Develop Bugs

Which MI to get?

Hey everyone, I'm debating upgrading to xiaomi from my note 4. I could need some help deciding.
I don't really care which snapdragon it is. Both the 820 and 821 are a massive upgrade from my note and that's doing everything fine.
I'd like something smaller, but have no problem with 5,7" if there are benefits to it.
I'd like the opportunity for some kind of stockish rom. I don't flash daily anymore and am very familiar with miui since the original htc desire days. So miui is fine, but having the opportunity to go for lineage or aosp if i feel that way would be great.
So basically:
mi5s, mi5 or mi5s plus?
The mi5 64GB comes in at 277€
The mi5s 64GB is 307€
The mi5s Plus 64GB is 357€
Edit: I might also throw the Note 2 into the discussion. It's 200€ more expensive, but the bigger battery and the epic looks really are attractive.
My open questions: there is basically no development for the mi5s atm. Is there something to be expected? Is the mi5 still competitive or is it slowly eol? And for all options: Is the Ram upgrade to 4/6GB worth the price tag or is 3/4GB fine for you?
Any input to help me decide is greatly appreciated:good:

Mi5 has better camera for video (thanks to OIS) than Mi5s, otherwise they are very similar. Mi5 is longer out and thus has more chances for a custom rom. It does look like there will be some CM support (or whatever it is now called) for the Mi5s, there is one build here in the forum.
No idea about the 5s Plus.
Memory management is hard to say, but Android loves to have ram, so in general it's better to have more than less. Then again, this really depends on the ROM too.

domsch1988 said:
Hey everyone, I'm debating upgrading to xiaomi from my note 4. I could need some help deciding.
I don't really care which snapdragon it is. Both the 820 and 821 are a massive upgrade from my note and that's doing everything fine.
I'd like something smaller, but have no problem with 5,7" if there are benefits to it.
I'd like the opportunity for some kind of stockish rom. I don't flash daily anymore and am very familiar with miui since the original htc desire days. So miui is fine, but having the opportunity to go for lineage or aosp if i feel that way would be great.
So basically:
mi5s, mi5 or mi5s plus?
The mi5 64GB comes in at 277€
The mi5s 64GB is 307€
The mi5s Plus 64GB is 357€
Edit: I might also throw the Note 2 into the discussion. It's 200€ more expensive, but the bigger battery and the epic looks really are attractive.
My open questions: there is basically no development for the mi5s atm. Is there something to be expected? Is the mi5 still competitive or is it slowly eol? And for all options: Is the Ram upgrade to 4/6GB worth the price tag or is 3/4GB fine for you?
Any input to help me decide is greatly appreciated:good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If the screen doesn't bother you, I would buy the mi5.
: Better camera
Cm support
Deeper development here in XDA
PS: I have the mi5s plus 6gb 128 and I'm stuck in MIUI that I don't like very much. I going to continue to use my axon 7 until he has cm support
Sent from my ZTE ZTE A2017G using XDA Labs

nelnel002 said:
If the screen doesn't bother you, I would buy the mi5.
: Better camera
Cm support
Deeper development here in XDA
PS: I have the mi5s plus 6gb 128 and I'm stuck in MIUI that I don't like very much. I going to continue to use my axon 7 until he has cm support
Sent from my ZTE ZTE A2017G using XDA Labs
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mi5 doesn't have better camera than mi5s!
The mi5 has OIS but apart of that nothing else is better. The MI5s camera makes much better photos.
In fact it's so fast that I almost never have to make a photo twice, I very rarely get a blurry picture.
I would get mi5s 64GB. The materials are much better.
CM is still WIP but when Xiaomi releases the kernel sources it will be a much better phone.
With the recent Stable Global rom it goes like butter, didn't notice any problems.
By the way, the MI5 is 257$, the 64GB mi5s is 288$ and the 128GB is 348$
Check there:
https://goldway.aliexpress.com/store/311331

I'm with @dabyd64.
Mi5s has better construction than Mi5 (Aluminum vs Ceramic).
Mi5s is a little heavier (around 15g) and around 1mm bigger at 3 axis (difficult to tell a diference side by side).
Mi5s and Google Pixel have the same camera sensor, one of best as today.
Mi5s take better photos and regarding video Mi5s have EIS (at 1080) that is working better than Mi5 with OIS.
It could be better if Xiaomi invest on image processing algoritm like google did on pixel mobile.
Right now, Mi5 has better comunity support because was released first, more users, and kernel sources already released by Xiaomi.
I doubt Mi5s will have better support than Mi5, but i'm pretty sure we get the major roms.
Mi5 has infrared and could work as a remote control, this is the unique feature loss on Mi5s.
For me, Mi5s all the way. I would avoid Mi5s plus, if you really want a proper dual camera implementation -> Huawei P9.
We have to understand that a dual camera solution is all about image processing. For me, Xiaomi implementation was a failure.
If you need 5.5" screen size i would go for oneplus 3t.
Mi Note 2 has an oled 5.7" curved screen with te same 1080 resolution, so lower pixel density.
I really hate curved screens, and it's a pain to protect those devices.
It has a bigger battery, but generally bigger screen more consume, on the other hand oled consume less than lcd, you have to analyse sot.
200€ more relatively to 300€ it's significative, i would say put 200€ aside for a new one later on.

