Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S review - a worthwhile upgrade?

Foreword: Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S

Xiaomi has ushered in round 3 of its tri-bezel-less smartphone model series. The Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S cleverly combines the advantages of the two previous models ( Xiaomi Mi Mix  and  Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 ) and can come up with significant hardware upgrades.

Design, workmanship and delivery

The almost rimless design is decisive for every Xiaomi Mix smartphone. At times there was talk of the smartphone appearing with a “notch”. Still other leaks turned the smartphone into a completely borderless mobile device with a small front camera recess.

Ultimately, Xiaomi remains true to the previous design line and publishes the Mix 2S in the design of its predecessor. In addition to the tri-bezel-less design, the aluminum frame and the high-quality ceramic back are also retained. In the meantime, the tri-bezel-less design type is no longer all that spectacular, but this time Xiaomi was able to claim many design awards (iF Design / IDEA Gold Award) for itself.

 The smartphone is set up as follows: 

As befits a tri-bezel-less smartphone, most of the front is taken up by the 5.99-inch display. Despite the comparatively large display, the smartphone with dimensions of 150.86 x 74.9 x 8.1 mm and a weight of 189g is hardly larger than a conventional 5.5 inch handheld.

The distance between the display and the side edges of the housing (bezel) is just 2 mm. The upper distance is slightly larger. There the narrow listener can be found in the middle. The front camera is located on the right below the display. The distance to the edge of the housing measured there is 9 mm. Also housed in the lower section is a white LED that informs about incoming calls or notifications.

The housing frame is made of metal. Only the special edition of the smartphone uses an all-ceramic housing. The dual SIM card slot is on the left. The power button and the volume rocker are located on the opposite side. The top of the frame includes a microphone. The underside of the frame is also equipped with a microphone, a loudspeaker and a central USB-C socket. There is no 3.5 mm audio jack. 

The high-quality ceramic back is not only scratch-resistant, it also looks good. Compared to the previous models, the grip has improved. Surprisingly, the smartphone is much less slippery in the hand. However, the susceptibility to fingerprints has remained. The structure on the back hardly differs from the previously tested one  Xiaomi Note 5 Redmire . The smartphone is equipped with a vertically arranged main camera, which is located on the top left of the back of the housing. In the middle, in the upper third of the back, there is also a circular fingerprint scanner.

The processing quality of the smartphone is nothing to complain about. The individual elements are neatly put together without any gaps. The control buttons on the side sit firmly in the case and have a good pressure point.

However, the quality of workmanship of the protective shell supplied is objectionable. After taking the smartphone out of the shell twice, cracks appeared on the edges of the shell! The scope of delivery includes the smartphone, a plastic protective case, a charger (5V 2.5A), a USB-C cable, a USB-C to 3.5 mm jack adapter, a SIM needle and a user manual.

Display

The 5.99 inch display (Japan Display Inc.) has a resolution of 2160 x 1080 pixels and thus has an aspect ratio of 18: 9. One advantage of this format is its handiness. Despite the large 5.99 inch display, the overall size of the smartphone is narrower than comparable 16: 9 devices and can therefore still be operated from left to right with one hand without any problems. The information on the display diagonal, the resolution and the dimensions results in a screen-to-body ratio of 81.95%. A dot density of 403 DPI ensures a razor-sharp display.

Further display features are a contrast ratio of 1500: 1 (manufacturer information) and support for the DCI-P3 color space. A particularly interesting display feature is the output of Mobile HDR (HDR10), which further enhances the display with corresponding HDR content.

display measurement

Display measurements showed a maximum luminance of around 438 cd / m² and a black value of around 0.47 cd / m². This results in a contrast ratio of 932: 1. This value is acceptable for an IPS panel, but in no way comparable with an AMOLED panel of other high-end smartphones.

Compared with last year  Xiaomi Mi Mix 2  Above all, the color fastness has improved. Measured with standard settings, the average color difference is a Delta E of 2.3. The Xiaomi Mi Mix 3S largely complies with both the DCI-P2 and the sRGB color space in the standard color mode. The illumination of the panel is even.

Display in everyday life

In everyday life, the display impresses with its pleasantly rich color representation. The good viewing angle stability is also convincing. Even from very flat viewing angles, no serious color or brightness deviations can be detected. The legibility in high ambient light, especially outdoors, is good.

Display settings and functions

The display can be comprehensively adjusted within the settings. The color temperature can be selected in the preset modes "Warm", "Standard" and "Cool". Stepless color adjustment is possible. Both the brightness and the contrast can be automatically adapted to the ambient brightness. The ambient light sensor works quickly and precisely. There is also a reading and night mode that filters blue light in a time-controlled manner. With “Tap-to-Wake”, the switched-off screen can be activated by tapping twice.

Touchscreen

The touchscreen turned out to be very precise in the test. Multi-touch is supported with up to 10 simultaneous inputs. There is no input delay. To protect the display, the Mi Mix 2S uses a hardened protective glass from an unspecified manufacturer. After 6 weeks of everyday use, there were no scratches on the display glass. The gliding ability is good, without the display being impaired too much by conspicuous fingerprints and streaks.

