We have seen how the family My 9 has been enriched with new products in a short period, conquering various market segments. It seems almost incredible, in fact, as in poco time Xiaomi has been able to create such a wide offer, giving a lot of competitors a hard time. It is not, in fact, only smartphones equipped with top of the range hardware, but also and above all middle band. Thus within this category, it definitely falls Xiaomi Mi 9 Lite, equipped with a Qualcomm SoC Snapdragon 710 and well 6GB RAM. Let's see, however, how he behaved in everyday use and within all our tests, in ours Full review.
Xiaomi Mi 9 Lite Review
Unboxing
Although in our hands we did not have the sales package, inside it will be possible to find:
- Xiaomi Mi 9 Lite;
- short instruction manual, also in Italian;
- USB / USB Type-C cable;
- wall-mounted power supply with European socket;
- pin for removing the SIM slot.
Design & Materials
Taking a look at this device, you can immediately feel a great one quality at a constructive level. Every part of it, in fact, returns a sense of solidity and in the hand it seems almost to have a top of the range. The entire back surface is in glass, while on the external profile we find a soul of metal characterized by the same color as the device. During the entire test period, however, I did not experience any problems in daily use, making it quite manageable in every situation. From the dimensional point of view, in fact, Xiaomi Mi 9 Lite measures 156.8 x 74.5 x 8.7 mm, With a weight of 179 grams.
Looking better at the external structure, we find one on the back triple camera, assisted by the presence of a single person LED flash. This whole sector develops vertically and, further down, there is also the company logo, which contains an interior LED RGB able to light up at reception notifications and during the recharge of the device. On the right profile, then, we have the key ON / OFF and volume balance, while on the opposite side resides the SIM slot.
Speaker of system, microphone and entrance USB Type-C find space on the lower part of the device, while on the opposite side we have the infrared sensor, The second one microphone for the suppression of environmental noise and the mini hole jack from 3,5 mm for headphones.
All the part related to proximity and brightness sensors it is located on the right side of the drip notch. In fact, within this component we also have a front camera from 32 mega-pixels with opening f / 2.0, as well as the ear capsule placed poco higher flush with the body.
Display
On Xiaomi Mi 9 Lite we find a AMOLED display da 6,39 inches diagonal with resolution FHD + (2340 1080 pixels x), with pixel density of PPI 403 and form appearance of 19.5:9. To protect this panel, then, we have a glass Corning Gorilla Glass 5 which, after all, does not hold many fingerprints and is always clean enough. If we look at the chromatic scale of this device, we see a good fidelity of the colors, which sometimes are slightly too saturated. In case you are not in tune with this calibration, however, you can always adjust this setting in the related menu.
I have not encountered any problems in the daily use of this smartphone, not even in direct sunlight. Thanks to brightness sensor, quite responsive, I could always view the contents on screen without any problem. On that , in fact, we find very deep blacks and whites that, instead, tend slightly to blue at different inclinations of the device. Despite this I was able to appreciate the quality of this unit, which certainly within its price range is one of the best on the market.
Also with regard to the touch screenI can't complain about any malfunctions. During the entire test period, in fact, this panel has always responded quickly and reactively, without showing uncertainties. However, for some time now, this component has been an absolute certainty about Xiaomi products. Another point of which I was particularly satisfied is the fingerprint sensor placed under the display. Although the contact surface is quite limited, this unit is very precise and fast in recognizing our finger, thus making it faster to unlock the device. However, if you do not always want to use this sensor, you can use the Face Unlock in 2D, also fast and accurate, especially in conditions of good brightness.
Hardware & Performance
Going to take a look at the technical sheet, we find a Qualcomm SoC Snapdragon 710, therefore a solution octa-core with production process a 10nm and maximum clock frequency equal to 2,2GHz. This is accompanied by a GPU Adreno 640, Well 6GB RAM LPDDR4X and an internal type memory UFS 2.1 da 128GB (in our version). In case it is necessary, it is possible to expand the internal storage space up to 256GB with an additional microSD, thus sacrificing the second Nano SIM.
Specifically, however, the system is fluid and snappy in every situation. Thanks to this processor, in fact, Xiaomi Mi 9 Lite can afford to offer truly outstanding performance, even on heavier applications. Playing a few hours a Call of Duty Mobile, in fact, I didn't feel any particular problem, although the temperature of the rear body is slightly felt. In daily use, however, this device never heats up, even during the most stressful sessions. Like on any Xiaomi device, however, the app in the background they are often closed before time, which is why on one side there is a considerable saving of energy and on the other it is not always possible to find them open within the multitasking. With such RAM, however, you won't really have any problem managing any type of load in daily use.
On this device, moreover, thanks to the diagonal of the display you can enjoy without problems in the visualization of multimedia contents on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, YouTube and anything else. Everything will be handled in the right way and you will never incur sudden blocks or unpleasant early closures of your programs.
Benchmark
Software
From this point of view on Xiaomi Mi 9 Lite there is room for the MIUI Global 10.3.6 based on Android 9 Pie. There are, therefore, all the functions that we are used to seeing on this software, such as the full screen gesture, Dark Mode within the settings, the Digital Wellbeing function arrived from poco and, in general, a very high level of customization. Historically, then, on the Xiaomi interface there is no lack of Second Space and the Tips page that is reached with a swipe to the right from the home.
