Okay guys, buckle up. Let’s talk Xiaomi 14, and let me just say – this little thing has been an absolute joy to use in just the 48 hours I was able to give it a spin. It’s one of the few truly small phones left – like, actually fits in your pocket small – and it doesn’t compromise on performance to get there. If you’re tired of giant phones that feel like bricks, listen up.

Hands-On Impressions

First things first: this thing is cute. The 6.36-inch display is surrounded by minimal bezels – it’s about as much screen as you can get on a small phone. Weight-wise, it feels reassuringly solid, but not in a chunky way. Love that they included a screen protector out of the box too. Bonus points for IP68 water and dust resistance – I’m clumsy, so that matters to me.

The back is where things get… interesting. Mine’s this “jar green” color, and the glass is super reflective. It’s a fingerprint magnet, but hey, it makes for a handy pocket mirror if you’re into that. You can get it in black or white too, which are probably less smudgy.

Software: Familiar, but Fresh

Inside, the Xiaomi 14 runs Android 14 with Xiaomi’s new Hyper OS on top. If you’ve used MIUI before, the layout will feel instantly familiar, but it’s smoother and a bit less cluttered this time around. Of course, you still get all the classic Xiaomi features like the control center and dedicated gaming mode. I’m actually really impressed with how well-optimized this software is, especially since I’m testing a pre-launch version.

Xiaomi also gets extra points for promising several years of software updates and security patches.

That Display Though

Speaking of things I love, this display is gorgeous. It’s been upgraded to a 1.5K resolution, which means everything looks super sharp. It’s got full support for HDR too, so Netflix binges are extra vibrant. Even in direct sunlight, it was bright enough to see clearly, and you can dim it to eye-friendly levels at night. Refresh rate-wise, it’s LTPO, meaning it can go from 1hz for low power all the way up to 120hz for buttery smoothness depending on what you’re doing. The stereo speakers surprised me too! Good, crisp audio, even at high volumes.

Performance and Power

As expected, the Xiaomi 14 runs on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, making it faster than its smaller rival, the Samsung Galaxy S24. You get a healthy 12GB of RAM too. Day-to-day stuff feels snappy, no surprise there really. Even on the highest settings, I didn’t see any frame drops, and the phone didn’t become a mini-heater in my hands. Gaming mode is super handy too, letting you boost performance and block distractions in a few taps. Basically, it’s got power to spare, even in a little package.

Battery: The Overachiever

One of the best parts about the Xiaomi 14 is its battery. They’ve managed to squeeze in a slightly bigger battery than last year’s phone, and now it charges faster too. I consistently ended the day with 30% left, even after tons of screen time. If you really push it, you can stretch to two days, but gamers or video chat addicts will likely top it up daily.

That’s where things get really impressive: it has 90W wired charging, getting you back to full in about half an hour. And on top of that? 50W wireless. No more panicking about low battery when you’re out and about.

Camera Time!

The cameras on this thing got a big upgrade too. The main shooter is now 50MP, with all sorts of fancy tech to let in more light. My night photos were seriously good – detailed, without crazy oversharpening, and colors were accurate. You still get the dedicated Leica portrait modes too, for those artsy blurred backgrounds.

The telephoto lens is awesome too. It comes from last year’s Xiaomi 13 Pro, and while the zoom isn’t as extreme, it’s plenty for most situations and excellent at night. And the ultrawide? I have no complaints, it’s one of the better ones out there. Xiaomi always gives you a million camera modes to play with, but I like how easy it is to use for quick snaps too.

Video-wise, you can do up to 8K if you disable HDR, but I found the 4K/30fps HDR setup perfect for most things I shot. The footage is stable, detailed, and the quad-mic array does a great job with audio.

And selfies? Yeah, they’re fine. Not my thing, but the 32MP front camera does a good job of capturing every wrinkle on my face, even in low light.

The Verdict: Should You Buy It?

Honestly? It’s small, but mighty: great performance, super battery, and cameras that actually impress. Sure, the design can get smudgy, but if you want a small phone that doesn’t feel compromised.