Performance

Processor and memory

You don't have to worry about performance issues. In addition to the Samsung Galaxy S2 (International), the Xiaomi Mi Mix 9S is one of the first smartphones to be equipped with the current high-end SoC "Qualcomm Snapdragon 845". The system-on-chip is made up of a total of 8 Kryo 385 processor cores that clock at up to 2.8 GHz.

Compared to last year's SoC, the Snapdragon 835, the new Snapdragon 845 works up to 25% faster. Despite the increased performance, Qualcomm has further optimized the energy efficiency. The SoC's processor graphics are also new. The Adreno 630 GPU promises enough performance to play current mobile and AR games smoothly.

The memory equipment is also impressive. The "standard model" offers a 6GB LPDDR4X main memory and an optional 64GB or 128GB UFS2.1 flash memory. The “premium model” is again equipped with an 8GB LPDDR4X main memory and a full 256GB UFS2.1 flash memory. A memory expansion using a microSD memory card is not provided. 

Benchmark

The Xiaomi handheld scores very well in the benchmark tests. Top scores are achieved in CPU, GPU and memory tests. However, it is noticeable that thermal throttling occurs relatively quickly. After just 5 minutes under full load, the performance is greatly reduced. However, this circumstance is not noticeable in everyday life.

Performance in everyday life

Referring to the everyday performance, the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S leaves nothing to be desired. The MIUI user interface can be operated smoothly throughout. Animations are displayed smoothly and fast scrolling movements are done without a trailer.

The transition between apps is fluent. The large and fast 6GB memory instantly loads already opened apps from the clipboard. Even after countless open apps, the smartphone does not noticeably slow down.

Gaming

The smartphone also cuts a very good figure when it comes to gaming. Current mobile games, such as PUBG, can be played even on high settings without image breakdowns. Textures are loaded without delay. In contrast to the benchmark test, thermal throttling is not noticeable. The heat development is a mild 30 ° C after 39 minutes of gaming.

user interface

The smartphone is delivered with the in-house MIUI 9.5 user interface, which is based on Android 8.0. MIUI is a “total conversion” that differs from stock Android both visually and functionally. MIUI 10 Global Stable with Android 9 Pie basis is now also available for the Mi Mix 2S. Above all, AI improvements that improve interaction with the user are new. The update will be distributed OTA.

To name a few examples, MIUI does without an app drawer, so that all apps are stored directly on the home screen. Useful functions are the split-screen mode, with which two apps in the foreground can be operated simultaneously. The second space function makes it possible to create several user profiles so that the smartphone can be used as a private as well as a business mobile device.

MIUI's setting options are extensive. Due to the extensive range of functions, you are hardly dependent on additional, system-expanding apps. In the MIUI security center, apps can be monitored in detail and their authorizations adjusted individually. Various Google apps, including the Google Play Store, as well as Microsoft Office applications are already preinstalled in the global version of MIUI. Updates are distributed regularly OTA (Over The Air). 

Camera

The smartphone is equipped with a dual main camera, the sensors of which are divided into a 12 megapixel Sony IMX363 sensor with wide-angle lens, f / 1.8 aperture and optical image stabilization, as well as a 12 megapixel Samsung S5K3M3 sensor with telephoto or portrait lens and f / 2.4 aperture. The front camera has a resolution of 5 megapixels. The sensor used is an Omnivision OV5675 CMOS.

Practical test of the main camera

Photo mode

In terms of recording quality, the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S delivers a head-to-head race with other flagship smartphones.

 Colors, details and noise 

Image recordings appear extremely vivid. The color rendering is rich, but without losing any of its naturalness. Image errors in the form of chromatic aberration can occur, but are rather rare. The color fidelity is maintained even under poor lighting conditions, even if the color saturation decreases.

 More full-resolution test shots can be found at this one Link 

Image recordings taken under good lighting conditions shine with a high level of detail reproduction. The image is evenly sharp from the center of the image to the edges. The smartphone has image noise very well under control in both good and bad lighting conditions. Surprisingly low-noise images are created, especially under poor lighting conditions. What is noticeable, however, is a certain loss of sharpness and detail with increasingly weaker ambient light.

 dynamic Range 

An automatic HDR mode also helps to capture high-contrast scenes. The dynamic range is good, even if it doesn't quite match that of other flagship smartphones. Loss of detail can occur in bright areas of the image.

 Zoom 

The telephoto or portrait lens of the second image sensor enables a loss-free 2x zoom. Image recordings recorded in the 2x zoom are high-resolution and convince with a pleasantly high level of detail. If you zoom in beyond that, there is a smooth change to digital zoom. The recording quality decreases accordingly.

 Autofocus, shutter speed and LED flash 

The dual-phase detection autofocus focuses precisely and extremely quickly. The trigger time is extremely short and is not delayed too much even under poor lighting conditions. With the LED flash switched on, evenly illuminated, color-accurate and at the same time low-noise images can be taken.

