Review of Xiaomi Mi Note 2 - a stylish smartphone with high performance

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Curved screen, top-end processor, excellent audio path and a decent camera. Xiaomi Mi Note 2 seems like an ideal purchase option, but only at first glance.

Specifications

Display	5.7 "flexible, curved, 1,920 x 1,080 dots, 110% NTSC color gamut, 100,000: 1 contrast, Gorilla Glass 4, OLED
CPU	Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 Quad Core 2.35GHz
Video accelerator	Adreno 530, 653 MHz
Operating system	Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow, MIUI 8
RAM	4/6 GB, LPDDR4, 1,866 MHz
Inner memory	64/128 GB, UFS 2.0
Memory card support	No
Main camera	23 MP, Sony IMX318 sensor, six lenses, 1/2, 6 ″, f / 2, 0, LED flash, hybrid autofocus, electronic stabilization, video recording in 4K
Front-camera	8 MP, f / 2, 0, five lenses, autofocus
Audio system	AQSTIC
Wireless interfaces	GSM / GPRS / EDGE, WCDMA / HSPA, LTE; GPS and GLONASS; Bluetooth 4.2, NFC; Wi-Fi (802.11a / b / g / n / ac)
Wired interfaces	Two nanoSIM slots; USB Type-C (USB 3.0 controller); 3.5mm audio jack; Fingerprint's scanner
Battery	4070 mAh, built-in, fast charging Quick Charge 3.0
The size	156, 2 × 77, 3 × 7, 6 mm
Weight	166 g

Appearance

Recently, the company has taken a course to improve the appearance of its products. The same Redmi Note 4 showed that Xiaomi designers do not eat their bread in vain.

Of course, this was even more reflected in the flagship. Xiaomi Mi Note 2 is stylish. Smooth curves of polished glass in a metal frame - what could be better?

The black version of the smartphone is very beautiful. Subjectively, the Samsung S7 Edge looks simpler. So thoughts about the Chinese origin of the Mi Note 2 immediately go aside.

The first inclusion is even more surprising. The feeling of absolute presence is created, as if you are touching directly to the icons and menu items. The edges of the screen are almost invisible. Beveled edges smoothly move the display out of the visible area.

The immersive effect is complemented by a physical Home key with a built-in fingerprint scanner. Interaction with a mechanical button is not only more pleasant - it allows you to perform several functions (touch - "Back", press - "Home") and more efficiently use the scanner to unlock the device.

Despite the multifunctionality of the center key, it is complemented by neatly illuminated dots of the touch buttons. Their functions are subject to change.

The volume rocker and the power button are located on the right side. The left one is decorated only with a slot for two SIM cards (memory cards are not supported). Gaps are minimal, all elements are perfect. And even the logo looks attractive.

Despite the size (and this is the largest smartphone of the company, not counting the Max), Xiaomi Mi Note 2 is very convenient. In the palm of your hand, but not in use. The fact is that the gadget fits perfectly in the hand, but it is very slippery - it strives to fall out.

The situation is complicated by the fact that the complete case looks pathetic. And to put such beauty in it is strange: why do we need a stylish toy if its main advantage is not visible?

And without a cover it is impossible. Firstly, Xiaomi Mi Note 2 slides off any uneven surface. Secondly, the glass is excellent at collecting fingerprints, despite the oleophobic coating. It allows you to easily wipe away traces of use, but does not completely protect.

Finally, the third problem, which is traditional for all glass apparatus. Even tempered or synthetic glass breaks. Therefore, we can recommend Xiaomi Mi Note 2 only to very careful people.

Display

All curved screens are OLED. It so happened because of the specifics of their production. Someone might say that OLEDs have an incorrect color rendering. I believe that you need to decide for yourself. For example, I like these panels much more than even high-quality IPS.

The screen diagonal of the Xiaomi Mi Note 2 is 5.7 inches, which at a resolution of 1,920 × 1,080 gives a pixel density of 386 ppi. By modern standards, not the highest, but the most optimal solution. And the battery will save, and will not allow the pixels to be seen (if you do not get carried away with mobile devices to view VR content).

It is worth mentioning separately that this display can reproduce NTSC colors by 110%. That is, more than standard digital television broadcasts. So the Note 2's color reproduction is excellent.

