The new family of Xiaomi smartphones is finally among us. After a fantastic global presentation, the hat-trick of the 12 series from Xiaomi arrives in the hands of the Italians and in ours. Xiaomi has accustomed us over the years to high quality products to a more than competitive price. Features that, in the space of a few years, have earned it a great reputation also in Italy, becoming one of the fastest growing smartphone brands. Now, after having explored the magnificence of Xiaomi 12 Pro, the high-end model of this colorful family, we discover all the features of Xiaomi 12 and Xiaomi 12X in this review.
Our Xiaomi 12 review
As anticipated, Xiaomi’s 12 series includes the standard model, Xiaomi 12X and Xiaomi 12Pro. The Pro version has been widely gutted in our official review while the two “little ones” of Xiaomi we will discover them later in this article, but let’s start with order.
Xiaomi Technical Sheet 12
Let’s find out all the technical characteristics of the standard Xiaomi 12 model.
- Dimensions: 152x69x81cm
- Weight: 180 grams
- Display: 6.28 ″ (1080 × 2400) OLED
- Sim: Nano sim, dual sim
- Chipset: Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 Qualcomm SM8450
- RAM: 8GB
- Memory maximum: 256GB (not expandable)
- Camera rear: 50 Mp + 13 Mp + 5 Mp, 8165 × 6124 resolution
- Front camera: 32MP
- Battery: 4500 mAH
Design
The new Xiaomi 12 boasts a modern, minimalist style with lots of character. With dimensions in line with the competition (152x69x81cm) and a weight that is not binding at all (180 grams), the smartphone proves to be an excellent ally in everyday life. Soft lines and curves give it an aerial look, beautiful to see and touch.
The 6.28 “display is protected by the now inevitable Gorilla Glass Victus and is extremely pleasing to the eye despite the presence of the notch. The back is characterized by a particularly pleasant to touch satin material that leaves absolutely no fingerprints. Equally pleasant is thearea dedicated to the set of cameras where the large 50MP lens dominates followed by the flash and the two vertically placed 13MP and 5MP lenses. The camera area is much more protruding than the smartphone body to ensure the safety of the cameras even if it does not use a cover (included in the package.)
Intriguing element of the design are strips of color placed on the sides of the smartphone of slightly different tonality to that of the body which give it variety movement. Currently, the Xiaomi 12 is available in 3 colors: Blue, Purple and Black.
Included in the package, as anticipated, we find a cover, the instruction booklet, the charging cable USB Type C is Xiaomi’s charger with ultra-fast charging support.
Technology
After the pleasant body of the Xiaomi 12, we are even more surprised to discover the technology inside. Undoubtedly the great novelty of this model is the presence of the brand new First generation Snapdragon 8 chip, the latest model and the most powerful chip made by the company. The new Xiaomi family thus brings the world of smartphones to 2022 with the best of available technology. They are flanked by him 8 GB of RAM and 128 or 256Gb of internal memory, unfortunately not expandable. All this works together so that you can have the best performing and fastest smartphone available (we will find out how it will have behaved in the field later in this review).
Thelarge 6.28 ″ AMODEL FullHD + screen. This is a very good quality 12 bit panel cwith HDR10 + support and up to 1100 nit brightness. This fantastic display boasts a refresh rate of up to 120Hz. This results in a sensational image restitution and unique stability.
Also noteworthy is the presence of ben e two audio speakers curated by Arman Kardon (one on the bottom and one on the top), unusual for a smartphone which however guarantee a wide and high quality sound. They are not missing Dolby Atmos effects and wide and powerful bass. However, the headphone jack input is missingnow in danger of extinction.
Camera
The set of cameras it is not only pleasant to look at but also highly performing. We are in fact in front of a main objective of 50 MP with Sony IMX 766 paired with a standard lens with optical stabilization and F / 1.8 aperture. The goal from 13MP is ultrawide while the smallest is one 5MP macro camera. All the cameras and technology inside the Xiaomi 12 work together to give us High-quality shots with the rear camera, even in low light. In fact, there are some modes designed specifically to work best at night or in any case in dark situations.
Videos also return an excellent picture and sound, supported by the video modes provided by the Xiaomi application which introduces many new features and old acquaintances.
Instead, the ultrawide camera underlines of which, even in this generation of smartphones, we have seen better. In fact, a lot of light is needed to return a pleasant shot and keep the colors alive. The macro camera is excellent.
Battery
That ofautonomy it is still a very hot topic and particularly taken into consideration by the smartphone companies. Xiaomi is no exception. On this model we have in fact a 4,500 mAH battery, more than enough, on average, to get to the end of the day with a single charge. But Xiaomi has gone further and she gives us the most precious gift of all: time.
In fact, the new Xiaomi 12 family supports ultra-fast charging at 67 Watts (charger included in the package) that allows you to recharge your smartphone from 0 to 100% in just over half an hour. This is an excellent result that reduces, if not eliminates, the waiting times to recharge the smartphone and always have it available.
Not only that, even in this model there are technologies and methods for respect the health of the battery and ensure a longer life. We are talking about functions like the smart night chargingwhich prevents the smartphone from charging 100% until the morning.
Xiaomi 12X turn, what’s the difference?
After browsing through all the features of the new Xiaomi 12, the time has come for Xiaomi 12X. In reality there is little to tell why the two smartphones are practically identical. Same display, same camera, same battery, etc. The only substantial difference concerns the chipset.
In the Xiaomi 12X, in fact, we find one Snapdragon 870, the last generation chip that, despite everything, still has something to tell. This change affects the weight, just 4 grams lower than the standard 12 but, above all, in the near: 100 euros less.
Can this chip change compromise the performance of Xiaomi 12X? let’s find out!
Our test of the Xiaomi 12 …
Thanks to Xiaomi, we tested the Xiaomi 12 for about 2 weeks during which it became our smartphone for everyday use and show off. This new Xiaomi indeed boasts a really captivating design with pastel colors that are pleasant to see but above all to touch. Our version was the pink (princess!) Version, with a satin back which, despite attempts, leaves no footprints.
But the real magic happens once you log in. With the Xiaomi 12 family, the new one also arrives MIUI 13, Xiaomi’s Android 12-based interface which turned out to be a real find. In addition to the aesthetic factor, always captivating, the various functions inside have left us amazed and cover many factors. The inspiration for iOS is clear and reaches high levels of precision and efficiency, essential when you want to take advantage of the new Snapdragon 8. Describing the speed of a chip is not simple in words but during our use, work, leisure, entertainment, Xiaomi 12 behaved very well, without any slowdowns or errors.
Staying on the subject of entertainment, we would like to do a applause to the display, very pleasant to see and also to touch. The fingers slide easily and without creating friction, which is extremely useful if you are a gamer on smartphones. At the same time, the dual output of the speaker makes it a mini-speaker for listening to music or watching movies.
The camera department is also doing well, although we must admit that many other models on the market can boast similar or better performance (we think of the same Xiaomi 12Pro).
… And the 12X
Simultaneously with the Xiaomi 12, we tested the Xiaomi 12X side by side to understand if the slight chip difference was so substantial. Let us tell you that despite “age”, it is Snapdragon 870 still defends itself very well and it turned out to be a very good chip. The differences with the new generation are noticeable only and exclusively in moments of great workload, such as a particularly demanding video game or graphic work apps that require large resources. Beyond these occasions, Xiaomi 12 and Xiaomi 12X practically are the same.
The review of the new Xiaomi 12 in short
Both the Xiaomi 12 and the 12X pleasantly surprised us. It is not easy to create such an effective mix of performance and design in a single smartphone family but Xiaomi, once again, has succeeded. Three o’clock…