In December last year, Xiaomi launched its top-end phone dubbed the Mi 11. At that time, it was believed that the Chinese manufacturer was breaking free from the trends of the market by releasing a single top-end smartphone in the series. However, turns out, the company had two more handsets for the series in the works.
At its 2021 New Product Launch Event today, Xiaomi unveiled the Mi 11 Pro and Mi 11 Ultra boating top-notch specifications, new imaging technology, and a revolutionized battery.
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Design and Display
Design-wise, the Mi 11 Pro comes with features similar to the Mi 11. It has the same pill-shaped camera bump on top of a squircle aisle at the back. Apart from this, Xiaomi has settled for a minimalistic look and there is not a lot happening on the phone except for the camera bump.
The handset is available in three colors: Emerald Green, Black, and Light purple. It also comes with AG frosted glass that gives it a matte finish. The fingerprint sensor is installed underneath the panel.
The display is a 6.81-inch AMOLED panel with 1440p resolution, 120 Hz refresh rate, 480Hz touch sampling rate, 1700 nits advertised peak brightness, Dolby Vision, Gorilla Glass Victus protection, and pre-applied quad curved screen protector.
The Mi 11 Ultra, on the other hand, comes with a huge camera bump that spans across the width of the phone. Besides the camera sensor, there is a tiny secondary display that shows you the notifications, battery level, weather, health alerts, and other essential information.
The most important function of this display is to allow users to take high-resolution selfies from its rear cameras. The display specifications of the handset are similar to Mi 11 Pro.
Internals and Storage
Both handsets are powered by Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 888 chip topped with 8 GB or 12 GB RAM and 128 or 256 GB onboard storage. Like most flagships, they do not come with an SD card slot for storage expansion.
The thermal management has been boosted with class-leading heat dissipation that uses a large 150mm vapor chamber and accompanying copper heat sinks. It is the first device in the world to feature full phase change cooling technology. The system comes with an organic hydrocarbon material that changes states between solid, liquid, gas.
Whenever the core of the chipset heats up the element will change from solid to liquid for absorbing the heat inside. In the second phase, the heat will make the liquid evaporate absorbing more energy.
In addition to this, the handsets are IP68 rated which means they will be water-resistant up to 1.5 meters and for 30 minutes. These are the first handsets by the company to come with water resistance. Moreover, they also pack an IR Blaster and support Wi-Fi 6. The smartphone runs MIUI 12.5 flavored Android 11.
Cameras
The Mi 11 Pro is equipped with a triple sensor rear camera setup featuring the Samsung 50 MP GN2 sensor that measures 1.12 inches and is 5 times the size of the iPhone 12 Pro’s camera. The sensor is backed by OIS, Stagger HDR, and ISO Fusion. It uses the dual pixel pro-binning tech. The other two sensors in the camera are the 8 MP periscope camera with 5X optical zoom and 50X hybrid zoom and a 13 MP ultra-wide sensor with 123 degrees field of view.
The selfie camera is a 20 MP wide sensor.
The biggest difference between the two smartphones is the camera. The Mi 11 Ultra also features a triple sensor camera but with revamped specifications.
The main camera is the same 50 MP GN2 sensor. However, it is complemented with a 48 MP ultra-wide sensor that has a 128 degrees FOV and a 48 MP IMX 586 telephoto lens with 5x optical zoom and 120X hybrid zoom. The main sensor has a 61 degrees FOV with a very sharp focus thanks to dToF technology that features a 64-point laser array focus system. The Mi 11 Ultra can capture 8K videos from all the 3 camera sensors including the Tele-macro shooter. The selfie camera is a 20 MP single sensor shooter.
Battery and Pricing
Both smartphones are fueled by a 5000 mAh battery that is not the basic cell we see in every phone. Rather, Xiaomi went with a Silicon Oxygen anode cell which boasts higher density, better conductivity, and faster charging in a slimmer profile. On top of this, you get 67W wired and 67W wireless charging both of which take just 36 minutes for a full charge.
The handsets will be available for sale by 2nd April and the base variant of the Pro model will cost $762 while the 8GB/128GB variant of Mi 11 Ultra will retail at $914.
The phones will currently be available in China only. Amongst the two, the Mi 11 Ultra will be made available globally.
Specifications
| Specifications | Mi 11 Pro | Mi 11 Ultra |
| CPU | Octa-core (1×2.84 GHz Kryo 680 & 3×2.42 GHz Kryo 680 & 4×1.80 GHz Kryo 680) | Octa-core (1×2.84 GHz Kryo 680 & 3×2.42 GHz Kryo 680 & 4×1.80 GHz Kryo 680) |
| GPU | Adreno 660 | Adreno 660 |
| Chipset | Qualcomm SM8350 Snapdragon 888 (5 nm) | Qualcomm SM8350 Snapdragon 888 (5 nm) |
| OS | Android 11, MIUI 12.5 | Android 11, MIUI 12.5 |
| Networks | 2G, 3G, 4G LTE, 5G | 2G, 3G, 4G LTE, 5G |
| Display | Super AMOLED, 1B colors, 6.81 inches, 1440 x 3200 pixels resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 120 Hz, HDR10+ | Super AMOLED, 1B colors, 6.81 inches, 1440 x 3200 pixels resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 120 Hz, HDR10+ |
| Memory | (8GB,12GB)/(128GB,256GB) | (8GB,12GB)/(128GB,256GB,512GB) |
| Camera | Primary: 50 MP + 13 MP + 8 MP | Primary: 50 MP + 48 MP + 48 MP |
| Selfie: 20 MP | Selfie: 20 MP | |
| Connectivity | LTE, USB Type-C, GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.2 | LTE, USB Type-C, GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.2 |
| Fingerprint scanner | Yes (in-display) | Yes (in-display) |
| Battery | 5000 mAh (67W charging, 67W wireless charging) | 5000 mAh (67W charging, 67W wireless charging) |
| Price | $762 | $914 |
Biggest mistake a mobile company ever made is this kind of Camera designs in which cameras are above the body surface which actually should be inwards to prevent camera from scratch and making it fall proof
Not at all.
Globally 97.2% smartphone users have use phone cases.
Damn. I am impressed and glad that this time they are launching globally but also disappointed to see meh improvements compared to Mi 10 Ultra. That phone was a beast!
Most exciting phone of the year, I am excited cuz of that display spec, not sure how it would be in real life but spec are awesome, 1700nits HDR brightness , first Android phone with Amoled display supporting Dolby Vision.
Xiaomi is impressive.
I neglected iphone for xiomi.