The Xiaomi Mi Mix Fold jumps into the foldable phone wars.
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| Xiaomi Mi Mix Fold (credit xiaomi) |
Just like Huawei's clone, the Xiaomi Fold is without a doubt greater than Samsung's 7.6-inch device and sports a 60 Hz, 2480×1860, 8.01-inch internal flexible OLED display. The outside display on Xiaomi's Fold is a 90 Hz, 2520×840, 6.5-inch OLED display, which is larger than Samsung's 6.2-inch display and Huawei's 6.45-inch outer display. Strangely, Xiaomi is adopting the contrary strategy to screen refresh rates that Samsung is taking. On the Z Fold 2, a quick 120 Hz display is the inside tablet screen on the device, while the phone screen is 60 Hz. Xiaomi made the big inside screen slow and the external screen fast.
Xiaomi has chosen an iPad-like 4:3 aspect ratio for inside screen, while Samsung changed from almost 4:3 in the first generation (4.2:3) to a taller 5:4 aspect ratio in its second-genration foldable. Huawei arrived around this 5:4 aspect ratio for its foldable, as well. It's difficult to tell what the right screen aspects are for an Android foldable, since Android tablets have been dead for such a long time that there's actually no application support anymore. Today, most Android applications are smartphone apps, and they truly battle to adjust to bigger display. Samsung's and Huawei's ~5:4 shows are almost two standard 21:9 Android smartphones placed next to each other, so they can side step this issue simply by running in split-screen most of the time. The 4:3 aspect ratio of the Galaxy Fold 1 was altogether too confined for split-screen.
One of the things Xiaomi and every other vendor can't match is Samsung's foldable glass display. Devices like the Galaxy Z Flip and Z Fold 2 actually have an "ultra-thin" layer of glass in the display. It's not the top layer (that's still easily scratchable plastic) but it gives some much-needed rigidity to a flexible display, which otherwise can be a rippled, squishy, light-distorting mess. Xiaomi doesn't have any actual pictures of the device, just renders, which all pitch the inner display as perfectly flat. In real life, expect ripples in the display and a big crease in the display where it folds in half.
High-end smartphone parts make up the rest of the internals. The phone has a Snapdragon 888 SoC, 12 GB of RAM, 256 GB of storage, 67 W wired charging, and a 5020 mAh battery. Xiaomi notes there are four speakers and a side fingerprint scanner. Disappointingly, Xiaomi is shipping the phone with Android 10 instead of the latest version, Android 11.
The camera features the debut of “Liquid Lens technology” in a smartphone. One of the camera lenses is literally a drop of oil instead of a glass lens, and by applying a voltage to it, you can change the shape and focal length of the lens. Liquid lenses are not a new idea—they show up in things like industrial barcode scanners—but they're new for a phone. Xiaomi says the lens allows one camera to cover two functions: the 8 MP sensor is both a 3x optical zoom and has a minimum focus distance of 3 cm for macro photos.
Your liquid lens needs to not freeze in low temperatures, but Xiaomi says you'll be good for a low of -40 °C (-40 °F) to a high of 60 °C (140 °F). The rest of your smartphone will probably stop working before the lens does in temperatures like that. There's also a 108 MP primary sensor and a 13 MP ultra-wide on the back.
The Xiaomi Mi Mix Fold ships in China, (only, for now) on April 16 and starts at CNY 9,999, or ~$1,526.