The mid-range smartphone onslaught continues in 2021! Xiaomi has entered the arena with the Mi 10i to take on the Nord, V20 Pro, and the Galaxy M51. Xiaomi says the i in the name Mi 10i, indicates India and that this is a special variant for the country with a 108MP camera. Yes, if you …
The mid-range smartphone onslaught continues in 2021! Xiaomi has entered the arena with the Mi 10i to take on the Nord, V20 Pro, and the Galaxy M51. Xiaomi says the i in the name Mi 10i, indicates India and that this is a special variant for the country with a 108MP camera. Yes, if you compare it to the global Mi 10 Lite with a 64MP camera, the 108MP camera is the added upgrade. But, truth be told, this is essentially a repurposed Redmi Note 9 Pro 5G that launched in China recently. The specs are exactly the same. But, let’s not try to dissect Xiaomi’s nomenclatures for different regions because one needs a special PHD to understand the permutation and combination. What we need to find out is if the Mi 10i is the new best mid-range smartphone for Indian consumers. Let’s get down to my review. P.S. our reviews scoring system has changed in 2021. Therefore, you will see lower scores than usual. Thanks. We got sent the absolutely fresh Pacific Sunrise colour that is a gorgeous gradient of pastel shades. This colour, in and of itself, could be a selling point for many folks. My wife, who is generally critical of gradient finishes on phones, actually liked this one. There are a couple of other sombre Blue and Black variants, if you prefer understated elegance instead. Now, on the rear you will find the raised circular ring, inside which is a rectangular camera module, which is also raised. This is very similar in design to the Poco X3. It looks alright, if you ask me. I am more enamoured by the gradient finish that feels like a breath of fresh air. Anyway, the rear and the front are both protected by Corning’s Gorilla Glass 5, which is fantastic. And, the frame is made of plastic. The phone weighs 214.5gm and is 9mm thick. I am not a fan of phones that weigh above 200gms to be honest, but the weight distribution on the Mi 10i is excellent. I found it easy to hold and use despite being fairly big. It is definitely more handy compared to the Poco X3 for sure. As for ports, buttons, and other hardware add-ons, Xiaomi leaves no stone unturned. You get everything you can ask for. The power button on the right edge doubles up as the physical fingerprint scanner. It can unlock your phone really fast. Above it is the volume rocker, which offers great tactile feedback. On the left, you get a hybrid slot with support for two nano-SIMs, or one SIM and one microSD card at a time. On the top, there is a mic and an Infrared port. At the bottom, you get the Type-C port, a headphone port, and a speaker grille that doubles up with the earpiece to work in a stereo setup. My only concern is the ports are not symmetrically aligned at the bottom and that is such an eyesore. Oh by the way, you also get a tiny white notification LED right next to the earpiece. All in all, the phone not only looks good but is also extremely functional. Excellent job, Xiaomi. Yes, the Mi 10i comes with a big 6.67-inch IPS LCD panel and that could be a let down for many folks. But, Xiaomii adds a 120Hz high refresh rate option with Adaptive Sync setting to soften the blow. Anyway, Adaptive Sync is essentially a smart variable refresh rate technology that uses a smart algorithm to identify the type of content to switch the fps on the fly. However, what I found odd is that it is slightly weird in its implementation. While scrolling through Twitter or Facebook feed, the display switches to 60fps setting, instead of scrolling at 120fps.
