The Xiaomi Mi A1, due to the combination of Xiaomi’s build quality with direct support from Google, has proved to be a great sales success and promises to win many users who want a good smartphone without having to abuse the investment.
After we have already analyzed the brother with MIUI interface, the Xiaomi Mi 5X, today we bring all the details of the android one of the moment.
Launched in September, one month after the Mi 5X was launched, the Mi A1 was the result of Xiaomi’s partnership with Google, and it’s about bringing a “pure” Google smartphone that is accessible to most of the portfolios, with the Xiaomi brand in its construction.
There are nine models that currently compose Google’s showcase android one, but the Mi A1 is clearly what is jumping more borders and conquering those who have good taste.
General features
The Mi A1 has a 5.5-inch IPS LTPS screen with a resolution of 1080 x 1920 pixels (FullHD), which results in a very comfortable pixel density of 403ppp. It is dual-SIM LTE, fully compatible with the LTE bands in use in Portugal, but for anyone who is handling a microSD memory card, then you will have to give up a SIM card … but first, you will need to fill up the 64 GB of internal storage!
SoC is from Qualcomm, the Snapdragon 625, and has 4 GB of RAM. Android is in version 7.1.2, in its purest form. It has Wi-Fi 2.4 / 5 GHz and supports the 802.11 ac standard, which is interesting in this price range. Bluetooth is version 4.2.
As for cameras, it has a dual rear camera of 12 MP (f / 2.2, 26mm + f / 2.6, 50mm) to simulate the blurred background effect, has two-tone LED flash and the front camera is 5MP. The battery is 3080 mAh … seems little? We’ll talk about this further down.
Key Featutres Of Xiaomi Mi A1
Screen
- LTPS IPS LCD 5.5 “(1920 x 1080 pixels), density ~ 403 ppi
Processor
- Snapdragon 625, Octa-core CPU (8 × 2.0 GHz Cortex-A53)
Adreno 506
Network
- GSM / HSPA / LTE
Operating system
- Android 7.1.2 (Nougat) with Google interface (android one)
Memory
- 64 GB storage and 4 GB RAM
Office Supplies
- Main (Rear) – Dual 12 MP – 26mm, f / 2.2 + 50mm, f / 2.6; Dual flash
Secondary LED (Front) – 5 MP
Dimension and weight
- 4 x 75.8 x 7.3 mm, 165 g
Sound
- 5 mm jack
Connectivity
- Wi-Fi 802.11 a / b / g / n / ac
- GPS with A-GPS, GLONASS, and BDS
- Bluetooth 4.2
- USB Type-C
- FM radio (not yet officially available)
Others
- Sensors – fingerprints, accelerometer, gyroscope, proximity, compass,
infrared LED barometer for universal remote control
Battery
- Li-Ion 3080 mAh non-removable
Price
- Xiaomi Mi A1 64 GB – about 193 €
In the box
- 1 Smartphone
- one 2A power adapter (European plug)
- 1 USB cable / USB-C
- one quick instruction manual
- one card slot removal clip
Hardware and Design
Regarding design is a smartphone with an impeccable construction, at the level of the top smartphones. It has a structure entirely of aluminum, the glass is rounded in the corners and has a small plastic bead separating the glass from the aluminum structure to protect the glass itself. The sides have a slight rounding round, providing a very comfortable use.
Above the screen is the notification LED (white), the proximity and brightness sensors, the 5MP camera and the speakerphone. Beneath the screen, there are only the usual tactile buttons for accessing recent applications, home, and back, with soft white lighting.
On the sides, on the left side, the mark placed the card slot; below, the 3.5 mm audio jack, microphone, USB-C port and the main speaker; on the right are the volume and power buttons; and above, the infrared LED and the auxiliary microphone.
At the rear is the dual camera at the top, the fingerprint sensor at the center and below the brand logo is the reference to the android one.
Interface and Performance
Android is in version 7.1.2 in its purest form (October security update at the time of publication of the review), which is already an advantage for users looking for a simpler and more user-friendly experience. There is still certainty that you will receive updates for at least two years. Exchanging this as a kid, you should get two major updates for Android 8.0 and 9.0, and then a few months of security updates.