Other technical parameters of the screen turn out to be no worse. Clear, contrasting. Everything in order to get the full effect of immersion in what is happening on the screen. Even the ubiquitous PenTile is missing. And this is the most important thing for an OLED display.

Performance

The chipset in Xiaomi Mi Note 2 uses the flagship solution Qualcomm Snapdragon 821. It is about 10% faster than the Snapdragon 820 and is currently the fastest mobile processor. Probably, before the release of the first devices on the processor with the number 835. They will appear pretty soon, but they are unlikely to become a reason to replace Mi Note 2 with another device.

Why? The current combination of the fastest processor, Adreno 530 graphics accelerator and the fastest mobile memory UFS 2.0 will allow the smartphone to confidently cope with any tasks for another 1-2 years. And today it shows just phenomenal results, although in synthetic tests it loses to its closest competitors: OnePlus 3T, LeEco Le 3 and Xiaomi Mi5S Plus.

Unofficially, there are two versions of Xiaomi Mi Note 2. Two modifications of the first version are intended exclusively for the Chinese market and those users who do not travel outside the country. The younger model is equipped with 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of internal memory (remember, memory cards are not supported). The older one is 6 and 128 GB, respectively.

The global version for sale in other Asian countries has 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of internal storage. This option is expensive, but for many there is no alternative. The fact is that it supports all LTE bands: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 38, 39, 40, 41.

The modification for the domestic market works only in eight bands of the fourth generation networks: 1, 3, 5, 7, 38, 39, 40, 41. As the experience of Reddit and XPDA users shows, the smartphone does not allow unlocking additional frequencies. Apparently, there is a hardware difference between the modifications (it is possible that different antennas are used, as was the case with Xiaomi Redmi 3 Pro and Pro SE).

Multimedia capabilities

Main camera

All fans of the brand are waiting for the flagships. Why? Only they have improved cameras and allow you to take high-quality photographs.

Xiaomi Mi Note 2 is still unpleasantly surprising. Formally, the smartphone is equipped with an excellent module with a resolution of 22.56 Mp (5488 × 4 112 pixels), based on a Sony IMX318 matrix with a pixel size of 1/2, 6 ″. In addition, the camera of the gadget boasts a good aperture of f / 2, 0 and an 80-degree (wide-angle) 6-lens lens. There is even electronic stabilization!

But everything, as usual, depends on the implementation. There is no optical stabilization. Therefore, the video comes out bright, high quality and with good sound, but processing the jitter can ruin everything. When taking photos on Xiaomi Mi Note 2, blurry frames are not uncommon. By the way, there is no EIS switch in the settings. It is likely that this feature was not implemented in the test firmware.

Compared to other flagship devices (Samsung S7, iPhone 6 SE), many frames are replete with overexposures or local dimming. There are no problems with color reproduction. Light noises are observed. Xiaomi engineers could not eliminate this shortcoming even in the dual-chamber Mi5S Plus.

Focus is snappy, but can overshoot slightly in HDR and difficult lighting. The automatic start of HDR shooting is inappropriate, it has to be controlled manually.

But with high-quality lighting, the pictures are bright and juicy. No worse than any other Chinese smartphones with a similar cost. Complex artificial lighting is not a hindrance, in this scenario the pictures are normal.

Front-camera

As you know, the Chinese are big selfie lovers. And since the smartphone is primarily aimed at the local market, the front camera of the Mi Note 2 is excellent.

It uses an 8 megapixel module and a fast (f / 2.0) lens. But most importantly, there is a working autofocus. It cannot be configured: the automation automatically finds a face in the frame and focuses on it. This turns on the effect of a DSLR camera: the foreground of the picture is sharp, and the background is slightly blurred.

Sound

Unlike most Xiaomi devices, Mi Note 2 is equipped with a dedicated audio path. Other devices of the Mi line are deprived of such a developer's grace. And this is no accident. The current capabilities of Qualcomm's built-in codec are very good.

It was not possible to recognize whether a separate DAC and amplifier are turned on in third-party programs. The fact is that no separate settings for this audio path were found. System add-ons are limited to the standard HD Sound audio checkbox and the already familiar Mi Sound Enhancer utility with add-ons for branded headphones and a single equalizer for the entire OS.

