Xiaomi Mi MIX 2: A Large-Screen Smartphone With Bezel-Less Design, Facial Recognition Launched at Mid-Range Price

Xiaomi Mi MIX 2 was launched on Monday at an event in China, featuring a massive 5.99-inch bezel-less display with 18:9 aspect ratio, ceramic body, 6GB RAM, and facial recognition technology. Apart from these, highlights of the new Mi MIX 2 include the implementation of a 12-percent smaller chin (bottom bezel) than the previous generation Mi MIX, the use of a hidden sound-guided speaker as well as an ultrasonic proximity sensor. Along with the new handset, Xiaomi launched the Mi Note 3 smartphone with dual rear cameras at the same event, as well as a Special Edition model of Xiaomi Mi MIX 2 with ceramic body, 8GB RAM and 128GB storage.

The new Xiaomi phone launches just a day before the iPhone 8 and iPhone X are expected to be unveiled by Apple, and only a few weeks after Samsung Galaxy Note 8 became official. Another top-end handset joining the fray soon is Google Pixel XL 2, meaning more competition for the new Mi MIX 2.

Xiaomi Mi MIX 2 price, first sale date

Xiaomi Mi MIX 2 priced at CNY 3,299 (roughly Rs. 32,300) for its 6GB RAM/ 64GB storage variant, CNY 3,599 (roughly Rs. 35,300) for the 6GB RAM/ 128GB storage variant, and CNY 3,999 (roughly Rs. 39,200) for the 6GB RAM/ 256GB storage variant. There’s also a Xiaomi Mi MIX 2 Special Edition, with a full ceramic body, priced at CNY 4,699 (roughly Rs. 46,000) – it features 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage.

The first Mi MIX 2 flash sale in China is on Friday, September 15 and registrations for the same start on Monday. The Special Edition model will go on sale in November.

Xiaomi Mi MIX 2 Features

Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 be 11.9 percent smaller in the body compared to the 6.4-inch Xiaomi Mi Mix, 2.5 percent thinner, and 11.5 percent lighter. It is also 7 percent smaller than the iPhone 7 Plus, which has a 5.5-inch display. The regular edition of the smartphone will be available in a Black colour variant, which also features a Black lens coating for the front and rear camera, apart from an 18K gold plated camera ring on the rear camera. The smartphone features a frame built out of 7-Series aluminium, holding in the four-sided curved ceramic body. The Special Edition (seen below) features a complete ceramic body, and will be available in both Black and White colour variants.

Mi MIX 2 display measures 5.99-inch, and has aspect ratio of 18:9

Getting back to the ‘hidden sound-guided speaker’, the company details it to be a ‘cantilever piezoelectric ceramic acoustic technology’ that resonates the sound through the metal frame and delivers it through the screen itself – completely hiding the speaker on the smartphone. This is achieved with 50mW membrane speaker, sound guiding tube, and a sound hole. The smartphone also supports 6 modes and 43 bands – making it a ‘global LTE smartphone’.

Xiaomi Mi MIX 2 Specifications

The dual-SIM (Nano-SIM) Xiaomi Mi MIX 2 features a 5.99-inch FHD (1080×2160 pixels) 18:9 display with a pixel density of 403ppi and a DCI-P3 colour gamut. It is powered by a Snapdragon 835 SoC clocked at up to 2.45GHz and coupled with 6GB of RAM – up to 8GB RAM for the Special Edition. It sports a 12-megapixel Sony IMX386 sensor with 1.25-micron pixels, 4-axis optical image stabilisation, 5-piece lens, an f/2.0 aperture, as well as a facial recognition feature. On the front, it bears a 5-megapixel front camera with a facial recognition function.

Mi MIX 2 supports facial recognition technology on both the front and the back cameras

As for storage, as we mentioned in the price section, there are three inbuilt storage variants, namely – 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB. The storage is not expandable. Connectivity options include 4G LTE, dual-band (2.4GHz and 5GHz) Wi-Fi 802.11ac, GPS/ A-GPS, Bluetooth v5.0, and USB Type-C.

The regular variant of the Xiaomi Mi MIX 2 measures 151.8×75.5×7.7mm, and weighs 185 grams. The Xiaomi Mi MIX 2 Special Edition on the other hand measures 150.5×74.6×7.7mm and weighs 187 grams. Both variants are powered by a 3400mAh battery. Sensors on board include accelerometer, ambient light sensor, barometer, digital compass, gyroscope, and ultrasonic proximity sensor.