Not OP, but I would like to say thanks to @BPSoft and the other people who answered this question, as I'm in the same boat right now. Want to upgrade from my Mi4, and considering Mi5 and Mi5s. But the price is too close.
Do you think it is worth waiting for Mi5s price to drop a little bit more before buying? I am not very keen on using it with MIUI8 (jury's out for future MIUI 9), so I would be waiting for a custom ROM (CM, AOSP, ...). What do you think?

Custom, somewhat stable, ROM could be a way off for the Mi 5s, as the kernel source hasn't been released yet. At least there is a global rom now for the Mi 5s, but I'm not sure if that can be bought preinstalled. Not a big thing, but maybe waiting one more week (until CES is over) might mean a tiny bit lower prices.

Mi5s is at its lowest price ever, though (about 265€ for me). So many decisions... but I think i'll go for it.
Even if not preinstalled you can always unlock bootloader and install the global ROM, corect?

This is correct. Actually, if you run the official China build, you can simply download the Recovery Rom to the phone, open the Updater app, select the rom and it will flash it. No unlock needed. Works also with some, but not all, "shop roms" (globalized non official builds).

I want to thank everyone who gave their opinions. It's much appreciated.
So, if its xiaomi, mi5s it's going to be.
Currently the axon 7 is an option too. But, i'm debating squeezing some life out of the note 4 and waiting for those sd835 phones to hit the market. Might be mid year, that those come. And sure enough xiaomi will have a new mi with this SoC. Then, either it's cheap enough or the mi5s will get even cheaper... decisions, decisions.

domsch1988 said:
Currently the axon 7 is an option too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For a 5.5" screen size, i prefer Oneplus 3T, huge support here at XDA, 6GB Ram, SD821 instead of SD820, 64/128GB internal space, but without sd card support.
See here for a comparison:
http://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=8416&idPhone2=8067&idPhone3=7260
Regarding photo quality:
http://www.gsmarena.com/piccmp.php3?idType=1&idPhone1=8416&idPhone2=8067&idPhone3=7260
As you can see 20Mpx says nothing about picture quality :cyclops:
domsch1988 said:
But, i'm debating squeezing some life out of the note 4 and waiting for those sd835 phones to hit the market. Might be mid year, that those come. And sure enough xiaomi will have a new mi with this SoC. Then, either it's cheap enough or the mi5s will get even cheaper... decisions, decisions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm more optimistic, i expect "Mi6" release at March, like it was with Mi5. SD835 is expected. If i could, i would wait!

dabyd64 said:
Mi5 doesn't have better camera than mi5s!
The mi5 has OIS but apart of that nothing else is better. The MI5s camera makes much better photos.
In fact it's so fast that I almost never have to make a photo twice, I very rarely get a blurry picture.
I would get mi5s 64GB. The materials are much better.
CM is still WIP but when Xiaomi releases the kernel sources it will be a much better phone.
With the recent Stable Global rom it goes like butter, didn't notice any problems.
By the way, the MI5 is 257$, the 64GB mi5s is 288$ and the 128GB is 348$
Check there:
https://goldway.aliexpress.com/store/311331
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So it depends if you want OIS or faster capture. For my opinion cm development to mi5s Will take some time, soon we will have the mi6, so that's always the same thing , when we have some development there's another upgraded device that came out. We'll stay stock whit MIUI .
Sent from my ZTE ZTE A2017G using XDA Labs
---------- Post added at 04:30 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:22 PM ----------
domsch1988 said:
I want to thank everyone who gave their opinions. It's much appreciated.
So, if its xiaomi, mi5s it's going to be.
Currently the axon 7 is an option too. But, i'm debating squeezing some life out of the note 4 and waiting for those sd835 phones to hit the market. Might be mid year, that those come. And sure enough xiaomi will have a new mi with this SoC. Then, either it's cheap enough or the mi5s will get even cheaper... decisions, decisions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have axon 7 too and it's my daily driver, that's another league. QHD AMOLED,3250mah battery, not stock but almost whit some nice features, stereo speakers whit Dolby Atmos, nice camera I would say a little better than op3. nice materials and naugat to the end of January.
Sent from my ZTE ZTE A2017G using XDA Labs

What I really liked is the screen / size ratio, I think it's one of the 'smaller' phones which still has really good specs, decent screen and of course dual sim.

