Like other handsets of Xiaomi, there is curiosity among Indian customers about Xiaomi Mi A1 also. However, it will also be interesting to see how customers react to stock Android replacing the company’s popular MIUI operating system. Let us tell you that Xiaomi started as a software company. MIUI was the company’s first product. Now the company is bringing a new handset on a completely new platform.
The company’s new series has also started with Xiaomi Mi A1. But the future of the series will depend on the response the phones launched on Tuesday receive from customers.
The launch of Xiaomi Mi A1 also makes it clear that Google is still committed to its Android One program. It is possible that Xiaomi’s new Android One phone may be one of the initial handsets of this series. Apart from the stock Android experience, Xiaomi Mi A1 is the company’s first dual camera smartphone in India. Its specifications are strong and the company is also calling it a flagship smartphone. We got our hands on the Xiaomi Mi A1 handset ahead of its launch. At first glance this handset seemed to us like…
Xiaomi Mi A1 Design
At first glance, the finishing and look of Xiaomi Mi A1 makes it clear that it is a premium Mi range device. Much better than Xiaomi’s budget Redmi series. The front panel looks beautiful due to the metal unibody and 2.5D curved edge glass. Curved edges provide a comfortable feel in the palm.
There is no branding on the front which is good in our opinion. You will see the Xiaomi logo and the Android One tag at the bottom of the back of the phone. Xiaomi Mi A1 will be manufactured in India and will come with the tag of Made in India. However, the initial units are being brought from another country. Hides the antenna line. And its design is very different from Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Review). In our opinion, the Xiaomi Mi A1 is the phone with the best hand feel in the current Xiaomi product lineup.
The software experience is completely different. But Xiaomi Mi A1 does not have a new design language. It still gives the feel of the old Xiaomi product. If seen, it seems to be a smaller version of Xiaomi Mi Max 2.
Xiaomi Mi A1 specifications and software
We can say that Xiaomi Mi A1 is the international version of Xiaomi Mi 5X which was launched in China last month. The specifications of both the smartphones are almost the same. Xiaomi Mi A1 has a 5.5-inch full-HD display with 2.5D glass protection. It has an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor with 4 GB RAM. Inbuilt storage is 64 GB and it will be possible to use microSD card if needed. Mi A1 comes with hybrid dual SIM design. If you do not use microSD card, you will be able to install two nano SIMs. The fingerprint scanner is on the back. The smartphone has a USB Type-C port and the battery is 3080 mAh.
The handset has two camera sensors on the back. The company is also marketing this feature vigorously. You will get two sensors of 12 megapixels. One is a wide angle lens with F 2.2 aperture and the other is a telephoto lens with F 2.6 aperture. We saw the same camera setup in the flagship Xiaomi Mi 6 also. You will also get 2X optical zoom due to the telephoto lens, which is a feature worth noting at this price. The camera app also has a portrait mode for the Bokeh effect, like the iPhone 7 Plus and OnePlus 5. There is a 5 megapixel camera on the front panel of Mi A1 which comes with real time beautification.
The Mi A1 has Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and 3.5mm audio jack with 4G VoLTE. Like other Xiaomi smartphones, Mi A1 also has an infrared emitter at the top. Xiaomi has also provided a separate headphone amplifier in this phone for better audio.
Talking about software, this phone of Xiaomi will run on Android 7.1.2 Nougat. This is the latest Android OS for non-Google smartphones to date. This is an Android One device, so Google will guarantee software updates for at least 18 months. This means that the phone is also sure to get Android 8.0 Oreo update.
Apart from Google branded apps, Mi A1 also has many software features of Xiaomi, such as Mi Remote and Mi Store apps. It is good that Xiaomi fans will not miss the company’s software features.
Xiaomi Mi A1 initial thoughts
Xiaomi Mi A1 is a very powerful handset in terms of performance and software. The phone responded quickly to our touch inputs. It didn’t lag even while switching between apps. The viewing angles of the full-HD display are decent. It’s crisp, too, but more reflective than we’d like. You also won’t have to worry about unwanted apps with MIUI.
Xiaomi has its own camera app in Mi A1, as Google’s default camera app does not yet support dual camera. It launches quickly and autofocuses in a jiffy. Xiaomi claims that Mi A1 takes excellent portrait shots with the help of dual camera. By the way, we will discuss the general performance and camera quality of the phone in detail in the review.
Along with Xiaomi, Google also has high expectations from Mi A1. This time Android One has been made a part of slightly more expensive handsets. In such a situation, the response of the customers will be eagerly awaited. Let us tell you that Android One was first launched worldwide as a cheap device.
Priced at Rs 14,999, the Xiaomi Mi A1 comes with stock Android with the familiar Xiaomi design. However, the path will not be easy for this Android One device of Google. Because there is already a Moto G5S Plus with dual rear cameras with stock Android available in the market at almost the same price.