Xiaomi MIX Flip was a pleasant surprise for us immediately after its presentation. Given that it is the first generation of a clamshell folding smartphone from this manufacturer, we really like the device. As soon as it was available at the dealer TradingShenzhen, we didn't hesitate to order the Chinese version, since there is currently no global edition. Xiaomi MIX Flip will probably reach our market in a few months. We are the only ones in Slovakia and the Czech Republic to bring you a review of this flexible novelty.
Where to buy Xiaomi MIX Flip?
As we already mentioned, our partner store TradingShenzhen became the first international e-shop to offer this smartphone. Since Xiaomi MIX Flip features full support of our local networks, incl LTE bands B20 and the most modern 5G networks, you won't have a single problem with coverage and connection reliability with our operators.
A Chinese ROM is installed on the device. This means that the software is localized in Chinese or English language. When we turned on the phone for the first time, we were taken directly to the system instead of the traditional initial setup screen.
The reason is that the seller turned on and installed the smartphone before sending it Google Play Services even with himself Play Store, which we rely on in Europe on Android devices.
You can choose a black, white or purple variant. We ordered the smartphone in black color has a 256 GB internal storage space. The delivery has been made already within 10 days. Transport Global Priorities it will cost you a few euros and you will be pleased that you will not have to pay any additional customs fees or VAT.
Xiaomi MIX Flip Chinese Version (with B20 LTE)
You do not pay any extra fees for Global Priority shipping.
We recommend choosing Global Priority transport, for which you will not pay extra. Customs fees and any VAT will be arranged for you directly by the seller. Shipping can only be selected in the cart, after entering the delivery address. Delivery with Global Priority usually takes about 15 days, but may take longer.
You do not pay any extra fees for Global Priority shipping.
We recommend choosing Global Priority transport, for which you will not pay extra. Customs fees and any VAT will be arranged for you directly by the seller. Shipping can only be selected in the cart, after entering the delivery address. Delivery with Global Priority usually takes about 15 days, but may take longer.
You do not pay any extra fees for Global Priority shipping.
We recommend choosing Global Priority transport, for which you will not pay extra. Customs fees and any VAT will be arranged for you directly by the seller. Shipping can only be selected in the cart, after entering the delivery address. Delivery with Global Priority usually takes about 15 days, but may take longer.
Technical specifications of Xiaomi MIX Flip
| Model | Xiaomi MIX Flip |
|---|---|
| dimensions | Open: 167.5 x 74.02 x 7.8 mm |
| Closed: 167.5 x 74.02 x 16.19 mm | |
Weight |
192 g |
Internal display |
LTPO OLED / 6.86 inches |
| 1224 x 2912 px / 460 ppi / 120 Hz / 3000 nits (peak) | |
External display |
LTPO AMOLED / 4.01 inches |
| 1392 x 1208 px / 21:9 / 120 Hz / 3000 nits (peak) | |
processor |
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen3 |
Graphics |
Adreno 750 |
Cameras |
50 MPx main camera | aperture f/1.7 | OIS | 23 mm | PDAF focusing |
| 50 MPx telephoto lens | aperture f/2.0 | 47 mm | 120° | PDAF focusing | 2x optical zoom | |
| 32 MPx front camera | f/2.0 | 21 mm | 0.7 µm | |
SD card |
No |
| 3.5 mm jack | No |
| Infrared port | Yes |
NFC |
Yes |
Radio |
No |
Drums |
4780 mAh |
| Fast wired charging 67W | |
Increased durability |
IPX8 |
Contents of the package
In the black box except Xiaomi MIX Flip also found 67 W charging adapter with USB-A to USB-C cable. It is a type of charger with a Chinese end, so the seller will include a reduction for a European socket.
The package also includes user manuals, which of course lack the Slovak localization, technical documentation, a tool for selecting the slot for two nanoSIM cards, and also the packaging, which is made up of two parts.
The top protects the phone's bezels and leaves a large opening for an external display. The lower part protects the entire second half of the device. There is an adhesive inside the package to ensure proper attachment to the smartphone, before putting it on for the first time, you have to peel off the protective tapes.
Construction and design
Xiaomi MIX Flip is one of the best-designed folding "caps" on the market. Considering that this is the first generation of such a smartphone, Xiaomi you have done a really respectable job. The device is very well made, nothing creaks, the flexible hinge works reliably and does not bend in a different direction than it should.
The sides of the phone are made of shiny metal, which fortunately is not very prone to picking up fingerprints. The back side is glass - the bottom is made of matte glass, the top is made of glossy glass. The glass is curved at the edges. The primary point of attention will be the external display, which occupies a significant part of the top half.
The screen is also located in the close vicinity of the two camera lenses. The place of bending in the inner part of the screen is visible only under a certain angle of incident light, we did not register it very much in a darker room. It doesn't even get in the way when we touch it, we're completely used to it and it can be easily forgotten.
The smartphone can be left open in the middle and beyond. It is not possible to leave it open below 90°, the mechanism will close it. In the closed state, a magnet holds the entire structure together to prevent unwanted opening. Pay attention to the fact that the inner screen is plastic. You can actually scratch it with your fingernail, which is why we recommend it Xiaomi MIX Flip still idle close.
