While launching the Android One device, Google made it clear that the Google One project is not just for cheap smartphones. Android One was introduced in 2014. The company’s effort was to make stock Android accessible to common customers and also guarantee regular updates to these phones in the budget segment. And India was one of the first countries where this OS was introduced. However, this project did not become as popular as Google expected. But from the new launch it is clear that this project has not been closed, rather the company has tried to breathe life into it.
Xiaomi Mi A1 is being marketed with the tagline “created by Xiaomi and powered by Google”. During the launch event, Google also said that Android One will soon be made a part of different types of devices and it will not be limited to just the affordable segment. Xiaomi Mi A1 is set to get Android 8.0 Oreo update by the end of the year. Well, it is too early to say anything right now. There is also a promise of an update to Android P for next year.
For Xiaomi, Mi A1 is a flagship smartphone which is not made available at a high price. That too when Xiaomi Mi 6 has not been made available in India yet. The Mi A1 has good specifications for the price and the dual rear cameras are a welcome feature. In such a situation, it will be very interesting to see how Xiaomi fans react to Mi A1? And how effective does this strategy prove to be for both the companies?
Xiaomi Mi A1 design and build
The Xiaomi Mi A1 is a design upgrade compared to other Redmi devices launched in India. It has the feel of older Redmi devices, but manages to carve out its own identity. Technically, it is a variant of Xiaomi Mi 5X launched in China in July. This phone comes in black, gold and rose gold colors. We were given a Gold unit for review. Initially only black and gold color variants will be made available. Rose gold is expected to be introduced later.
There is a 2.5D curved Gorilla Glass design on the front panel which gives a premium feel to the phone. It fits in the hands because of the curved edges. Due to the side profile of 7.3 mm, it looks a bit thin. Xiaomi has repeatedly said that the Mi A1 will feel good in the hands and we also would not completely dismiss this claim. The full-metal body is solid. But the back part slips in the hands. We had to take special care while using the phone. Our suggestion would be to not forget to take a backcover with the phone. The Mi A1 looks more premium than the Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 and Mi Max 2.
Xiaomi has compared the Mi A1 to the iPhone 7 Plus many times and we can also see similarities between the two. The dual rear cameras and antenna lines in the Mi A1 will remind you of the iPhone 7 Plus. To overcome this problem of phone overheating, Xiaomi has talked about providing dual pyrolytic graphite sheet in the handset. It releases heat rapidly and reduces the temperature by 2 degrees in a jiffy.
Capacitive buttons are provided for Android navigation below the screen. The power and volume buttons are on the right side and there is no difficulty in reaching them. The hybrid dual SIM tray is on the left and the infrared emitter is on the top. At the bottom you will find a USB Type-C port. Along with this, 3.5 mm jack and speaker grill have also got place.
The fingerprint reader is on the back and it works well. Both rear cameras are slightly higher than the surface. Two tone flash is provided with it. There is no branding on the front panel. But on the back side, along with the Mi logo at the bottom, you will find the Android One logo.
Overall, Xiaomi Mi A1 looks and feels better than any other Xiaomi handset. Xiaomi has paid attention to every detail. Be it the speaker grill or the antenna band line. However, the main problem of Mi A1 is that the phone looks like other models of Xiaomi and Vivo. Well, this is a completely new effort from Xiaomi in terms of software and the series is also new. In such a situation, the company should have worked more on the design.
Specifications and software of Xiaomi Mi A1
Xiaomi Mi A1 uses the octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor which is part of Redmi Note 4 and Mi Max 2. Xiaomi said during the launch that its effort has been to keep the price of Mi A1 under control. The clock speed of this chipset is 2 GHz and it is provided with 4 GB RAM. The inbuilt storage is 64 GB and it will be possible to use a microSD card up to 128 GB if needed. Like other Xiaomi devices, Mi A1 also has hybrid dual SIM design. This means you’ll have to choose between two nano SIM cards or a nano SIM card and a microSD card.
The phone has a 5.5 inch LTPS display. Its resolution is full-HD (1080×1920 pixels). Pixel density is 403 ppi. The dimensions of the handset are 155.4×75.8×7.3 mm and weight is 165 grams. The battery is 3080 mAh. The Mi A1 also has an infrared emitter.
The company has highly praised the two rear cameras of this phone. You will get two 12 megapixel cameras. One of these is a wide angle lens with F/2.2 aperture and the other is a telephoto lens with F/2.6 aperture. A 5-megapixel camera with F/2.0 aperture is provided on the front panel and it comes with beautification mode.
Being an Android One device, you will get the stock Android experience in Xiaomi Mi A1. It runs on Android 7.1.2 Nougat which is the latest OS for any Android device today.
The best thing about stock Android is that it does not contain any unwanted apps. This is a huge change for a budget phone. Despite the promise of stock Android UI, you will get Mi Feedback, Mi Remote and Mi Store apps pre-installed on Xiaomi Mi A1. The camera app in this handset is also from Xiaomi. Because Google has not yet released dual camera support for its stock Android camera app.
