
PCMark
As you might have already noticed, this device is really a beast when it comes to sheer performance.
Battery Life
The 3080 mAh battery lasted for a little over 36 hours without a recharge. This indicates a very efficient battery management under the hood, considering that the device runs power-hungry components such as the quad-core CPU, Adreno 330 GPU, and a 5" Full HD screen.
My Verdict
Cheap iPhone imitation? iPhone wannabe? Say what you may, but if you leave aside the lens of bias, the Xiaomi Mi 4 is a good smartphone option at its price. It looks classy, the build quality is good, and it performs better than what you would expect of a phone in this price range. It falls a little short of the OnePlus One in terms of pure benchmarking performance, but that doesn’t really reflect in its practical usage. There are a few caveats such as the limited storage, coupled with the lack of expandable storage due to the absence of any memory card slot. However, at Rs 20,000, this is still a very good smartphone to go for and I have no qualms recommending it.
Pros: Excellent specs and performance, Crisp and dazzling screen, Classy looks good, Good camera with image stabilisation – records 4K videos, Good battery life, Good pricing.
Cons: Only 16 GB internal storage, No expandable memory option.
Features: 4.5/5
Performance: 4.5/5
Build Quality: 4.5/5
Ease Of Use: 4.5/5
Value For Money: 5/5
Overall: 4.5/5
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