I have been using the Xiaomi Mi 9 as my daily driver for little over 3weeks now and here are few things I liked and did not like about it. The variant that I have is with 128GB of storage and 6GB of RAM. It is available in 3 colors. Lavender Violet, Ocean Blue, Piano Black
1. Camera
Oh my god, the camera on this device is impressive. For the first, after a long time, I have used an android phone as my primary camera phone. The shots I get with this are clear and that 48MP lens is not just for hype. Zooming in on a shot clicked with 48 MP camera are clear and without any distortion. Few samples in the gallery. That all comes with a drawback that there are few features you cannot use with a 48MP lens like AI and HDR. That drawback is not really a drawback when you take the file size in the picture. Each photo is 15-20 MB in size. Just open Lightroom on the side and start editing the photo to your liking. Again, all the above text is in context to the 48MP lens. Let’s take a closer look at the other modes.
Short video Mode
As the name says, this mode is to take short videos, to be precise 15-sec videos to share on social media stories. This can we great if you do not want to use let’s say Instagram app to take videos keeping in mind the videos done extend more than 15-secs for a perfect fit. Yeah, I can see some use of this mode.
Slow Motion Mode
Umm, taking slow-motion videos is always a fun and cool thing to do with your smartphone. Hell, I have made videos using an iPhone in only slow motion mode. My suggestion when making Slo-Mo videos, do not go beyond 120 FPS. This will give to clear Full HD footage and significant slow motion effect. Anywhere lower than 120 FPS, the video would come out grainy and dull after some point.
Video Mode
Definitely one of the best video cameras phones out there, the video stabilization works perfectly with tracking moving objects option turned on. So how “Track Moving Object” works? The easiest way to explain this by just quoting what it says on the screen once tapped on. “Tap an object to keep it in focus while it’s moving. Stay at least 3 meters away for best effect.” Got it? Good. Sample of this mode in action in the gallery.
Photo Mode
The mode with most features, PHOTO. For those spectacular single shots with a plethora of option.
- HDR
- AI
- Filters
- Wide Angle shot
- 2X shot
- Beauty Mode (never use this)
- Flash.
The UI is simple and clear to understand. There is 1X in the middle below the Grid. Wondering what it does when tapped? Of course, it switches to the telephoto lens with a 2X optical zoom. The AI button on the top can be tapped ON, and the camera will recognize the scene and adjust the settings accordingly. Ultra Wide Angle is quite amazing. To get this feature on an iPhone, I had bought a new accessory lens to place on top of the phone which is uncomfortable to operate and assembling it is a hassle. Why I just didn’t get an Android with an ultra wide angle.
Switching on the HDR mode exposes to new colors and let you see what’s happening in the shadows. Filters are not that great so I do not use them, but I can see how they can be put to good use by someone who is not into editing their photos a lot. Check the shots in the gallery with each setting to know what imma saying, BRO.
Portrait Mode
Portrait mode is as good as any would get. There are still a couple of things I noticed which I have not seen other portrait modes. First is Full Body Mode, that is a nice feature to add by Xiaomi. To keep the full body in focus and blur the background. The second is to not only change the studio lighting but move the blurred light behind you. Pretty cool. Check out the Gallery shots to see for yourself.
Night Mode
Maybe my favorite mode after 48MP mode. I do not know how they do it. The lens needs a hint of light in its viewfinder, and that would be enough to brighten the whole scene. MAGIC. Pure magic if you ask me. I sometimes use this mode even in the daytime to get beautiful vivid contrasty photos. Hold the phone steady for a few seconds and Boom! Perfect Shot. Night Mode work for 1X and 2X zoom. Check out the Gallery for better understanding.
Panorama Mode
I was never a Panorama mode fan. I kinda rely on google photos to do that for me. On the iPhone, I used to use to take wide angle shots. I took a few shots to showcase the feature. Check them out in the gallery.
Pro Mode
If you into photography and do not want to rely on phone’s computation photography, then you can use the Pro Mode. This is a great feature to design and create your scene as you want it. But keep in mind that computational is definitely the future of photography. That’s why software in Camera phones are getting better exponentially than your point and shoot camera.
Selfie Camera
The 20MP selfie camera works just fine to say the best.
2. Design
Some say Black is a dull color when they have such other amazing colors. But I like my Piano Black Xiaomi Mi 9. It is sleek, clean and so shiny. People think all phones nowadays have the same design, but you will know which one is your phone. That is because you study your phone to appreciate its curves and design features. The back is made of Gorilla Glass 5 with aluminum frame (7000 series). The device weighs modestly at 173 grams.
The Back
The look of the back is my favorite thing about the design of the phone. It looks clean with minimum branding. The way three lenses are aligned can be missed at first glance, but when you look closely at the phones start to curve towards the edge of the body, the camera frame doesn’t keep them flat. I believe this helps in the minimum rocking of the phone on a flat surface. Below the Camera lens frame, you can find the LED Flash.
The Bottom
Symmetric mic and speaker grill with USB C charging port in the middle, the usual. There are two antenna bands which don’t look too bad.
The Left Side
When taking a look to the left, to the left, you can see dedicated Google Assistant button. A small inclusion but it makes a big difference. Why don’t all manufacturers start doing that? Other than that there is a Dual sim car tray with one antenna line on top of that.
The Right Side
Power on/off button and the volume rocker. They are clicky and responsive. The placement is in the right position and navigating through them is quite easy.
The Top
An IR blaster on the top along with an additional mic.
The Front
The front has a notch at the top and a 20mp selfie camera.
3. Display
Its a Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen display with a size of 6.39 inches and has a screen-to-body ratio of 85.2%. The resolution you get on the display is 1080 x 2340 pixels with ~403 PPI density. It is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 6. The display supports DCI-P3 and HDR10. Though it is a Full HD screen, the screen can be compared to best in the industry right now. The colors are vivid and do not look too saturated. The first I check during my review is to see if there is any color bleeding towards the edge of the screen. It is not a scientific test, but Xiaomi Mi9 passed with flying colors.
4. Xiaomi MIUI
The MIUI skin on top of Android 9 Pie is clean and quick. I usually install Nova launcher from the first day, and I did the same with this Mi9 as well. But surprising after using MIUI, I stuck with it. The Dual apps feature which is now coming on more and more Android phones is essential for me now. Don’t know how I will be able to move back to iOS. You can choose whether you want to use buttons or have full-screen gestures. I wish there were more flexibility to change how apps show on the OS. Rather have all of them on the home screen. It would have been nice to get the option to have an app drawer.
5. Performance
The first thing that strikes you using Mi 9 is how silky it is . the apps open and then respond well. There are no slowdowns or hiccups when using the phone. Everything scrolls smoothly and quick without any problem. Handles everything like a champ. Don’t wonder, don’t hesitate, and don’t think I’m exaggerating — the Xiaomi Mi 9 is a fabulous, high-performance monster of a smartphone.
6. Speakers
I wish it had dual speaker rather than just one tiny one at the bottom which can be easily blocked with your palm or finger. It’s not loud lacking bass on all levels. The earpiece speaker is tiny and doesn’t work as media speaker which is a shame.
7. Battery
It has a 3300 non-removable mAh battery. It got fast charging giving 27W output. Fast Wireless charging works at 20W. In my review, I was comfortably able to get a full day of usage with mild media consumption and around 3 hours of talk time.
Verdict
The Xiaomi Mi 9 is an excellent phone for anyone who wants a great camera phone along with Snapdragon 855 chipset. Actually, Mi9 was one of the first devices to come out with the latest Qualcomm chip.