domsch1988 said:
I want to thank everyone who gave their opinions. It's much appreciated.
So, if its xiaomi, mi5s it's going to be.
Currently the axon 7 is an option too. But, i'm debating squeezing some life out of the note 4 and waiting for those sd835 phones to hit the market. Might be mid year, that those come. And sure enough xiaomi will have a new mi with this SoC. Then, either it's cheap enough or the mi5s will get even cheaper... decisions, decisions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm going to do the exact same, wait for SD835 and if i don't think it's worth it ill buy a cheaper mi5s

Confused between Mi 5 & Mi5s

Dear All,
I need to buy a new phone & getting confused between Mi 5 & Mi 5s
Please suggest which one is better over all.
Mi 5 3/32 or Mi 5s 3/64 GB
Price difference is only 30$
Thank in Advance

Mi5s is a upgraded version from the Mi5 with a better build quality, bit faster processor and a better camera. So in my opinion it is really worth those 30 dollar with current custom ROMs making great use of these plus points.

8166uy said:
Mi5s is a upgraded version from the Mi5 with a better build quality, bit faster processor and a better camera. So in my opinion it is really worth those 30 dollar with current custom ROMs making great use of these plus points.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
...And with really sh*tty fingerprint reader. You get better fingerprint reader on xiaomi redmi 3s.

With my phone it's working perfectly (always has btw), and so is with anyone using the latest firmware as far as I know.

8166uy said:
With my phone it's working perfectly (always has btw), and so is with anyone using the latest firmware as far as I know.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
MI5s ultrasonic fingerprint reader was advertised as very accurate and fast and you could unlock phone with wet or dirty fingerprint, but in real life that's not true. From the beginning speed and accuracy wasn't so great and few months ago my fingerprint reader just stopped working.
Google is full of links like this: https://www.reddit.com/r/Android/comments/5glh5l/xiaomi_mi_5s_fingerprint_sensor_the_worst_i_have/
I regret i didn't buy xiaomi mi5 or oneplus 3.

Which were firmware problems. Those were fixed recently.
/EDIT: To be fair I think for most people the Xiaomi A1 is a better choice. Excellent build quality, Android One, much better battery life, more network bands and a nice low price of 180 euro's at the moment. Unless you game a lot, you probably won't feel the difference in speed all that much.
Example (other shops have roughly same prices):
http://www.dx.com/p/xiaomi-mi-a1-android-7-1-2-4g-phone-w-4gb-ram-64gb-rom-black-852481868

8166uy said:
To be fair I think for most people the Xiaomi A1 is a better choice. Excellent build quality, Android One, much better battery life, more network bands and a nice low price of 180 euro's at the moment. Unless you game a lot, you probably won't feel the difference in speed all that much.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Or if you want better battery life you can go with Xiaomi redmi note 4 or Xiaomi redmi 5 plus, but they don't have band support like A1 and stock Android. If you don't game too much, everything with Snapdragon 625 or similar would be good enough for everyday usage and battery friendly. Also you can consider buying Huawei honor 9 lite or Huawei honor 7x.

Buy MI5s for its camera. FP is okay don't worry not as fast as others but if that is your main point I have to laugh.

Well, the build quality of Mi 5 is a bit worse.
I strongly recommend to buy Mi 5s instead of Mi 5. It's the improved version of Mi 5 with full-metal body, faster SoC, better camera sensor(same as the Pixel).
I'm using Mi 5s and I think fp is ok.

Better buy neither of them, they are both ****y phones, buy something from oneplus or mi 6/mix 2.

Mateusz_gameplay said:
Better buy neither of them, they are both ****y phones, buy something from oneplus or mi 6/mix 2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh, it's so helpful to writing this without telling any reason.

Battery in this phone is joke, fingerprint scanner works 1/10 of the time, ram management does not exist.

Again, just update the firmware...

It won't help, trust me

Fingerprint working near perfect on my Mi 5s with latest Global stable ROM. I really like my Mi 5s 128GB, only battery time could be a bit better, but that's the CPUs fault mostly.
Also have a look at the Mi 6 which offers optical image stabilizer, which the Mi 5 also has, but the 5s sadly lacks.

I have previously owned both 5s and 5s plus. 5s has good build quality and camera but bad fingerprint reader and mediocre battery life. The larger sibling, 5s Plus is much better IMO. More vibrant screen, slightly faster performance, much better fingerprint reader and battery life. The image sensor on 5s plus is worse but still takes good images if you install the ported google camera mod. I would also consider Mi Note 3 or Mi Mix 2.

flipp0 said:
I have previously owned both 5s and 5s plus. 5s has good build quality and camera but bad fingerprint reader and mediocre battery life. The larger sibling, 5s Plus is much better IMO. More vibrant screen, slightly faster performance, much better fingerprint reader and battery life. The image sensor on 5s plus is worse but still takes good images if you install the ported google camera mod. I would also consider Mi Note 3 or Mi Mix 2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you have the Mi5S long enough to install the firmware version of the first of March? That one has given the big change. Before that, the FP sensor was indeed not very good.

