Xiaomi Mi 5X Review – Most Powerful Sub-$300 Phone Yet

Not necessarily following our comparison of the Xiaomi Mi 5X and the Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro, it’s been nearly two weeks since it’s been released. Here’s our review of the highly-anticipated Xiaomi Mi 5X in China or as it is known globally, the Mi A1.

Accessories

To long-time Android users, what’s in the box beside the phone may be a bit disappointing.

What’s included are the following:

• 1m USB 2.0 Type-C 1.0 to USB Type-A data/charging cable
• 10W Xiaomi USB power adapter

Design

Compared to its predecessor, (Mi Redmi 4/4X), the Mi 5X has a larger 5.5″ screen with thinner bezels. It may be larger, but it sure feels good to hold bare. For its price, I don’t see the corners that were cut in the design section since I find this is attractive at all angles. The chamfered metallic edges on the front accentuate the purity of the white front perfectly.

The metal unibody doesn’t feel cheap and isn’t rough around the edges. Even with its size, Xiaomi was generous enough to provide corners that are curved well enough that even users with smaller hands will find the Mi 5X accommodating.

With its 7.3mm thinness though, the dual-12MP main cameras are forced to bulge out a bit on the back.

Side buttons are one-sided, which is quite a hit-or-miss application for the variety of users.

Display

Seeing as to how Xiaomi went with an LTPS IPS LCD for the Mi 5X, the tip towards performance can be felt from here on. It’s running at full HD and is non-customizable. However, it would not be sufficient to say that it blows at reproducing colors.

They may not be vibrant, but they are well enough for playing games and multimedia consumption.

ROM/UX

The app drawer is nowhere to be found, as is with all Chinese ROMs. All Google apps are nicely bundled in a single folder on the home screen. And even with the move to Nougat, navigating through MIUI 8 may feel a bit off-ish. With the addition of new multimedia features, mobile photographers and videographers alike may find this likable.

And yes, MIUI 8 allows for dual-apps for specific apps. Social media managers, unite!

Performance

SPECIFICATIONS

Others may complain that the Mi 5X basically has the same innards as a Redmi Note 4X. That might be the case, until we get to the cameras.

BENCHMARKS

At its price range (PhP 15,000 and below), it currently is the fastest. The SD625 + Adreno 506 combo is being put into good use. Battery life was unexpectedly low, but I do hope that this becomes better through firmware updates.

Cameras

Putting specs aside, let’s move to the actual performance of the Mi 5X’s cameras.

Details are decent, so to speak. Colors are near-accurate that are then complemented with great exposure control. Night shots are a bit on the weaker side though, but then again, the cameras aren’t the Mi 5X’s strongest suit. The dual-12MPx give a love-it-or-hate-it vibe, as with most dual lens setups. Image stabilization is unconfirmed, but with what I have taken so far, there’s no hint of it on either lens.

Video recording is decent at best too, but the fact that this can capture up to 2160p@30fps may be a bit more appealing to some.

The front camera is good for your daily selfie checkups and suffers the same case of having a narrower aperture than most selfie-centric smartphones.

Audio

Speakers aren’t stellar nor disappointing. Xiaomi struck a good balance with the Mi 5X’s speaker. The bass response may be low, but this is a phone’s speaker that we’re talking about. Clarity varies from genre to genre, and the Mi 5X’s speakers work best with jazz or bluesy tunes.

Verdict – Should You Get It?

If you’re one of those performance-savvy people, this is the best that you can get at its price, with Nougat support and all. To this date, this basically has the best price-to-performance ratio that is locally available.