On the top of the phone there is an infrared port for controlling home electronics. The bottom edge hosts a USB-C port, a microphone, a slot for two nanoSIM cards and a speaker. The secondary speaker is located in the upper part of the internal display and also serves to create a stereo output. It is of good quality and loud enough. We also had no problem watching videos without using headphones.
On the right side, there are buttons for volume control and the power button, which also hides a fast and reliable fingerprint reader. It works one hundred percent and you can always rely on it. It also allows you to unlock the external screen when it is Xiaomi MIX Flip closed.
Dimensions:
- Open: 167.5 x 74.02 x 7.8 mm
- Closed: 74.02 x 74.02 x 16.19 mm
Weight:
- 192 g
Overall, we rate the construction and design very positively. In the open state, the smartphone is quite tall, as evidenced by the diagonal of the internal display. However, its width is at the level of other smartphones, so control should not be a problem even for users with smaller hands. The construction of the smartphone is water resistant according to the certification IPX8, which is a nice insurance in case of some unfortunate situation.
displays
Let's start with the external display. He has 4-inch diagonal, resolution 1392 x 1208 px and refresh rate 120 Hz. It achieves brightness 1600 rivets (HBM) and in certain situations up to 3000 rivets (peak), for example during use in direct sunlight. This is the pride of this smartphone. It features wide personalization options and allows you to perform most of the actions as the primary display inside. Shows notifications, date, time and battery percentage.
The appearance of the locked external screen can be changed in the settings, or just swipe at the bottom of the display and the basic display styles will change, of which there are plenty, by the way. You will surely find one that you like.
There are also animated screens, for example with animals, which really caught our attention. You can use the widgets that appear on the right side of the screen. The one on the left shows the application you are using. There are actually a lot of them supported. Via the external display, it is also possible to write to messages from various popular chat applications. If you have larger fingers, typing on the software keyboard on the external display will not be the most comfortable.
Internal LTPO YOU ARE display has 6,86-inch diagonal, resolution 1224 x 2912 px with a resulting fineness of approx 460 ppi and of course it can also boast a high refresh rate on the level 120 Hz. Supports imaging HDR10 + content, is characterized by technology Dolby Vision and supports maximum (peak) luminance up to a value of 3000 rivets.
Performance
Looking at the spec sheet, it's probably obvious that you can expect excellent performance. Chip Snapdragon 8 Gen3 takes care of the smooth operation of the user environment and has enough power for practically everything. However, heat dissipation is a problem. Not during daily use, but in the case of demanding tasks, the device can quickly overheat due to its special design.
The device failed the stress test in the 3DMark benchmark and overheated. The system shut down all processes and the smartphone had to cool down. It was very hot indeed and uncomfortable to hold. However, we must note that we did not encounter any performance or overheating issues during our day-to-day use. However, it is something that you should focus on, especially if on Xiaomi MIX Flip for example, you plan to play graphically demanding games.
Longer, demanding operation can still lead to problems with heat dissipation. The user interface is well tuned and we didn't encounter any stuck animations. The version tested by us has 12 GB RAM, which is plenty enough for demanding multitasking. There is also a version with 16 GB operating memory.
Operating system
Basically Xiaomi MIX Flip is on the software side Android 14 with superstructure HyperOS, which was at version 1.0.8.0 during the testing period, and at the end of the testing, the update to 1.0.11.0 arrived. It addresses some bugs that we didn't encounter while using it and updates the security patch to August 2024. It also added features for apps used in China, so it wasn't a big deal for us.
Chinese software is usable here. If you don't mind using the system in English and you won't miss it Android Auto, Chinese HyperOS it will probably suit you. However, there is one problem and that is the delayed notifications. Sometimes it happens that the notification from popular chat applications does not come at all, or only after opening the application. However, this rarely happened. The delay was usually about 10-20 minutes. However, if the smartphone was inactive for a very long time, the notification came calmly only after several hours.
Several times we did not receive a very important message on, for example, WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger because of this problem. Especially Slack, which is used in various teams and companies, is problematic on Chinese ROMs. Over time, the situation improved, notifications often came after the screen was turned on, but they were still delayed in sleep mode. Of course, we turned off background application optimizations and Google Play Services are also installed, which probably take care of the arrival of these notifications in the background. This is something you should consider before buying.
Alone HyperOS is a system full of several useful functions, which you probably already know intimately as a fan of the brand. A Chinese ROM may also bring special features, but they are primarily intended for local users from China. Glad to see software updates coming to these Chinese ROMs sooner.
The small number of pre-installed applications will be very pleasing. A global or European ROM is usually pre-installed, sponsored apps, downright crammed. Some special built-in applications, such as the music player, are completely in Chinese. We recommend uninstalling these apps and replacing them with better-known alternatives from the Play Store.
Mobile payment works by the way. Download the app from Google Play Google Wallet, set it as the default application for making contactless payments, add your card and you're done. Of course, the NFC switch must be turned on.