8166uy said:
Did you have the Mi5S long enough to install the firmware version of the first of March? That one has given the big change. Before that, the FP sensor was indeed not very good.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, I sold mine in february this year. I am suprised that they finally fixed the FP-reader (one and half year after the release).

I think everyone is

Battery life and FP reader are solved in Miui Pro BETA by Belorus team. Non beta roms all have bad battery life anyway. I do talk here with gaming and without. Now i freely use it all day

Is Mi Max 1 worth buying in 2018? or is there any better alternatives?

Hello everyone, I need your opinion and help
TLDR I need phone with big screen and good performance, is Mi Max 1 still worth buying in 2018?
Long Story
I need device with big screen and good performance vs price. After long searching, going back and forth in tablet or phablet
I found that Mi Max is one of the best contender, with old but strong SD 650 and humongous 6.5" screen.
There's Redmi Note 5 Pro with 5.99" screen, better performance but I already have Mi 6 with 5.2" display, the display difference isn't that much, so I think there's no point having Note 5 Pro.
on the other hand, Mi Max 2 is good but weak, and Mi Max 3 is beast but too expensive.
On the good side, Mi Max is big,cheap, and good performance and rich XDA community. There's less to no bug on each new developed ROMs, right? as Zenfone 2 user I'm jelly haha :silly:
On the down side, it's 2yrs old already, still use micro USB.
I find it difficult to find another device that can beat this proposition but I'm open to any new suggestions.
I'm thinking of buying the 3/32 variant around $124
I'm gonna use this phone for multimedia, little bit of gaming (PUBG, Vainglory etc), and probably as car HUD.
So, what do you think? is it still worth it? Is there any other alternatives?
Thanks in advance

A.f.a.I.c. there are no better alternatives yet. First of all, screen size and ratio is most important for me. All phablets have that ugly notch these days and no dedicated hardware buttons. I've been looking at the Mi Max 3, but found out it has no coloured LED notification light (how stupid is that?). Huawei Honor Note 10 may be an option, but don't like the EMUI shell.
What's wrong with micro USB? You could use one of these if you don't like the micro USB connector, a lot cheaper than buying a new phone
https://www.ebay.com/itm/RAXFLY-Mic...1b:m:m7hqOpyZpTqJRBibCHhC9_A&var=601537300954

The Mi Max 3 has much better camera but the CPU is not very fast, does not have NFC (AGAIN) and no LED colour notifications. I wouldn't but the 3/32, get a deal for the 652 ones or wait till something better comes our way.

maybe LG V20 ?
I just bought a LG V20 on aliexpress because it s shock proof, has removable battery, better camera and better performance (but smaller screen) than mi max 1.
I believe there ll be promotions next week on aliexpress and you ll be able to find them for less than 140E (so more expensive than the mi max 1 ... but maybe you ll be able to find them cheaper elsewhere ... I am in France and they have not be sold here so it was kind of logical for me to import it ... )

pierro78 said:
I just bought a LG V20 on aliexpress because it s shock proof, has removable battery, better camera and better performance (but smaller screen) than mi max 1.
I believe there ll be promotions next week on aliexpress and you ll be able to find them for less than 140E (so more expensive than the mi max 1 ... but maybe you ll be able to find them cheaper elsewhere ... I am in France and they have not be sold here so it was kind of logical for me to import it ... )
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't trust LG. And it's not that big....

I would not buy the snapdragon 650 variant, maybe the one with 652 (3gb/64gb or 4gb/128gb). But just save up for the mi max 3. It is only $250, similar to the new price of the mi max 1.
---------- Post added at 04:53 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:50 PM ----------
I would not buy the snapdragon 650(2gb/32gb or 3gb/32gb) variant, maybe the one with 652 (3gb/64gb or 4gb/128gb). But just save up for the mi max 3. It is only $250, similar to the new price of the mi max 1.
I have the 650 variant, and it is a bit slow and youtube 2x speed freezes at 720p60fps or higher.

If your S650 device is having issues with 720p YouTube content then it is purely your private issue. I own Mi Max 1 3/32 for 2 years now and never had a lag/spike during watching any videos. This goes for YouTube, Twitch and many other services.
And now to the topic:
After 2 years I'm still able to get 3-4 days up with 9h sot (it used to be 10h+). Device is fast. Heck, I'm using miui 10 right now with CPU governor set to powersafe and battery optimization turned on - no lags at all. Modded gcam improves photos a lot. If you can get this phone really cheap then go for it. If you do not need such phone right now then do the same thing I'll do - wait until November sales (11.11 if I'm not mistaken) - most phones get their prices cut down a bit by then - and buy a Mi Max 3 (6.9 inches with same phone size will be great for media consumption). I used to change phones every 4-6 months. Mi Max is first phone I own for such a long time because there is simply no competition for this price.

