Xiaomi Mi A1 coupon and review
Android One seemed oblivious but over the last few months we witnessed a new revaluation thanks to some very interesting smartphones not only on the entry level zone.
The new protagonist of the Android One project is Xiaomi, who has well thought of proposing a Mi 5X version with pure Android.
Today we propose the overview of Xiaomi Mi A1, a smartphone in its own way historical and which has awakened many Nexus nostalgia.
Couponcode: xiaomiA11 for $219.99 500units only
Unboxing
In the package you will find the phone with a 5V-2A (QC 2.0) European/American wall outlet and a USB-Type C cable for charging and data exchange. There are 3 colors you can choose from, black, gold and rose.
Hardware & Connectivity
Xiaomi Mi A1 perfectly matches the hardware of the Xiaomi Mi 5X, which is of a very good level, so considering the price it is sold.
The chipset is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 625, a 2.0 GHz octacore, coupled to the Adreno 506 GPU and 4 GB of lpDDR3 RAM.
The 64 GB internal memory is expandable by micro SD by renouncing the second SIM slot.
Complete from the point of view of the sensors, we find a luminance detector, one of proximity, accelerometer, gyroscope, magnetometer.
On the back there is a fast fingerprint reader, on the front side three backlit soft-touch buttons and a white notification LED.
It is also great from the point of view of the connections: we find Cat LTE support (the processor supports Cat. 13), WiFi ac, Bluetooth 4.2, GPS and IR port.
Type C port is type 2.0 and supports OTG.
Telephone and antenna parts
Xiaomi Mi A1 is a dual SIM (dual standby) smartphone, but you have to give up the second sim slot in that mode.
It gets good but does not have a completely stable signal, especially in motion.
Nothing dramatic, however, is simply the standard for medium and low bandwidth smartphones, it should also be noted that unlike the Mi 5X it has full support to band 20 (800Mhz).
Great GPS navigation, as well as the reach of WiFi and the Bluetooth connection.
Performance
The Xiaomi Mi A1 is powered by one of the best processors ever, the Snapdragon 625 delivers great performance without affecting power consumption, while the rest of the data card adds even more margin to a device that runs smoothly even under stress.
The gaming performance is good and in general this variation seemed to be slightly better than the 5X, especially at a distance of a few days from the first start when the memory began to be more saturated.
Ergonomics, Design & Materials
Xiaomi Mi A1 is well-built, aluminum on the back and protected by a Gorilla Glass 4 on the front, with 2.5d machining. It is not a smartphone especially optimized for frames but it should be said that at least the lower one is justified by the presence of the three soft-touch buttons.
The dimensions are 155.4 x 75.8 x 7.3 mm and the weight is 165 grams. In the hand it is fairly good despite being slippery, and the feeling transmitted is that of a more expensive smartphone.
It is available in rose gold, black and silver.
The design, above all because of the presence of the double cam and the profile of the antennas, reminds a lot of iPhone 7 Plus, which is also inherited by the equilibrium and the simple appearance that historically we find on the apple products.
Display, Audio & Multimedia
The display is a 5.5-inch IPS LCD with FullHD resolution. A good unit, but it does not surprise you with contrasts and brilliance, indeed the colors look like a thread loosened and the depth of the blacks is not perfect.
Already the Mi 5X variant did not fully convince us and this Mi A1 is the confirmation. However, it remains a good quality screen and aligned with the price range, but compared to the other components it does not convey that sense of quality.
The audio compartment is of good quality thanks to a “limpid” sound headset and a particularly powerful mono speaker, although the quality is not high, especially by raising the volume beyond a certain limit.
Camera
The Xiaomi Mi A1 comes with two rear cameras with a 12 mega pixel sensor, one of which is a standard focal length and a 2x optical zoom, both are not mechanically stabilized.
The main cam has F / 2.2 aperture while the F / 2.6 zoom is then accompanied by a dual flash LED and the focus is at phase detection.
The images are of good quality, especially in the day light where the details are not missing and the colors are faithfully reproduced. It still needs a firm hand as soon as the light goes down and in any case with the zoom cam.
At night, there is a lack of stabilization, in general, perhaps the only lacuna in this smartphone. However, noise management is also good at high ISO.
The zoom cam can be used for portraits (to which you can add a bokeh software effect) or for very detailed macros, but it will simulate a zoom using the main cam on which a crop is made.
The selfies are discrete thanks to the 5 mega pixel cam, they rank in the market average, while the videos are not at all satisfactory.
Battery & Autonomy
The 3080 mAh battery will be able to take you lightly at night with at least 5h of on-screen display, a result that could improve depending on your style of use. In some cases we also got 6h of active display spread over a day and a half of activity.
The key point is that it will not let you without power even in the long days and it does not particularly suffer from outdoor use unlike what we saw with the Samsung Galaxy Note 8. Standby power is great, which is almost null.
Software
Xiaomi Mi A1 is in two words an “Android One” and with this acronym we could sum up all the software chapter.
It is very special because it is followed and updated directly by Goolge or under the strict supervision of Big G.
By virtue of this feature, it is intended to receive Android security updates every month for a minimum of two years.
The software is completely stock, so pure and essential as it was thought by Goolge. The only three additions concern the Xiaomi camera app, an IR port management tool, and a Xiaomi customer care app.
Pure software has its advantages and defects, certainly giving space to the user’s creativity with little memory in mind, allowing us to personalize the system according to our needs. The other great benefit is smarphone responsiveness due to its simple ROM, light and well-functioning in every part.
The main disadvantage is that compared to ROMs modified by manufacturers you will have many less advanced features and few pre-installed useful apps.
In conclusion
We have come to the end of the review of Xiaomi Mi A1, proposed around 200 € on Gearbest.
If the Mi 5X was a product for experienced users, Xiaomi Mi A1 also eliminates the only real criticism that we had highlighted, resulting in a product of unrivaled and ready-to-use “out of the box” for everyone, even beginners.
We have no real reasons not to recommend this phone to you, if you are looking for a simple, well-functioning smartphone with an eye for autonomy, camera quality and build quality.
The only thing to keep in mind is the absence of Xiaomi on the European market, with the consequent lack of equipment dedicated to customer care and repairs. This means that the importer’s shop will be responsible for any problems, but in some cases it will have to resort to the assistance centers in China with the expected result of prolonged management times.
Lastly, the lovers of the Nexus series disappointed by Pixel phone and by the new “unpopular” Google price policies: this smartphone is the Nexus we’ve been waiting for for a couple of years, worthy successor of Nexus 5 (as we consider the 5X a bad step).
Couponcode: xiaomiA11 for $219.99 500units only
