Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite smartphone - advantages and disadvantages

The Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite smartphone has appeared on the market. It might seem strange that the Siomi company did not release the 7th model, but it so happened that for the sake of the 8th anniversary of the company's formation, the management moved from the 6th model immediately to 8. It also happens, if we do not understand.

To be absolutely precise, the presentation of the device took place back in the summer, but the version with global firmware officially appeared on the market on September 25. We can say that for its birthday the company, which entered the ratings of the best manufacturers, made a budget gift to its fans.

Equipment

The packaging box itself can tell a lot about the solidity of the gadget. But inside, everything is not so simple.

• The Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite smartphone is the first;
• Next is the USB Type-C cable, and its length is about a meter;
• Since there is no headphone output, there is a 3.5 mm adapter, which is already important;
• Standard power supply for fast charging;
• A clip for withdrawing SIM cards;
• Present - soft silicone case for the safety of the device;
• And the last is a set of documents, including a warranty card.

Design and display

Display

The super thin smartphone Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite was released in four colors. Standard black, gold, white and red. The display is still spoiled by the strip under the upper edge, but due to the expanded screen size, this is no longer such a significant detail. But it is in it that all microphones, speakers, sensors and a camera are concentrated.

The body of the device seems to be monolithic in appearance, although this is just a successful design and constructive solution. The gadget is made of high quality functional materials. The screen is covered with excellent Gorilla Glass 5 glass and the back is metal.

The 6.21-inch diagonal can delight any lover of spending time watching videos or indulging in active games. Although the device is not too located for one-handed operation. Still, the dimensions of 156.4 mm in height and 75.8 mm in width do not fit in the palm of your hand, unless the thickness of 7.5 mm and the weight of 169 g softens the first impression.

The back wall houses a fingerprint scanner, camera system and LED flash.

On the bottom there is a speaker and a connector for connecting to external power carriers and playback.

Display

Gorilla Glass 5 glass is not just an excellent protection of the device from falling and other risks, but also an exciting design solution. Although glass has not yet been created that would fully guarantee the consumer protection from prints, scratches and abrasions. It's all about the terms and conditions of operation.

The display, for the possibility of a clear image in any light and at any angle, is equipped with an AMOLED matrix, which allows the user to become closer to reality and, plus everything, save battery power. Nice and useful surprise from the manufacturer.

Full HD resolution of 2248 × 1080 pixels per screen is a very reasonable decision of manufacturers. In this case, the price of the device and its quality are balanced to the limit. Although not only in this case. The computer mind of the processor is responsible for setting up the display, as well as for setting up video cameras.The image is well read not only in artificial lighting, but also at night with insufficient light levels, and in the sun. Moreover, the light level changes automatically, like many other settings.

Main characteristics

Memory

Manufacturers have taken care of three versions of the memory kit, respectively 4 + 64 GB, 6 + 64 GB and 6 + 128 GB each. If you add to this the ability to add a flash drive, you get truly immense spaces of memory, which you still need to try to fill.

CPU

The 8 cores of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 processor are overclocked at 2.2 GHz, providing artificial intelligence connectivity and smooth operation of the gadget. The standard Adreno 512 processor is responsible for the graphics part.

Performance

Judging by the reviews of the lucky ones and the reviews of the professionals, this smartphone surpasses its predecessors in performance, which is not surprising. With this value for money, the potential invested in it allows us to hope for excellent performance of all systems. So far, we can only say that the scanners work pretty fast without crashes and freezes. Games can delight anyone, even the most spoiled gamer. The video quality meets the stated characteristics. Moreover, no outside interference is required to configure the cameras. In this case, the filling is everything. The smart and bright device charmed its fans even before it was published.

Battery

The autonomy of the Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite is dictated by a 3400 mAh battery. Of course, this is not the highest rate. The quick charge included with Quick Charge 3.0 is somewhat outdated, but the Quick Charge 4+ power supply will have to be purchased separately. This already belongs to the category of talks about the price of the product.

Camera

The dual camera system and the dual peephole of the flash system have come into fashion through no fault of Xiaomi, but this gadget is equipped according to its latest "squeak".

The rear cameras are equipped with 12 and 5 pixel modules, plus optical stabilization and autofocus systems. The artificial intelligence built into the “brain” of the Xiaomi Mi 8 cameras controls electronic functions without user intervention. The quality of the images benefits from this, bringing them to a new level of perception.

Color rendition and sharpness are not lost even in incomplete lighting, when moving and when jerking. Auto-capture works instantly, saving any shot.

As for the selfie camera, the 24 pixel module brings the front camera to the level of art. Videos shot by the front camera are not inferior in quality to clips created with the main cameras. Full HD quality and excellent color rendering with instant focusing are fully inherent in the cameras of this device.