Comes with the usual Google applications and, as you’d expect, brings integrated Google Now with all the smart information and suggestions from Google. With a sliding screen up, from below, all applications appear in the drawer.
Regarding performance, the Mi A1 is a very stable and quite fast smartphone capable of dealing decently with all tasks. The SoC Snapdragon 625, considering that it is mid-range, is known for having a good performance coupled with autonomy and proves to be very interesting for the day-to-day.
No noticeable application switching delays and the 4 GB of RAM allows you to have a very generous amount of applications open in the background, which never leads to waiting times for opening applications that are used more often. In the matter of games, here too he is able to run all titles without revealing lack of competence.
The benchmark results are revealing of its performance:
BENCHMARK RESULTS
- AnTuTu v.6.2.7
- 61028 points
- Geekbench 4
- Single-Core – 872 points
- Multi-Core – 4241 points
As for the screen, it is noted that it is not from a top range, where the colors are not very vivid, and the tone is a bit cold (bluish white). On Mi 5X, which has an equal screen, the MIUI allows correcting the color temperature which led me to adjust according to my preference. With pure Android, this is not possible. Moreover, it has excellent viewing angles and excellent definition.
Office Supplies
As for the cameras, it comes equipped with a double rear camera, both of 12 MP with OmniVision sensors, the main one being 26mm f / 2.2 aperture and the 50mm f / 2.6 aperture, referred to as a telephoto camera. This telephoto camera is useful not only for capturing objects with 2x zoom but also for simulating the blurred background effect in portrait shots. Unfortunately, it has no optical image stabilizer, as it does in the Mi 6. The front camera is 5 MP and records video in FullHD.
Regarding camera features, compared to Xiaomi devices, there is nothing new. It has the usual features like HDR, panorama mode, group photo mode, manual mode (with white balance, focus, exposure time, ISO and Lens), portrait mode, beauty mode for the front camera, among others.
As for the quality of the photos, it is framed with what exists in this segment. In photos with blurred background effect, it works fine but needs optimum conditions, to crop the picture in the right place. If other plans are coming, then the background will be out of focus in the wrong way. In photos in low light conditions, the quality is low.
Below are some examples.
Autonomy
The battery is 3080 mAh. Although Xiaomi already has several smartphones that bring a battery with more than 4000 mAh, it has chosen to put a battery of less capacity in the Mi A1. Let’s say that this can be considered a negative point since we know that we know the portfolio of the brand. However, the autonomy is framed with what is common in this range, quickly reaching the two days of moderate use without the need to recharge.
As for the speed of charging, it does not have fast charging but still can be quicker than some other phones. Specifically, up to 90% capacity, charges approximately 1% per minute. The chart below represents a complete charge.
Regarding autonomy, once again we resort to testing the consumption of PC Mark, and the Mi A1 takes about 10 hours to consume 80 to 20% battery.
Verdict
The Xiaomi Mi A1 is, in fact, the android one of the moment and there is no doubt that it will continue to be a great sales success, mainly for being suitable to our market, since it brings European charger.
It turned out to be a smartphone very well achieved, for any task, with the advantage of having an affordable price given an extended support by Google.
Apart from the most unfavorable aspects of the smartphone, such as the color on the screen, the camera in low light situations and the power of the SoC Snapdragon 625, everything else puts this smartphone at the top and challenges the biggest in the segment.
The battery can last two days without charging, in moderate use, and is framed with what is currently expected on a smartphone.
In the cameras, the portrait mode, with blurred background effect, is at the level of the best of the segment and achieves excellent results if we give it a facilitated situation. It is not perfect, neither is it, but it is worthy of being shown and praised. In photos in low light conditions, quality is penalized.
If you are looking for a good smartphone and do not want to invest as much as in the top of the range, the Mi A1 may be the right choice. If you prefer the MIUI interface, then Mi 5X will be the right alternative to Mi A1.
The Xiaomi Mi A1 is available for € 184 or $219.99.
PROS
- Google Direct Support
- Quality of construction
- Performance in general
- Portrait mode rendering (blurred background effect)
CONS
- Photos in low light situations
- Hybrid Card Slot
What is The Current Xiaomi Mi A1 Price and Availability Status?
You can click on the links below to view latest Xiaomi Mi A1 price & availability.
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