No problems here with youtube or Twitch. I have the 652 variant, though.

PlanDreaM said:
and no LED colour notifications
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Despite the color, the notification led of Mi Max 3 is barely noticable. They should allow to use the front flash instead.

Thank you for the responses so far, I really apreciate it, guys :highfive:
dio62000 said:
A.f.a.I.c. there are no better alternatives yet. First of all, screen size and ratio is most important for me. All phablets have that ugly notch these days and no dedicated hardware buttons. I've been looking at the Mi Max 3, but found out it has no coloured LED notification light (how stupid is that?). Huawei Honor Note 10 may be an option, but don't like the EMUI shell.
What's wrong with micro USB? You could use one of these if you don't like the micro USB connector, a lot cheaper than buying a new phone
https://www.ebay.com/itm/RAXFLY-Mic...1b:m:m7hqOpyZpTqJRBibCHhC9_A&var=601537300954
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agreed, no better alternatives yet for this such price vs display vs performance, and ofc notches be gone lol.
I have no prob with colorless LED Notification tho'
Honor Note 10 price rn is $510 for 4/64, that's crazy. Also I don't want to do the same mistake with Huawei/Kirin like I did with Asus/Intel. I would love to have stable custom ROM for once lol.
MicroUSB is just me being nitpicky hahaha, I don't have anything against MicroUSB tho, since most of my gadget still use it.
I also looking for that particular acc but Xiaomi Mi6 isn't compatible with magnetic adapter..meh..too bad (CMIIW)
PlanDreaM said:
The Mi Max 3 has much better camera but the CPU is not very fast, does not have NFC (AGAIN) and no LED colour notifications. I wouldn't but the 3/32, get a deal for the 652 ones or wait till something better comes our way.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
NFC might not too important for now, not in my home country at least hahaha
Hm.. but how abt the custom ROM compability for 652? I heard 650 is more popular and stable.
I checked Mi Max SD652 3/64 is about $147
pierro78 said:
I just bought a LG V20 on aliexpress because it s shock proof, has removable battery, better camera and better performance (but smaller screen) than mi max 1.
I believe there ll be promotions next week on aliexpress and you ll be able to find them for less than 140E (so more expensive than the mi max 1 ... but maybe you ll be able to find them cheaper elsewhere ... I am in France and they have not be sold here so it was kind of logical for me to import it ... )
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nice idea, but V20 still too small, I wish they went full Max like Mi Max
The price difference not that high for the V20 2nd hand unit tho'
souljaboy said:
I would not buy the snapdragon 650 variant, maybe the one with 652 (3gb/64gb or 4gb/128gb). But just save up for the mi max 3. It is only $250, similar to the new price of the mi max 1.
---------- Post added at 04:53 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:50 PM ----------
I would not buy the snapdragon 650(2gb/32gb or 3gb/32gb) variant, maybe the one with 652 (3gb/64gb or 4gb/128gb). But just save up for the mi max 3. It is only $250, similar to the new price of the mi max 1.
I have the 650 variant, and it is a bit slow and youtube 2x speed freezes at 720p60fps or higher.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How about the SD 652 compability for custom ROMs? and also I read SD 652 consume battery lot more and over heat more than SD 650
here's the article https://www.techcenturion.com/snapdragon-625-vs-650-vs-652
And what about normal speed? does it struggle too at 60fps?
$250 is twice the budget I have right now for Max1 lol
Maczuga said:
If your S650 device is having issues with 720p YouTube content then it is purely your private issue. I own Mi Max 1 3/32 for 2 years now and never had a lag/spike during watching any videos. This goes for YouTube, Twitch and many other services.
And now to the topic:
After 2 years I'm still able to get 3-4 days up with 9h sot (it used to be 10h+). Device is fast. Heck, I'm using miui 10 right now with CPU governor set to powersafe and battery optimization turned on - no lags at all. Modded gcam improves photos a lot. If you can get this phone really cheap then go for it. If you do not need such phone right now then do the same thing I'll do - wait until November sales (11.11 if I'm not mistaken) - most phones get their prices cut down a bit by then - and buy a Mi Max 3 (6.9 inches with same phone size will be great for media consumption). I used to change phones every 4-6 months. Mi Max is first phone I own for such a long time because there is simply no competition for this price.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Beta MIUI 10? Even my Mi6 didn't get official stable MIUI 10 yet lol
3-3days up? sounds promising hahaha
I'm thinking of putting Ressurection Remix in Mi Max tho' and I'd like to try gcam mod
The price rn still stable at $124
True, Max 3 have nearly identical physical size of Max 1. But the price is still outrageous (but it's a new new device ofc), I checked it's around $270 in here, price cut won't do them much justice.
I might not need such device urgently but I'm itching to buy one lol