With a renewal of the MIUI, Xiaomi has made its devices much more complete and, in case you were looking for a good Customization of the Android interface, this remains one of the best solutions. It is not possible, however, to give a universal judgment on this aspect because everyone, obviously, can get their own idea about it.
Photo Quality
If you look at what is offered in the mid-range of smartphones, there are not many devices that feed such a photographic sector. On board of the Mi 9 Lite, in fact, find space well three photographic sensors different, which make this device very complete and dynamic. This compartment consists of the presence of a main sensor from 48 mega-pixels, specifically it is a Sony IMX586 with opening f / 1.8. There is no shortage of one 118 wide-angle camera da 8 mega-pixels and opening f / 2.2 and a last sensor from 2 mega-pixels with opening f / 2.4. Furthermore, the entire sector is assisted by the presence of a single person LED flash, of a stabilization ICE CREAM and autofocus PDAF. As with many other models, then, artificial intelligence also finds space, designed to recognize scenes.
During the shots taken in daytime hours I was able to appreciate the quality of the main sensor, which always returned excellent quality even in critical conditions. In fact, by taking a few shots against the light, this camera has not overexposed the sky, maintaining a fairly good chromatic fidelity. Sometimes, however, it could come to your rescue HDR mode, although this curtain occasionally turns the image too yellow, distorting the entire chromatic scale. As we have seen, then, on this model it is also possible to use the wide-angle sensor. Obviously, from this point of view, something is lost in terms of quality, while managing to take a larger portion of the panorama.
If we look at the night shots we notice a considerable quality loss. With the main sensor, in fact, it is difficult to manage well artificial lights, so much so that all the photos taken in the darkest hours have some parts burned right at the light sources. Everything changes, however, when using the night mode. During these years, in fact, we have seen how Xiaomi has worked a lot from the software point of view to improve this component. From the results obtained, therefore, he seems to have done an excellent job. Taking a look at some photos, in fact, we see how it is completely distorted lighting management and the contrast, showing an image less faithful to reality but much sharper. Finally, I do not recommend the use of a wide-angle camera during the night due to a high photographic noise and a lower resolution, although the Night Mode can still be used on any type of lens.
On the front side there is the sensor from 32 mega-pixels, equipped with opening f / 2.0. I was quite satisfied with this unit, as it manages to handle even the most difficult situations well. Taking advantage of theHDR, then, sometimes it is possible to solve the problem of overexposure of the sky behind us, calibrating the light better. In general, however, thanks to this sensor it will be possible to take excellent selfies, even at night, being able to exploit, among others, the bokeh mode.
From the video point of view, it is possible to use the 48 mega-pixel sensor to record in 1080 to 60fps and in 4K is 30fps. In both cases, however, the stabilization leaves much to be desired, although the quality of the image reflects what has been said previously in the photographic field.
Connectivity & Audio
Xiaomi Mi 9 Lite offers a good connectivity sector, showing above all a Wi-Fi Dual Band with excellent coverage. Even in the most difficult to reach places in the home, this smartphone has always behaved very well, allowing me to navigate without any problems. Even on the outside, then, thanks to the LTE network, I always managed to take advantage of the 4G + moving to Turin. On board of this device, moreover, I remember that the dual SIM VoLTE is active, having the possibility of mounting two nano SIMs simultaneously. Then there are the Bluetooth 5.0, GPS / A-GPS / GLONASS / Beidou / Galileo, NFC and electronic compass.
From the point of view audio this smartphone behaves quite well, showing a very high volume. Despite this, i low, a situation that tends to return, therefore, a sound poco full-bodied. Everything changes when you use a pair of good quality wired headphones that you can plug in at the entrance jack from 3,5 mm placed on the top of the device. During a commune call, then, the audio is clear and clean, both for us and for our interlocutor. Thus, there is never any interruption of conversation or simpler signs of disturbance.
Autonomy
Inside this device resides a battery from 4030 mAh. Thanks to it I could reach more than 5 Hours and 30 Minute Screen On on a basis of 16 hours and 30 minutes of continuous use. It is not, therefore, a device that will force you to search for a charging station before the evening. Despite having maintained, in fact, all the active sensors and exploited the device in a very intense way, with a mixture of Wi-Fi and 4G +, this smartphone has always brought me at least until evening.
Going then to take advantage of the wall power supply from 5V / 2A, I could always top up that unit in about 1 30 hours and minutes.
Conclusions
Xiaomi Mi 9 Lite is officially sold in Italy at the price of 256 euros on Amazon, in the version from 6 / 64GB. What we had in evidence, however, is the model from 6 / 128GB and is sold to 274 € about. It is therefore a price that is absolutely congruent with the services offered by this device. By the time the figures get closer to the 250 euro, then, it would be really perfect.
This smartphone therefore represents a best buy in its price range. In my opinion, in fact, from all points of view this smartphone has a unique reliability in its category. Although it does not stand out in any particular characteristic, all it offers is of good quality, starting from the fluidity and reactivity of the system. I did not find a sector where it was more scarce than other devices in the same price range. So if you are looking for a good mid-range, this Xiaomi Mi 9 Lite could be the right choice for you.