Compared to Android 7.1.1 Nougat, the old shortcomings have been removed in the new 7.1.2 version. You’ll get popular Android Nougat features like split-screen multitasking and app shortcuts. The appearance of quick settings has changed. If you want, you can open the notification shade by swiping the fingerprint sensor downwards. Apart from this, you can open the camera app by tapping the power button twice. Finally you will get GIF support right inside the keyboard.
Xiaomi Mi A1 cameras
The two rear cameras of Xiaomi Mi A1 are its most important feature. Because of two lenses you will get 2x optical zoom. You will also be able to bring Bokeh effect in photos. Let’s start with depth mode. We were able to capture great photos with the Bokeh effect. In most portrait photos, the edges were completely defined. But in some shots, some parts of the subject along with the background got blurred. This deficiency becomes more evident in low light. You don’t have to do anything separately for this effect. It works better than Lenovo K8 Note (Review). Xiaomi claims that the performance of Portrait Mode is at par with iPhone 7 Plus and OnePlus 5. But we believe that to reach that level, Xiaomi will have to release many updates.
The Mi A1 autofocuses quickly and is accurate most of the time. Phase detection autofocus (PDAF) and face detection allow the camera to lock focus quickly. Landscape shots came out fine. But macro shots lacked sharpness and detail, especially compared to the Mi Max 2. The phone captured photos with texture and detail in adequate lighting. However, we noticed a lot of noise in low light. The Mi A1’s camera lags in dark areas and images come out with very little detail.
Xiaomi claims that the camera app of Mi A1 has an enhancement feature to take better photos in low light. But after activating it we did not see any big difference. Xiaomi Mi Max gave better results in low light.
The camera app on Mi A1 will also guide you in depth mode. You’ll keep getting warnings like “It’s too dark now” and “Move further from the object”. This will please new users.
You will be able to take great pictures in good lighting with the 5 megapixel front camera. There is no dearth of details in these. Selfies taken in low light were very blurry.
Overall, we would say that dual camera setup is a great feature at this price. And you usually won’t be disappointed by it. But more work is needed on performance in low light.
Xiaomi Mi A1 Performance
We found the screen of Xiaomi Mi A1 to be bright enough. Photos and text appear sharp. Viewing angles are also good. However, the glass was more reflective than we liked. And while using the phone in sunlight, we had to take the brightness to the maximum level.
The Xiaomi Mi A1 uses an octa-core Snapdragon 625 processor, like the Redmi Note 4 and Mi Max 2. It is a capable processor. Commonly used apps run faster. 4 GB RAM facilitates multitasking. Touch response is good. We did not find any shortcomings during the review. We enjoyed playing games with powerful graphics like Last Day on Earth and Asphalt 8. We found the 5.5-inch display to be great for watching videos. The benchmark scores of Xiaomi Mi A1 came at par with Mi Max 2 and Xiaomi Redmi Note 4.
Xiaomi says that it has used pyrolytic graphite sheet to control the temperature of the phone. We can say that even while playing games for a long time, we did not feel the phone getting too hot. However, the phone definitely gets hot while charging.
Xiaomi Mi A1 has support for 4G VoLTE and the call quality was also good. The phone connected to the network even in weak areas. The IR emitter worked flawlessly with the Mi Remote app.
The speaker produces enough sound for a small room. The sound is also clear. Xiaomi says that smart power amplifier has also been used for better sound from earphones. The experience with the earphones was good. If you want, you can use Mi A1 as an entertainment device to listen to songs every day. The complaint is that no earphones will be available with the phone.
Xiaomi Mi A1 Battery Life
The 3080 mAh battery lasted for about 15 hours with heavy use. Outlook, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Telegram, Gmail and WhatsApp apps were always running in the background of the handset. In our HD video loop test, the Mi A1’s battery lasted about 10 hours and 18 minutes. This would be considered correct. One problem with the Xiaomi Mi A1 is that it offers weak battery performance compared to other Xiaomi devices. It took about two hours for the phone’s battery to be fully charged, which cannot be called bad.
our decision
When Android One was launched, many promises were made. But they could not be completed. Now Xiaomi and Google have tried to give a new face to Android One. But how effective this will prove to be, will be known only in the future. In terms of price, Xiaomi Mi A1 is a very powerful handset. The metal body and oval finish is excellent. Display and general performance is good. For the first time, users will get stock Android experience in Xiaomi phones. If you don’t like MIUI then this phone is for you. Dual camera works.
But the company should have paid more attention to photography in low light. Battery life is also average. Other Xiaomi phones also do well in these departments.
Priced at Rs 14,999, Xiaomi Mi A1 will be available on Flipkart, Mi.com, offline stores and the company’s own Mi Home store. Its sale will start from September 12. Xiaomi has created its own identity with MIUI software. But it will be very interesting to see how customers react to this phone.