Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite Review

Design, build and controls

Despite being part of the Xiaomi Mi 8 family of smartphones, the Mi 8 Lite does not follow the design paradigm set by the Mi 8. It uses the same quality aluminium alloy for the frame and glass for the front and back. The metal frame has a glossy coating that beautifully tunes in to the gloss of the glass. The back is completely flat and the 2.5D curved backplate seamlessly merges with the gently curved edge of the frame. The front profile is different as the frame houses the plastic casing of the display which protrudes a bit. The display is covered with a 2.5D curved glass as well. Xiaomi uses Corning Gorilla Glass but does not specify the generation. The model is available in a black, blue-purple and a red-gold gradient colour. We are reviewing a black unit. Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite is 75.8 mm wide and 156.4 mm high, which are average for smartphones with 6.2-6.3-inch displays and batteries with a capacity around 3350 mAh. However, with the exception of Oppo R15, the Mi 8 Lite is the thinnest smartphone with a display and battery of the aforementioned size class. Its weight is also below average. Indeed, the handset feels very thin and very light. Handling experience is excellent, despite the big display - you can reach the top and bottom of the display holding the unit with one hand. Moreover, it is not as slippery as other glass-covered smartphones we've reviewed. The display takes up almost 83% of the total front surface of the device (82.77% to be exact). The top bezel is a bit less than 3 mm thick. The side bezels are 2 mm thick and the chin is a bit less than 6 mm thick. The 2.5D curved Corning Gorilla Glass gently merges with the plastic display case, which is tightly encompassed by the metal frame. The notch is 2.1 cm wide in its widest part and houses the front-facing camera, earpiece, light/proximity sensor. A tiny one-colour (white) LED notification light is placed right above the earpiece. The notch can be hidden and the display actually looks good without it. The systray is all-black and due to the very low black luminance, it looks decent. The chin is bare and the navigation bar is on-screen only. You can customize it or fully hide it and use gestures instead. There's a special Full-screen mode for this purpose, which offers plenty of options. The 2.5D curved glass backplate reflects light in a beautiful way - subtle and stylish. The dual camera module is horizontally aligned in the top left corner and is followed by the dual-LED flash to its right. The fingerprint sensor is centrally placed in the upper middle of the body. Reaching for the sensor with the index finger comes natural and convenient. The MI logo and company full name are imprinted on the lower middle. On the top frame, there's a microphone hole. The bottom one has a USB Type-C 2.0 port with OTG and two speaker grilles on its sides. The left one covers the first microphone and the second one covers the speaker. The Volume and Power buttons are positioned on the right frame. They do not protrude much and offer excellent tactile experience. The hybrid, dual-SIM tray is located on the left frame. It can house simultaneously two Nano-SIM cards and a microSD card.