Xiaomi launched the Xiaomi 12 series a couple of months ago — featuring the Xiaomi 12 and 12 Pro. These devices are the company’s latest flagships but in different sizes and configurations. I’ve been using the Xiaomi 12 for an extended time, and here’s the full review.
Xiaomi 12 Specs
- 6.28-inch Full HD+ AMOLED DotDisplay with 120Hz refresh rate
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor
- 8GB RAM
- Up to 256GB UFS 3.1 storage
- Cameras
- Rear: 50MP f/1.88 main with PDAF & OIS + 13MP ultra-wide + 5MP telemacro
- Front: 32MP
- 4,500mAh (67W Fast Charge, 50W Wireless Charge, 10W Reverse Wireless Charge)
- MIUI 13 based on Android 12
- Colors: Gray, Blue, Purple
Design
If there’s one word to describe the Xiaomi 12, it would be “Elegant”. The phone is pretty narrow, measuring just 69.9mm wide despite having a 6.28-inch display. This is because the phone actually has curves on both sides of the screen with thin bezels.
The back of the phone has a sandstone-like finish, which is smooth to touch. It actually has a glass back design, hence the support of wireless charging, but the back doesn’t feel like glass. It is something like the OPPO Reno Glow design, but my review unit is the Purple variant.
The surface of the Xiaomi 12 is symmetrically curved on both front and back edges, making the phone looks pretty well-balanced and comfortable to hold. It also has stereo speakers, one at the top and another at the bottom, sound by Harman Kardon and supports Dolby Atmos. Xiaomi didn’t let the earpiece be one of the stereo speakers, this move does improve the overall audio experience.
Display
The Xiaomi 12 sports a 6.28-inch Full HD+ AMOLED DotDisplay with a 120Hz AdaptiveSync refresh rate. The 120Hz AdaptiveSync refresh rate means the screen will adjust the refresh rate dynamically based on scenarios to balance performance with power consumption. This is not the most advanced technology as the phone only switches between 60Hz and 120Hz, but still better than nothing.
DisplayMate rated the Xiaomi 12 A+, which is kinda true but it is still not the most color-accurate display on a smartphone. Nonetheless, it is still pretty good and I don’t think you will need a color-accurate display in such a tiny form factor.
One complaint though, the in-display fingerprint sensor is located at the very bottom of the screen. It does feel unnatural but I guess that’s the compromise for being not the top-of-the-line flagship device.
Performance
The Xiaomi 12 is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor with 8GB LPDDR5 RAM and up to 256GB UFS 3.1 storage. We already know that the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 is a pretty hot chipset, hot as in high temperature. Despite Xiaomi’s effort to accelerate heat flow and effectively reduce the core temperature with an extra-large VC LiquidCool board, it still gets hot when playing graphic-intensive games. However, the phone works pretty well on day-to-day usage.
Software
The Xiaomi 12 runs on MIUI 13 based on Android 12, the company has promised to provide 3 years of Android version upgrades and 4 years of security patches. The user experience is pretty much the same as the MIUI 12, which I’m still struggling to navigate through the messy settings. There are still some annoying things like the scanning interface will pop up whenever I install an app and the ad banner is still there.
Camera
The Xiaomi 12 has a triple-camera setup on the back — 50MP f/1.88 main with PDAF & OIS + 13MP ultra-wide + 5MP telemacro. It also has a 32MP front-facing camera for taking selfies.
Color consistency between the ultra-wide camera and primary camera is quite good. Just like many phones, the 50MP primary camera shoots 12MP photos by default thanks to the Quad Bayer tech. When turned on the AI enhancement mode, colors appear to be more eye-pleasing, but it’s not entirely a good thing if you prefer your photos to look more natural. It also captures decent night photos and you can even shoot RAW photos with Pro mode too.
Battery Life
The Xiaomi 12 packs a 4,500mAh battery that supports 67W wired and 50W wireless Turbo Charging. The phone took just 39 minutes to top up via wired and 53 minutes wirelessly, which are actually quite impressive.
In terms of battery life, the phone can definitely last through a day with nearly 6 hours of screen-on-time. Duly note that my usage might differ from yours.
Final Words
Retailing at RM2,899 (8GB+128GB) and RM2,999 (8GB+256GB), the Xiaomi 12 is a well-balanced Xiaomi phone I’ve ever used. It has a premium build quality with an elegant design, together with a pretty great display, great performance, decent battery life, and capable cameras. If you are looking for a well-balanced Xiaomi device, this is the one you should get now.
Buy Here
Yay
- Elegant design
- Impressive display
- Pretty capable cameras
Nay
- Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset is hot
- Not a fan of MIUI
- Battery capacity can be bigger