Xiaomi Mi A1 Review

Overview

Mi A1 is Xiaomi's first Android One smartphone and is yet another step by the manufacturer that affirms its position in the international smartphone market. It is targeted to the huge Indian market mainly but it will appeal to everyone that prefers to have the purest, latest and safest Android version. Regular updates are promised for two years at least. The model is actually the global version of Xiaomi Mi 5X, which is intended for the Chinese market and runs on Xiaomi's proprietary MIUI. Both devices are almost identical with minor differences in supported networks and software, of course. Here's our in-depth review of Xiaomi Mi A1, which puts the model to our usual routine of measurements, tests, and checkups along with plenty of UI and apps screenshots, camera samples.

Specifications

Xiaomi Mi A1 packs a 5.5-inch IPS display from Tianma with an FHD resolution (1080 x 1920 pixels), LTPS technology and a 2.5D curved Corning Gorilla Glass 3. It is specified as having a peak brightness of 450 cd/m² and a 1000:1 static contrast ratio. The model is based on a 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 MSM8953 chipset manufactured after the 14nm process. It is equipped with eight Cortex-A53 cores clocked at up to 2GHz. It is coupled with an Adreno 506 GPU and 4GB of single-channel, LPDDR3 RAM clocked at 933 MHz. The built-in memory measures 64GB and can be expanded with up to 128GB. This system-on-chip brings LTE Cat. 6 speeds and VoLTE, along with support for the following network bands: 2G GSM (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz), W-CDMA (850, 900, 2100 MHz), FDD-LTE (800, 850, 900, 1800, 2100, 2600 MHz), TDD-LTE 2300 MHz (B40). The wireless connectivity options of Mi A1 include dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Wi-Fi Hotspot, Wi-Fi Direct, Wi-Fi Display, Bluetooth 4.2. It works with GPS, GLONASS, and BeiDou and is equipped with a USB Type-C 2.0 port with OTG support, 3.5 mm jack and IR blaster. The model has a dual rear camera module that includes a 12MP OV12A10 and 13MP OV13880 sensor, each with a 5-element lens and respective apertures of f/2.2 and f/2.6. They are combined with a dual-tone LED flash and phase detection AF. The selfie snapper packs a 5MP Samsung S5K5E8 sensor and an f/2.0 lens. Mi A1 is powered by a 3080 mAh battery with a 5V/2A fast charger. As an Android One device, it runs an absolutely pure version of Android 7.1.2 Nougat, bound to regular updates for two years at least.

Full Xiaomi Mi A1 specifications.

What's in the box

Xiaomi Mi A1 arrives in a plain white rectangular box. It has a photograph of the model in the three available colours along with the MI logo, Android One logo, and model name imprinted on the lid. Of course, the handset is placed in the top level compartment and it is accompanied by a limited number of accessories as usual:

• 5V/2A charger (EU plug)
• USB Type-C cable
• SIM tray pin
• Quick start guide