 AI and bokeh 

A newly introduced feature is the support by Artificial Intelligence (AI). This enables, among other things, a dynamic bokeh effect, image improvement through scene recognition, as well as the automatic recognition and translation of business cards, currencies and other texts. In the test, the AI ​​mode turned out to be less helpful. Although the AI ​​has a high recognition rate for objects and scenes, the image improvement is limited. Only colors appear stronger overall due to the activated AI and the contrast is slightly increased. Unfortunately, this also affects the naturalness of the recordings.

Another feature of the main camera is the so-called "bokeh mode". This is a photographic sharpness effect that brings people and objects to the fore. The background should be blurred out of focus. The implementation was only partially successful. People and objects are for the most part extracted cleanly, but the smallest movements can quickly lead to extraction errors. The transition between superficial sharpness and a blurred background is pleasantly soft.

video mode

The main camera records videos with maximum 4K resolution at 30 frames per second. Unfortunately, Xiaomi has again decided to limit the full HD video recording function to 30 frames per second. Slow motion recordings are again possible in full HD with up to 240 frames per second!

The video recording quality is good overall. The image stabilization quickly reaches its limits and is inferior to other smartphones in a similar price range. The same applies to the sound recording quality. The sound is recorded at a high bit rate, but it sounds unnatural and tinny. Again, the very fast reacting autofocus is commendable.

Practical test of the front camera

The front camera mode of the MIUI camera app is equipped with numerous beauty filters. There is also an auto HDR mode, a portrait mode (bokeh effect) and various (color) filters to choose from.

The recordings made with the 5 megapixel front camera convince with a high level of detail and an even distribution of focus. Unfortunately, photos are often overexposed. Increasingly poor lighting conditions increase the noise component of the recordings. The front camera records videos with maximum Full HD resolution.

connectivity

Telephony

The Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S supports the world's most common cellular frequencies and bands. With regard to the variety of frequencies, Xiaomi differentiates between the standard model and the premium model. Here is an overview of the individual frequency bands. 

This shows that both the standard model and the premium model are ideally equipped for the German market. The LTE frequencies common in this country are all supported. As a dual SIM smartphone, the Mix 2S can be equipped with two SIM cards. Each of the two slots is LTE-capable. VoLTE is supported. VoWiFi, however, not (yet). In mobile communications, the smartphone impresses with its high signal strength and good voice quality. What is said is transmitted clearly and understandably in both directions.

Wi-Fi and Bluetooth

The handheld is equipped with a Dual-AC MU-MIMO WiFi module and a Bluetooth 5.0 module for wireless data transmission. A high data throughput is achieved in the WLAN. The signal quality and signal strength remain constant over a greater distance from the transmitter. The same applies to the Bluetooth connection stability and connection strength. A connected Bluetooth loudspeaker and a Bluetooth hands-free system could be connected and used without errors in the test.

GPS and sensors

The position is determined via GPS, Galileo, GLONASS or Beidou. A GPS fix is ​​quickly achieved outdoors. The location is determined exactly to within a few meters, so that error-free navigation is possible. The GPS module with strong signals also finds a GPS fix inside the building, albeit with a bit of a delay. An additional e-compass helps to determine the direction of the compass and makes pedestrian navigation easier.

The sensor equipment consists of a proximity sensor, a gyroscope, an acceleration sensor, an e-compass, a barometer, an ambient light sensor and a Hall sensor. NFC is available and impresses with its wide reception area. A fingerprint scanner for securely unlocking the smartphone is located on the back. The recognition rate is high and the unlocking time is comparatively short. Face Unlock was not yet implemented at the time of testing. 

Audio

Like the previous model, the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S is also equipped with a stereo speaker system. In addition to the loudspeaker in the frame, the smartphone also uses the earphone as a loudspeaker. The sound quality is consistently good from low to high playback volume. However, the stereo sound is less apparent at high volume. The earphone loudspeaker is just inferior to the loudspeaker housed in the housing frame in terms of playback volume.

 There is no 3.5 mm audio jack. Instead, headphones can only be connected via USB-C. So that "old" 3.5 mm jack headphones can also be used, Xiaomi includes a corresponding USB-C to 3.5 mm jack adapter with the smartphone. The sound quality via the adapter leaves nothing to be desired. Different sound profiles and an equalizer can be configured individually via the settings menu.

Battery

The battery capacity, which Xiaomi specifies as 3.400 mAh, has also remained the same as the previous model. When measured, this value also corresponds to reality. In the everyday test, the smartphone achieved an average screen-on time of 5 ½ - 6 hours. Ideally around 7 hours are possible. The smartphone must be charged again after 1 ½ days at the latest.

The smartphone can be charged wired via USB-C or using the wireless Qi charging function. Quick Charge 3.0 is used as a quick charge function. A complete charging process with the supplied charger takes just under 100 minutes. A charging process that was also tested using the Xiaomi Qi charging station, which can be purchased separately, takes just under 180 minutes.