Tertatabata said:
Beta MIUI 10? Even my Mi6 didn't get official stable MIUI 10 yet lol
3-3days up? sounds promising hahaha
I'm thinking of putting Ressurection Remix in Mi Max tho' and I'd like to try gcam mod
The price rn still stable at $124
True, Max 3 have nearly identical physical size of Max 1. But the price is still outrageous (but it's a new new device ofc), I checked it's around $270 in here, price cut won't do them much justice.
I might not need such device urgently but I'm itching to buy one lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yea, MIUI 10 from Xiaomi.eu - most of Xiaomi phones got their builds there, you might wanna check it out. I had to switch back again to RR 5.8.5 due to WiFi drain for me on MIUI 10. $124 is a pretty good price for Mi Max. I'd go for it. Or just like I said before - wait until 11.11 (but I wouldn't expect for price to drop that much on Mi Max 1). After doing more research I think I'm gonna wait for some other phone to show up for upgrade, so looks like 1 more year with Mi Max for me . Mi Max 3 is not really an upgrade if you take a look on that closely (battery feels even worse). Who knows, maybe Xiaomi sub-brand POCOPHONE will show up with something interesing (F1 already looks promissing, but there is no IR blaster for remote nor NFC for payments, so already too much to give up).

Hello Guys.. A few questions until my phone is bought:

I'm gonna hit myself in the balls and buy the Mi A2 Lite (I owned a Mi A1 phone but I broke it) and I want to check out this phone because why not? (Don't say it)
Did XIAOMI fixed their mistakes with the Mi A1? Missing EIS, broken updates etc.
People who already have the phone:
How is it? Good or bad for that price range? (I know I could get a better phone for the same amount of money so don't say it)
If anyone had a Mi A1 is anything better with Mi A2 Lite than with Mi A1?

SnoopDoggyStyleDogg said:
I'm gonna hit myself in the balls and buy the Mi A2 Lite (I owned a Mi A1 phone but I broke it) and I want to check out this phone because why not? (Don't say it)
Did XIAOMI fixed their mistakes with the Mi A1? Missing EIS, broken updates etc.
People who already have the phone:
How is it? Good or bad for that price range? (I know I could get a better phone for the same amount of money so don't say it)
If anyone had a Mi A1 is anything better with Mi A2 Lite than with Mi A1?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, I don't know about the Mi A1, but I've been using the A2 Lite for a few days and everything looks great...if you can get the 64/4 for 180-200$ or the 32/3 for a bit less it's good enough.
You could get better phones, for me android one is the deal-breaker. I just like stock android, and hate OEM's skins.
Battery life is really good, camera is ok, no laggy UI and it's updated to the latest security patch (August 5th).
If Android One is what you're looking for then yes, this phone is good for it's price range.
It's not a camera phone, but it takes nice photos if the light allows it, and is not a gaming phone, but gets the job done on my day to day use (which consists in no social apps installed, only Boost for Reddit and Whatsapp)
For the most part is a smaller A1 with a bigger battery.
I come from an S8, and I don't miss a single thing. Maybe the USB-C, but I couldn't care less. I needed a phone with near to stock Android, good battery life and comfortable size. This is it. If you have other needs, you can get something else for sure!

SnoopDoggyStyleDogg said:
1- Did XIAOMI fixed their mistakes with the Mi A1? Missing EIS, broken updates etc.
2- How is it? Good or bad for that price range? (I know I could get a better phone for the same amount of money so don't say it)
3- If anyone had a Mi A1 is anything better with Mi A2 Lite than with Mi A1?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1- I don't know. If I'm not wrong, no EIS by default, but with GCam I got some nice video stabilization compared to stock camera.
Only two OTA updates until now, both installed without problems, and they both come regularly in the second half of the month.
2- As you said, you can get better phones for the same money. The main reason I bought this phone is the 72 mm width, that you won't find at this price with all the features of Mi A2 Lite.
3- I don't have Mi A1 but the main differences with A2 Lite are the dimensions (A1 bigger than A2 Lite), the battery (3000 mAh on A1 vs 4000 mAh on A2 Lite) and the screen (regular 16:9 A1 vs 18:9 with notch on A2 Lite).

SnoopDoggyStyleDogg said:
Did XIAOMI fixed their mistakes with the Mi A1? Missing EIS, broken updates etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Too early to tell with the software but it does come with Treble so that is a bonus, It does see like EIS is included in the video and seems to work.
SnoopDoggyStyleDogg said:
How is it? Good or bad for that price range? (I know I could get a better phone for the same amount of money so don't say it)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Coming from a OnePlus 5, I wanted something smaller and this was one of the few devices under ~72mm. The 625 is sufficient for everything I do (Mostly Calls, Texting, Youtube & Social Media) (No Games). Camera is acceptable, not great not unusable. 4000mAh is just an awesome bonus. Phone is nice and loud. The only other device that caught my eye is the Nokia 6.1 Plus but I'm skeptical because the camera might be worse, isn't widely available and audio quality is questionable.
BubuXP said:
2- As you said, you can get better phones for the same money. The main reason I bought this phone is the 72 mm width, that you won't find at this price with all the features of Mi A2 Lite.
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Click to collapse
:highfive:

