Affordable mobile phones with high-end specs are normally hard to come by since they would ideally come with an expensive price tag.
Samsung and Apple have the Galaxy S7 and the iPhone 6s Plus to prove that point. Landing either phone places anyone in a certain class especially since the two brands are at the top of the smartphone segment niche.
But what if you had the chance to buy a hard-to-find device from China that can deliver some of the leading specs of both devices at half the price?
Xiaomi has been notorious for just that with their previous flagships such as the Xiaomi Mi 3. But with the dawn of new phones upon us, there is a new player in town in the mold of the Xiaomi Mi 5.
Is the "iPhone Killer within reach?
For those who are unaware, Xiaomi earned the distinction of being the "iPhone Killer" in 2014 when it snagged the title of #1 bestselling smartphone in China. Had Xiaomi made their phones available to a global niche, there is a chance that they could somehow position themselves as well.
Could we see that in the Xiaomi Mi 5?
One thing that Xiaomi has been working on is that it picks the regions where the device would be available.
Aside from China, the device is only available (locally) in India. The easiest route to get one is to order one online from third party groups, depending on how well local folks would trust doing business online.
Familiar specs seen from Samsung and Apple
The Xiaomi Mi 5 comes with pretty impressive specs for a flagship that is hard to find. Like most modern phones these days, the latest Xiaomi flagship banks on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor paired with either a 3 or 4 GB RAM.
It totes a 5.15-inch display (1920×1080 pixels) which is nearly similar to the iPhone 6s Plus which offers it but a bigger screen of 5.5-inches. Digging deeper however, the Xiaomi Mi 5 offers a better pixel density of 428 ppi compared to the iPhone 6s Plus 401 ppi.
The Xiaomi Mi 5 is also the lightest of the lot, weighing just 4.25 oz. or 129 g compared to the heavier Galaxy S7 and iPhone 6s Plus. It also offers a decent 16 MP main camera that drapes the lower ones offered of the two leading brands.
Other worthy features of the Xiaomi Mi 5 include a 3000 mAh non-removable battery, USB-C connector, dual-SIM, a fingerprint sensor and fast charging technology. The phone takes advantage of Qualcomm's Quick Charge 3.0 technology which means that the phone can charge up from 0 to 90% in just an hour.
Not Completely Perfect for the Wise Spender
With most of the specs impressive and tempting, there are some disappointments with the Xiaomi Mi 5. That includes no provisions for expandable storage (no microSD) which means folks will be limited to either 32, 64 or 128 GB internal storages and a lower front-facing 4 MP camera compared to the Galaxy S7 and iPhone 6s Plus which both have 5.
Also, the fact that the device has a non-removable battery. There are some who prefer removable batteries for cheaper remedies they can do by themselves in case they conk out.
With the setup, potential owners will have to find the nearest authorized service center to fix it in the event it does encounter problems.
But the mother of all disappointments is the fact that this device is pretty hard to come by. Aside from the online purchasing option mentioned earlier, people who may want to get one can ask someone bound for China or India to get one for them. But this is with the understanding that there are available stocks in both regions once their colleague/s lands on China or Indian soil.
As a whole, the Xiaomi Mi 5 should be a perfect alternative for the folks looking to get their money's worth and are not too particular about brand awareness. But the real problem is getting hold of one though the black market could probably come up with one or two of these on their shelves.
Latest posts by Brian Joseph Yalung (see all)Related
Source: Xiaomi Mi 5 review: A smartphone that speak for itself
No comments:
Post a Comment