Cameras
There are two camera lenses on the back. It is the primary, 50 MPx sensor, with f/1.7 aperture and optical image stabilization. The secondary telephoto lens comes with the same, 50 MPx resolution and f/2.0 aperture. It has 2x optical zoom. In fact, we'd rather see some kind of ultra-wide-angle lens here instead of a telephoto lens with such a low zoom level. However, its high resolution also allows for a fairly high-quality hybrid zoom.
On the other hand, we have to admit that you can't easily find a telephoto lens in a foldable "flip" smartphone. For example, the Oppo Find N3 Flip is worth mentioning. It has a front camera 32 SM (f/2.0). It is possible to record with the rear cameras 4K video at a frame rate of 60 fps or up to 8K video at 24 fps. You can record a maximum of 4K / 60 fps video with the front lens.
Leica also collaborated with Xiaomi on the color correction of the resulting photos. As a result, you can choose from two color modes - "Authentic" and "Vibrant". As their names suggest, the first of them produces contrasting photos that are closer to reality in terms of colors, while "Vibrant" emphasizes the variety of colors and enhances the overexposure of the resulting image. The results can be very nice in both cases and it's up to you which mode you like more. We would rotate them depending on specific situations. The photos already have a typical look for Xiaomi, which we are able to recognize.
The images retain the darkness of the shadows, they are a little softer, but nicely contrasted. The phone handles scenes with high dynamic range well. It can surprise even at night. We also tried the "Pro" mode for taking photos of the Milky Way. You can really work with a 30-second shutter for astrophotography as well.
A RAW file is also generated, which you can then work with in editing programs. We attach an image in jpeg format without additional modifications. By the way, if we don't write under the sample photo which Leica mode it is, the photo was made in "Vibrant" style. The differences are sometimes so minimal that it is not even worth adding a second photo.
Video recording
Battery and charging
The big surprise is the battery life. Due to their specific construction, bendable smartphones usually do not excel in this regard. The biggest accumulators do not steal the show in their guts, as the space is largely limited due to the bending mechanisms. Therefore, we are happy to inform you that they will last Xiaomi MIX Flip can also compare with competition that has a traditional design.
It is not a champion, but the important thing is that the novelty does not disappoint in this respect either. We got approximately one charge 8 hours with the screen on, despite the longer times in standby (idle) mode when we were working on the computer. This is really excellent for a folding smartphone, especially for a flexible "cap". We dare to say that it is one of the best smartphones in this category from the point of view not only of endurance, but also of charging speed.
In the settings, you will see the health of the battery and options for intelligent optimized charging. There is also an option to automatically stop charging as soon as the phone reaches 80%. This will definitely please those who care about the long-term battery life.
In our case, it sometimes meant a two-day operation. Of course, it will last shorter for more demanding users. The important thing is that the smartphone will last a whole day practically, and if there is a faster, unexpected discharge, fast charging is still available. Packaged 67 W adapter Xiaomi MIX Flip fully charges for 62 minutes.
Hour |
Charge level |
|---|---|
10 minutes |
26% |
20 minutes |
45% |
30 minutes |
58% |
40 minutes |
73% |
50 minutes |
89% |
60 minutes |
99% |
62 minutes |
100% |
Connectivity
Smartphone connectivity Xiaomi MIX Flip she is very rich. Thanks to the modern chipset, several today's standards are not missing, such as Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, globally used GNSS services (localization is a little slower, but it will work reliably outdoors) and an infrared port, NFC and USB-C version 2.0 are also available.
We had no problem connecting to operators Orange, Radosť (O2) and 4ka. As already mentioned, the phone fully supports all European frequencies, including LTE band B20 and the most modern 5G networks. The connection to the mobile Internet was very fast and we did not experience any problems with calls.
Xiaomi MIX Flip: Final evaluation
Xiaomi MIX Flip is, in our opinion, one of the best clamshell-style folding smartphones. It is likely that it is even the best in several aspects. It offers solid cameras, a refined design with high-quality displays, while the external one is quite practical, there are modern parameters and, above all, a decent endurance, which makes the novelty extremely competitive. In addition, it charges relatively quickly.
If we leave aside the imperfections that the Chinese ROM brings, it is an excellent choice for those looking for a smartphone with such a construction. Xiaomi MIX Flip belongs to our recommendation and we rightly give the manufacturer a thumbs up. Considering that it is the first generation of such a product, the result is more than satisfactory. A review will follow on Xiaomi MIX Fold 4", which we ordered at the same time as MIX Flips, so don't forget to keep following us.
Hello. Just an info, it's wrongly displayed there
Dimensions:
But Mix Flip also has something in it…
Thank you, we corrected the dimensions 🙂
It looks fine... only if the foil on it is destroyed like on my Samsung z-flip 4, I don't know who will solve it... I change it every six months
As someone already mentioned here. How will it be if the film is damaged. Where will the exchange be possible? Because of other flexible phones, the lifetime of the foil is about a year. Thank you for the answer
Hello, we will try to find out through our partner TradingShenzhen, which otherwise has top service. We will let you know.
Okay. Thank you. Unfortunately, this is a big problem with flexible phones. The foil must be replaced regularly. 😊