iLovPieNCake said:
Too early to tell with the software but it does come with Treble so that is a bonus, It does see like EIS is included in the video and seems to work.
Coming from a OnePlus 5, I wanted something smaller and this was one of the few devices under ~72mm. The 625 is sufficient for everything I do (Mostly Calls, Texting, Youtube & Social Media) (No Games). Camera is acceptable, not great not unusable. 4000mAh is just an awesome bonus. Phone is nice and loud. The only other device that caught my eye is the Nokia 6.1 Plus but I'm skeptical because the camera might be worse, isn't widely available and audio quality is questionable.
:highfive:
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Click to collapse
Phone still kind of big prefer it was a bit narrow and shorter.

Yeah same here but there aren't many options.

I've just ordered the Lite from Amazon. I've had an A1 for 2 days, but it seems broken so is going back. Main reasons for not going full A2 are the battery, I have a million micro USB cables, and the size. I don't need a top end phone, so for £155 and Google One, the lite is a total bargain.

To buy or not...

It looks like the mi 9 SE will be released global on the 28th of March. I want to "measure" how big the xda community will be for this phone, and also just curious...
If the mi 9 SE will be released globally, will you consider buying this phone (answer in poll)?

Well it's just as easy to modify as most of Xiaomi phones so I guess soon there will be here some custom rom choices. Especially if the only other smaller size competitor is Samsung 10e, for over twice the price.
I have 9se for about three weeks so far and must admit it's a great piece of hardware, but only if you like compact devices. Otherwise I'd rather choose Redmi Note 7 (limited budget) or Mi 9 or keep waiting for Poco F2.

winesh said:
It looks like the mi 9 SE will be released global on the 28th of March. I want to "measure" how big the xda community will be for this phone, and also just curious...
If the mi 9 SE will be released globally, will you consider buying this phone (answer in poll)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, absolutely. I'm looking forward to purchase the 128gb varient. I LOVE compact phones, especially the ones with flagship spec i.e. Sony. But I'm definitely getting the Mi 9 SE.

Actually, its form factor seem to be the best. I would consider buying the P30 or S10e, but the price is way better on the Mi 9 SE.
Just wondering if it worth waiting for the Mi A3 lite, which would be about the same smartphone except for the snapdragon (660 and not 712) but with Android One and b28....

It depends on what is important for you. I am planning to buy too, after I have seen some reviews and possibly if I see some development activity here.
The reasons I would buy this phone are: small size, amoled screen, quite decent chipset and nfc.
I would personally not buy the galaxy s10e because of the high price and the lack of developement I have seen with their previous phones.

kagazushi said:
Actually, its form factor seem to be the best. I would consider buying the P30 or S10e, but the price is way better on the Mi 9 SE.
Just wondering if it worth waiting for the Mi A3 lite, which would be about the same smartphone except for the snapdragon (660 and not 712) but with Android One and b28....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After having a mi A1 for over a year, I'm NEVER getting another Android one phone from Xiaomi!

keeeper said:
Well it's just as easy to modify as most of Xiaomi phones so I guess soon there will be here some custom rom choices. Especially if the only other smaller size competitor is Samsung 10e, for over twice the price.
I have 9se for about three weeks so far and must admit it's a great piece of hardware, but only if you like compact devices. Otherwise I'd rather choose Redmi Note 7 (limited budget) or Mi 9 or keep waiting for Poco F2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How about the quality of the photos??? Battery?

WhatzIt2Ya said:
After having a mi A1 for over a year, I'm NEVER getting another Android one phone from Xiaomi!
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Click to collapse
Ho that's interesting, can you explain why? (I guess the amoled screen won't be on the Mi A3 and that's why i'll buy the 9 SE, but still I'm curious)

Trunksleo said:
How about the quality of the photos??? Battery?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just watched a couple of reviews and forum posts so mine is not a "direct" opinion, anyway
About photos, they are very good. They are not great, as well as big brother Mi 9, probably that's due to the software: AI and drivers are still not perfectly calibrated on Sony IMX586. It looks like worst than Mi 8, even if on paper Mi9/Mi9SE should have a better sensor.
About battery, it's enough! If you use dark theme, you can reach 6 hours of display on. Recently Xiaomi released DC function for Mi 9 , maybe we will see the same for Mi 9 SE because both have AMOLED display, which can benefit of this DC function.
If battery sometime isn't enough, QC @ 18W can pump in a few minutes the energy you need to reach late night.