There is no effect when using HD Sound. Equalizer and presets affect the sound in exactly the same way as other smartphones from the company. Sound … Not Meizu, I'll tell you.

Better than most small brand devices. More juicy, brighter, richer. Wider scene, slightly raised high and low frequencies. But this is very similar to equalizing. Apparently, the problem will be solved in the upcoming global update of the operating system. This is exactly the case with the previous version of the Xiaomi Mi Note Pro.

The volume margin is small (by the standards of a slightly deaf person who prefers loud electric guitars). There are more. Other sound characteristics are also slightly above average. This also applies to the voice of the interlocutor, and the operation of the microphone, and the sound of ringtones. But psychologically, you expect more from a device for 500-900 dollars.

Software

The smartphone runs MIUI 8 based on Android 6.0.1 with all its advantages and disadvantages.

But this operating system, like many of Xiaomi's creations, has two versions. One is Chinese with local applications and services. It has only two languages: English and Chinese. For all other users, global firmware is offered with a lot of language packs and pre-installed Google services.

But there is no global firmware for Xiaomi Mi Note 2 yet. Only custom builds from official fan communities Xiaomi.eu and Multi. ROM are available. Therefore, many of the advantages of the Xiaomi proprietary add-on for Russian-speaking users remain unavailable.

Unfortunately, the company hasn't adapted the OS for the curved screen. So far, without third-party applications, you can somehow use the edges only on the stock lock screen.

It is planned that the upcoming MIUI 9 based on Android 7 Nougat will have screen interaction algorithms similar to those used in the Samsung Galaxy S7. Moreover, the Chinese and Korean companies have experience working together on the Mi5S. It remains to wait and look for third-party applications for now.

The rest of the functionality of the Mi Note 2 firmware is exactly the same as that of other Xiaomi smartphones. A bunch of intuitively organized menus and sliders that let you tweak everything from the granularity of sound profiles to the temperature of screen colors.

There is a simplified mode of use, a well-developed battery saving mode and excellent interface scaling.

Of the unique already implemented functions, I will mention only one - Haptic Feedback. It improves responsiveness while typing, bringing tactile sensations closer to those of a physical keyboard or iPhone 7. Very nice, and works in all applications.

Autonomous work

Once again, Xiaomi convinces us of what he thinks of the user. What does the user need? Good running time away from wall outlet.

A capacious 4,070 mAh battery is hidden under the polished body of the Xiaomi Mi Note 2. The power consumption of OLED screens is lower than that of conventional IPS / TN panels. A well-developed firmware also makes its contribution, having a positive effect on the operating time of the device.

All this leads to the fact that the smartphone can work up to two days without recharging. Of course, in standard use - no more than 5 hours of screen operation.

Other use cases show consistently high results:

• reading at medium brightness in airplane mode - up to 14 hours;
• watching a movie in airplane mode at medium brightness - up to 12 hours, at maximum brightness - up to 10 hours;
• web surfing (4G) - up to 10 hours;
• 3D games - up to 7 hours.

At the same time, Xiaomi Mi Note 2 supports fast charging according to the QC 3.0 standard. So it only takes an hour and a half to replenish energy reserves from a standard charger.

conclusions

So far, the general appearance of Xiaomi Mi Note 2 is quite controversial. This is a very beautiful device. I want to buy it, I want to use it. But the current state of affairs may not be to the liking of many. The camera is a little flawed. The audio section practically does not manifest itself (this problem was solved in the first version of Xiaomi Note after a considerable time).

Xiaomi Mi Note 2 has every chance of becoming the most coveted Chinese smartphone. But this requires a fresh operating system, which awaits us in the spring.

For now, I would only recommend the device to true fans of the company. The main reason for this is the obscenely high cost for Xiaomi products. The international version with 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of permanent memory, global firmware and support for all LTE bands costs $ 700!

Mi Note 2 has much cheaper competitors - less stylish, but balanced: OnePlus 3T ($ 450 for the 6/64 GB version), Xiaomi Mi5S Plus ($ 380 for the 4/64 GB version and $ 530 for the 6/128 GB version) … And then there is the Samsung Galaxy S7, whose cost in offline stores has dropped to 30,000 rubles ($ 500). The choice is obvious, and, alas, it is not in favor of the Xiaomi smartphone.