Xiaomi unveiled more than one smartphone on its
event today but no one saw three devices coming at once - after the Mi 8 and Mi
8 Explorer Edition the company introduced the Mi 8 SE (Special Edition).
The Xiaomi Mi 8 SE features a 5.88" Super
AMOLED display with FHD+ (1080x2244) resolution. The aspect ratio is 18.7:9.
And unfortunately for some, the notch is here to stay, although the Mi 8 SE
doesn't have the fancy tech for 3D Face ID feature that the standard Mi 8 has. You
have to rely on the fingerprint sensor placed on the back for your biometric
security.
The screen also boasts an 86.12% front coverage
thanks to the skinny side bezels and the fairly small chin at the bottom. The
company claims that the Mi 8 SE is just as big as a standard 5.2-inch phone.
DCI-P3 color gamut support is another noticeable feature but more importantly,
the panel is capable of 600 nits peak brightness for better outdoor visibility.
At the heart of the Mi 8 SE is the recently
announced Snapdragon 710 that's built on the 10nm node with emphasis on AR and
AI. It packs an octa-core Kryo 360 CPU clocked at 2.2 GHz and an Adreno 616
GPU.
According to Xiaomi, this should account for 20%
better overall performance compared to the Snapdragon 660 in various tasks like
web browsing and opening apps while delivering 40% lower power consumption when
playing games or during 4K video playback.
The Antutu benchmark score is 174,333 and just
crushes the similarly-priced vivo X21 and Oppo R15 Pro. Anyway, the chip is
paired with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage with the more expensive
version offering a 6GB + 64GB memory configuration.
On the camera front, we have a 20MP front-facing
sensor with large 2µm pixels for better low-light selfies. On the back, we have
a 12MP main sensor plus a 5MP secondary unit for depth information. The usual
AI enhancements are in place - beautification, bokeh and scene recognition. A
3,120 mAh battery powers the Mi 8 SE and it supports 18W Quick Charge 3.0 over
the USB-C port for quick top-ups.
The Xiaomi Mi 8 SE starts at CNY 1,799 (US$ 281) for
the 4GB version and CNY 1,999 (US$ 312) for the 64GB model coming in black, gold,
red and blue colors. Global launch or Chinese availability are yet to be
confirmed.