Sample photo

operating system

The Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite has Android 8.1 installed. based on MIUI 10. Although the first phones came out with firmware version 9. This is understandable, testing before the global firmware is a sacred thing.

6 GB of RAM contains all the information necessary for work. And with the added 64, 128 and 256 GB in various modifications, memory cards are a thing of the past, like a rudiment.

Safety

The Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite has a decent set of wireless tools, as befits a top-end device.There is Bluetooth 5.0, Wireless Internet, Wi-Fi dual-band, GPS, GLONASS, and NFC for using Google Pay.

Useful features

The clarity of the image at 2248 × 1080 pixels could be considered a serious disadvantage, if not for one circumstance. The very average picture quality allows you to save battery power, which of course can be attributed to the positive qualities of the smartphone.

With the display, of course, not everything is as beautiful as one dreams. But for that kind of money, this is the optimal solution that can satisfy the requests of those who like to use their free time for games and listening to music. For watching videos and keeping track of new Internet products or totally reading fiction. At the same time, without putting the battery charge so much that the device will not reach the nearest outlet.

If Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite doesn’t sound like an orchestra, then like a great jazz band is definitely. The external speaker does not make phonies, does not clog the sound with extraneous noise. In headphones, its sound is completely academic. In addition, there are settings in the menu to improve the sound.

Bluetooth 5, Wi-FI 802.11ac, NFC LTE didn't seem enough for Xiaomi Mi 8 manufacturers, and they introduced another novelty - the GPS signal now receives a signal at the L5 frequency. What can I say, navigation is becoming available to an ever larger segment of users. And the quality of communication is growing steadily.

Now about the pictures and videos. The front camera is able to improve not only complexion or enlarge lips, but also instantly save any picture, while capturing it in a stable state. Rear cameras can serve as guides to another world and make the owner an Instagram star in a short time. Since the gadget is designed specifically for the younger generation, who loves to hang out in the networks and take pictures of everything.

And the quality of the pictures on Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite is such that you can upload it to Instagram without additional processing. However, in general, the process of cameras operation is automated to the limit of Artificial Intelligence and does not require manual settings.

Dual sim system

Two SIM cards of the nano standard work as they should alternately. The connection is decent. No annoying interference and extraneous noise during the conversation is observed. It is expected that the global firmware will allow the use of the services of all available operators. There is also a rare innovation - support for an additional frequency of GPS signal reception - L5, and this is a different level of communication.

The cost

Now about where and how you can buy this device, as well as the pressing question of price. How much is something that, according to technical specifications, should cost at least 30 thousand?

Modification with 4 GB of RAM / 64 GB of memory is claimed for $ 204. Accordingly, a configuration of 6 GB RAM / 64 GB will cost $ 277, and 6 GB RAM / 128 GB at $ 291.

On average, the manufacturer claims $ 257 per device, which in rubles will be about 17 thousand.

Since September 25, this device with global firmware went on sale in the largest Internet markets in the world. In connection with the policy of close cooperation between our countries, it is probably worth waiting for its official presentation on the Russian mobile phone market.

Advantages and disadvantages

• The selfie camera is practically a dream come true;
• With good lighting, the rear camera system is not inferior to the most expensive analogues;
• The fingerprint scanner works fine, no freezes;
• Stabilization allows you to shoot great video;
• Siomi has never produced such a high-quality sound;
• Qualcomm SDM660 Snapdragon 660 processor can be considered the best solution from developers;
• The Always-On display can be considered a clear success for the manufacturer;

• It is better not to take a picture in poor lighting, extraneous noise clogs the image;
• FM radio has sunk into oblivion;
• There is no infrared sensor either;
• The quality of video captured at night suffers;
• You can connect headphones only through an adapter;
• Yes, and the headphones themselves are not included;
• The slot for memory cards, like the flash drives themselves, was considered an unnecessary detail, which is upsetting;
• Moisture protection is also ignored;
• Wireless charging would be great for this gadget;
• Custom settings for photography are also not defined.It remains to rely only on AI;
• The performance is slightly lame, which is also a little upsetting.

conclusions

Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite began its flagship career among popular gadget models with good functionality and high-quality performance. The lack of moisture protection, wireless charging, a flash drive slot and a headphone jack might hurt our reputation, but it doesn't make this phone any less reliable or less desirable.

When choosing a new gadget, one should take into account the advantages of the device of this company, along with natural disadvantages.

Unlocking the device works just as well as the new camera systems.

You don't need anything to create a photo. Except for one button press. Artificial intelligence will do everything that is necessary with insane speed and amazing quality for a person. A tempting selection criterion, isn't it?

The Always-On display allows you to always see the date and time, which is quite convenient.