Xiaomi Mi 11X hands-on review

Introduction

The Mi 11X is the latest premium mid-range offering from Xiaomi in India. It's part of a series of two devices, the other being the Mi 11X Pro, which also launched alongside last week.

The Mi 11X is essentially a rebranded Redmi K40 or Poco F3 for the Indian market. The three phones are identical to each other save for the name printed on their backs.

The reason it's been renamed to Mi 11X in India is likely because the Redmi name is more synonymous with budget devices, and the Poco branding these days is being reserved for lower mid-range models. Since this model is on the pricier side for Xiaomi in India, it gets the more premium Mi branding.

Xiaomi Mi 11X specs at a glance:

• Body: 163.7x76.4x7.8mm, 196g. Glass front (Gorilla Glass 5), glass back (Gorilla Glass 5), plastic frame.
• Display: 6.67" Super AMOLED, 120Hz, HDR10+, 1300 nits (peak), 1080x2400px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 395ppi.
• Chipset: Qualcomm SM8250-AC Snapdragon 870 5G (7 nm): Octa-core (1x3.2 GHz Kryo 585 & 3x2.42 GHz Kryo 585 & 4x1.80 GHz Kryo 585); Adreno 650.
• Memory: 128GB 6GB RAM, 128GB 8GB RAM; UFS 3.1.
• OS/Software: Android 11, MIUI 12.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 48 MP, f/1.8, 26mm, 1/2", 0.8µm, PDAF; Ultra-wide angle: 8 MP, f/2.2, 119˚; Macro: 5 MP, f/2.4, 50mm, 1/5.0", 1.12µm.
• Front camera: 20 MP, f/2.5, (wide), 1/3.4", 0.8µm.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240/960fps, gyro-EIS; Front camera: 1080p@30fps, 720p@120fps.
• Battery: 4520mAh; Fast charging 33W.
• Misc: Fingerprint reader (side-mounted); Infrared port.

However, true to Xiaomi ethos, the Mi 11X is very well specced for the price, which starts at INR 29,999 ($400). You get the Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 chipset, a 120Hz AMOLED display, triple rear camera, 4520mAh battery, and 33W fast charging. Compared to the OnePlus 9R, which packs a similar feature set, the Mi 11X is a cool INR 10,000 ($135) cheaper.

Of course, not everything can be evaluated on paper, and some things have to be tried in person. So we spent a week with the Mi 11X, and this is what we found.

Unboxing

The Mi 11X comes with a fairly standard retail bundle, consisting of the phone, a 33W fast charger, a USB 2.0 cable, and a soft silicone case. There's also a USB-C to 3.5mm adapter (not pictured here).