Xiaomi Mi 4i

Review in pictures

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Good things come in small packages

The Xiaomi Mi 4i boasts a premium look and feel, thanks to its unibody design and soft-touch matte finish at the rearThe 7.8mm thin chassis isn't the slimmest we've seen, but overall, the Mi 4i has to be one of the most compact smartphones with 5-inch displaysThe compact size makes one-handed usage a breezeThe attention to detail is obvious, and shows that a lot of thought has gone into the design

DESIGN

Brings in the sunshine

The 5-inch full HD display is gorgeous Good viewing angles and excellent touch responseGets Corning Concore protectionFeatures Sunlight Display tech that adjusts contrast of each pixel in real time to enhance viewability under harsh lighting, making the screen appear more natural

DISPLAY

Snappers heavy on specs and features

Sports a 13MP primary camera with dual-tone LED flash, and a 5MP front cameraStandard MIUI camera appApp features filters with live previews, and modes such as panorama, HDR, refocus, manual and HHT (handheld twilight)The manual mode allows you to tweak parameters such as ISO and white balanceThere’s an exposure ring available if you tap on the screen, while the flash options include a torch mode that keeps the LEDs on as you shoot

CAMERA

High on dynamic range and other capabilities

Can shoot impressive stills, especially if the ambient light is goodThe close-ups look great too, while the HDR mode does wonders to liven up the image quality as wellShots taken in low light and at night show mixed results though, with apparent softness and noiseThe front shooter comes with the Beautify mode turned on by default, but it can take decent selfies even without it

Low Light

Sunlight

CAMERA

Mi, U and I

Runs MIUI v6, with Android Lollipop as the baseThe platform boasts theme support, and useful features like a security suite, call recording and a private area for SMSesTons of tweaks and customisation optionsAbsolute control over stuff like notifications, data access, permissions, button behaviour, battery profiles etc

USER INTERFACE

It’s a workhorse…

Powered by a 1.7GHz octa-core Snapdragon 615 processor and 2GB of RAMSmooth performance for everyday tasks and navigationTiny hint of lag while playing intensive games, an issue which can be resolved by clearing out background apps and switching to the performance profileGets warm when stressed16GB fixed internal storage with 11GB free. USB OTG support included

PERFORMANCE

…with a battery that refuses to die

Features an ample 3,120mAh batteryDrops to around 35 percent by the end of the day with regular use comprising phone calls, WhatsApp, social media and Wi-FiCan last through the day even with heavy usageLasted 10 hours and 30 minutes in our battery drain test, using the balanced profile

PERFORMANCE

At a glance…5-inch, 1,920 x 1,080 pixel OGS display (441ppi)Octa-core Snapdragon 615 processor, with two quad-core Cortex-A53 clusters clocked at 1.7GHz and 1.1GHz respectively2GB RAM13-megapixel primary camera, 5MP front16GB storage (non-expandable)USB OTG, dual-SIM, 4G, dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.1, A-GPS, GLONASS, Wi-Fi Direct, Wi-Fi Hotspot, Wi-Fi Display, USB 2.0Android Lollipop 5.0.2 with MIUI v63,120mAh batteryFM Radio

Pros and Cons

Compact size, stylish looks and solid buildGorgeous screen with Sunlight Display technologyCapable camerasFeature-loaded MIUI platform with Android LollipopExcellent battery life

Non-expandable storageSlight lag noticeable on balanced mode

Pricing & Verdict

Price: Rs 12,999

“There’s nothing in the same league as the Xiaomi Mi 4i in its price range, especially if you combine parameters such as full HD screen resolution and 4G support. From the gorgeous Sunlight Display-powered screen, solid build, reasonably smooth performance, capable shooters… right up to the excellent battery life, the Mi 4i has it all. It’s the compact handset that offers almost everything a flagship would, for an attractive price. If you can manage with the offered storage, it should at the top of your shortlist”