Trunksleo said:
How about the quality of the photos??? Battery?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Photos during daylight are great, just as you wish them to be. Every lens is doing it's job well - you can get a nice close up photo with zoom, wide angle lens proved to be useful as well, bokeh is nice (but it used to be so even on Mi 6). I am a little disappointed with night mode though - before I was playing with it on Mix 3 and there the results looked like magic, here are mediocre. It looks like the algorithm is only increasing the general brightness of the photo without recognizing the difference between stuff which should be visible and that is supposed to remain dark. The effect is obviously worse than on Mi 9 (basing on the reviews).
The battery is sufficient. Mi 9 SE as a smaller size phone is not bought for gaming therefore for any other activity can be used quite long. E.g. I've got over 14 hours of continuous movie play (MX Player HW+) and 25 hours when left as a clock (Big Clock app on Google Play). When you're not using the phone the battery drain is about 1% per hour with Ambient Display on.

kagazushi said:
Ho that's interesting, can you explain why? (I guess the amoled screen won't be on the Mi A3 and that's why i'll buy the 9 SE, but still I'm curious)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Xiaomi is notoriously slow with updates. Like now, it's the end of March still no March patch, some people didn't even get Feb patch yet. And the biggest f*** up that Xiaomi did is after android pie update. Wifi Mac has changed, some people got their phone bricked, wifi keeps disconnecting, battery life is super poor (4-5h sot), a lot of bugs I encounter every day, still using 3.18 kernel instead of 4.9 etc. etc.

WhatzIt2Ya said:
Xiaomi is notoriously slow with updates. Like now, it's the end of March still no March patch, some people didn't even get Feb patch yet. And the biggest f*** up that Xiaomi did is after android pie update. Wifi Mac has changed, some people got their phone bricked, wifi keeps disconnecting, battery life is super poor (4-5h sot), a lot of bugs I encounter every day, still using 3.18 kernel instead of 4.9 etc. etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok so according to you, the best way is to buy the mi 9 se for its hardware and run custom roms on it? That's my secret plan

kagazushi said:
Ok so according to you, the best way is to buy the mi 9 se for its hardware and run custom roms on it? That's my secret plan
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nah, the only reason why switched to custom for a while is because the wifi problem, everyone is facing this issue. It's disconnects won't won't connect back, and 5ghz wifi speed is very poor.
---------- Post added at 09:57 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:55 AM ----------
kagazushi said:
Ok so according to you, the best way is to buy the mi 9 se for its hardware and run custom roms on it? That's my secret plan
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I want the mi 9 se as a replacement device. I finally want a premium (cut down) flagship phone, and hopefully will last for about 4 years or more.

Looks like I was following a false track. The release from 28th only contained mi 9 and redmi note 7.
There have been a few others sources hinting towards a global launch. For now we just have to wait.

winesh said:
Looks like I was following a false track. The release from 28th only contained mi 9 and redmi note 7.
There have been a few others sources hinting towards a global launch. For now we just have to wait.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Many AliExpress sellers are accepting pre-sales with some displaying pictures showing stock of the global version. I have placed an order with HK Goldway, I'll update when it's shipped.

Rdavis27 said:
Many AliExpress sellers are accepting pre-sales with some displaying pictures showing stock of the global version. I have placed an order with HK Goldway, I'll update when it's shipped.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is also listed on geekbuying for buying, not only for preorder.
6/64 edition for about 330€ after using coupons seems to be quite a good deal.

Pros:
- 6" screen is still enough.
- Amoled screen and non-intrusive notch.
- Size. The device itself is tiny and lightweight.
- Hardware is below flagship, but much better than mid-range.
- Treble enabled, kernel source already released.
Cons:
- MIUI environment is not so friendly.
- dev scene (I hope I am wrong).
- OEM updates.

Flounderist said:
Pros:
- 6" screen is still enough.
- Amoled screen and non-intrusive notch.
- Size. The device itself is tiny and lightweight.
- Hardware is below flagship, but much better than mid-range.
- Treble enabled, kernel source already released.
Cons:
- MIUI environment is not so friendly.
- dev scene (I hope I am wrong).
- OEM updates.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Miui and oem updates aren't the issue for me.

Ok, so to summerize:
- Small from factor
- Amoled screen
- Indisplay fingerprint
- 4G b20 and b28
- Widevine L1
- 6Gb RAM
A part for the CPU power, it is even more interesting for me than s10e, and for half the price.
So I definetly swap my OnePlus 6 for this device. The last question is where should we buy it to be sure we have the global version?
I saw that honorbuy.com send the right one with even european charger, but a bit expansive...
Fantacy seller on aliexpress? Anyone ever tried?
Thanks.

kagazushi said:
I saw that honorbuy.com send the right one with even european charger, but a bit expansive...
Fantacy seller on aliexpress? Anyone ever tried?
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would reccomend honorbuy because of european stock and no VAT on delivery (if you are based in Europe).
Devices are shipped with european socket charger.
If you buy on Aliexpress you must check any custom duty that would be added to the shipment in your country.