Xiaomi Mi 9T/Redmi K20 Review

Overview

Xiaomi launched the Mi 9T and Mi 9T Pro in Europe as additions to its Mi 9 series. However, these devices are complete twins of two of the latest and most successful models from the Redmi series - the Redmi K20 and Redmi K20 Pro, respectively. The only differences between the Mi 9T and K20 smartphones are the network bands supported and that the Mi 9T devices arrive with the so-called MIUI Global OS. The Mi 9T models also arrive with a limited number of RAM and storage options. In addition, the lack of a notch and presence of a pop-up front camera further differentiate these models from the Mi 9 series handsets announced so far. We expect to see the Mi 9 Lite which will be the Mi CC9 for the global market as well and with this, the Mi 9 series should be complete and will become one of the most diversified series of smartphones lately.

Specifications

Xiaomi Mi 9T/Redmi K20 is equipped with a 6.39-inch Super AMOLED display from Samsung. The panel has a resolution of 1080 x 2340 pixels and a 19.5:9 aspect ratio. The manufacturer-specified contrast ratio is 60000:1 and the typical brightness is 430 cd/m². The peak brightness is specified as being 600 cd/m². The unit supports HDR10, AOD, and covers 103.8% of the NTSC colour space and 100% of the DCI-P3 gamut. There's a 7th-generation optical fingerprint sensor under the display. The whole front is covered with a 2.5D curved Corning Gorilla Glass 5. A 3D curved glass covers the back that features a triple camera module with a 48MP Sony IMX582 primary shooter paired with an f/1.75, 6-element lens. There's an 8MP OmniVision OV8856 telephoto camera with an f/2.4, 5-element lens. It offers 2x optical zoom. Finally, there's a 13MP Samsung S5K3L6 camera with a 124.8-degree wide-angle lens with an f/2.4 aperture and 5 elements. The 20MP front-facing camera resides in a pop-up mechanism and has an f/2.0 aperture and sapphire glass cover plus a built-in red notification light.

Xiaomi Mi 9T/Redmi K20 is based on a Snapdragon 730 chipset paired with 6GB of LPDDR4X RAM clocked at 2133MHz and 64GB/128GB of UFS 2.1 storage that cannot be expanded. It also arrives with software enhancements such as Mi Turbo and Game Turbo 2.0. The connectivity options of Mi 9T are quite extensive and include support for NFC, Bluetooth 5, Wi-Fi Hotspot, Wi-Fi Direct, Wi-Fi Display, dual-band Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/c with 2x2 MiMO. The model supports dual-4G and VoLTE with the following network bands: 2G GSM (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz), 3G W-CDMA (850, 900, 1700 1900, 2100 MHz), 4G LTE (700 (B28), 800, 850, 900, 1700/2100, 1800, 1900, 2100, 2600 MHz), and LTE-TDD (B38, B40). The handset supports A-GPS, GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, Galileo. There are a USB Type-C 2.0 with OTG support, 3.5 mm jack, dual microphones with noise cancellation, single bottom-firing speaker, hybrid-dual SIM tray. The Mi 9T runs on MIUI Global 10.3.11 based on Android 9 Pie.

Complete Xiaomi Mi 9T and Redmi K20 specifications.

What's in the box

Our Xiaomi Mi 9T review unit arrived in a simple black rectangular box with a shot of the phone imprinted on the top of the lid. It is adjoined by the MI logo in white in the top right corner and by the model name placed below the photo. The back of the box offers standard information about basic specs and certifications, as usual. As long as it concerns the contents, here they are:

• 5V/3A~9V/2A~12V/1.5A (EU plug)
• USB Type-C data cable
• Protective case for the back
• SIM tray pin
• Quick start guide
• Warranty card

Just like with other premium Xiaomi smartphones, the protective case is a hard-plastic shell with a minimalist design created to protect the back and corners mainly.