Mi 10 launched in India: 5 reasons the new Xiaomi flagship is a worthy smartphone (and 5 reasons it isn’t)

Published On: May 22, 2020

Mi 10 is Xiaomi’s first premium flagship smartphone in India since 2017. The handset was launched in the country earlier this month and is now available for purchase via Amazon.in, Mi.com, and official offline retail stores. The Mi 10, which is priced in India on the premium side, has many features you can expect from a high-end phone, though there are some areas that can do with some improvement. However, is it worth investing your hard-earned money on Mi 10? We’re here to answer just that! Below is the list of pros and cons of Xiaomi’s latest flagship Mi 10, but before we jump to that, let’s take a look at Mi 10 price in India.

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Mi 10 price in India

The Xiaomi Mi 10 price in India starts at Rs 49,999 for the base 128GB storage variant, while the 256GB option costs Rs 54,999. Both the variants with 8GB of RAM; there is no 12GB option in the Indian market. The Rs 49,999 price tag puts the smartphone in the same segment as the latest OnePlus 8 Pro smartphone, which packs pretty much the same specifications and features and is all set to go on sale in India on May 29th. The Mi 10 is available in Coral Green and Twilight Grey colours on both e-commerce and retail stores across the country.

Why Mi 10 is worth buying

1. Quad rear camera setup

Cameras are among the major highlights of Mi 10. The handset packs a quad-camera setup at the back, which is headlined by Samsung’s 108MP ISCOCELL HW1 sensor that bears OIS, f/1.69 aperture, 7P lens, and 27MP photo output post pixel binning. This is paired with a 13MP 123-degree (f/2.4) ultra-wide-angle lens, a 2MP (f/2.4) depth sensor, and a 2MP (f/2.4) macro lens to click images of subjects close to the cameras. The cameras are backed by an LED flash, Night Mode 2.0, HDR, Ultra wide-angle edge distortion correction, Portrait mode background blur adjustment, and ability to shoot 8K video recording at 30fps.

As for selfie and video calling, the Mi 10 ships with 20MP shooter on the front.

2. Snapdragon 865 SoC

At the helm of Mi 10 lies Snapdragon 865 SoC, which needs no introduction. It’s a flagship chipset from Qualcomm that can power almost everything with no lag or stutter. The SoC is mated with both 4G and 5G connectivity, Adreno 640 GPU, 8GB fast LPDDR5 RAM, and 128GB/ 256GB UFS 3.0 storage. There’s also Liquid Cool 2.0 vapour chamber, 6-stack graphite, and graphene cooling system to handle the heat generated by all the resource-intensive apps you use.

3. 4,780mAh battery

The Mi 10 draws juice from a 4,780mAh battery, which is not the biggest cell out there but more than enough to last you a day on moderate to heavy usage. This battery is backed by a USB Type-C port and 30W fast-charging support, which ensures the phone doesn’t take too much time to juice up. And you won’t have to spend extra for the fast-charger — the Xiaomi 30W fast-charger comes in the box when you buy the Mi 10.

4. Wireless and reverse wireless charging

Complementing the 30W wired charging is the 30W wireless charging, which is the fastest wireless charging speed in the market at the moment. The tech is rated to charge the Mi 10 battery from flat to 100 percent within 65 minutes; you’ll have to purchase a compatible wireless charger separately. This smartphone can even be used to charge other devices that support wireless charging thanks to the reverse wireless charging feature, which maxes out at 5W speed.

5. Ad-free software

Another highlight of Mi 10 is its ad-free software. The handset boots MIUI 11 atop Android 10 out of the box — while MIUI 11 on most smartphones comes with advertisements, that won’t be the case with the Mi 10. The company says the smartphone will offer a seamless experience and all the customisation features you get with other Xiaomi devices.

Why you should skip Mi 10

1. 90Hz refresh rate

Had it been 2019, the 90Hz refresh rate would have justified the Mi 10 price tag in India. However, Samsung and OnePlus have changed the dynamics and made 120Hz refresh rate the new ‘normal’ – at least for phones in the premium segment. The 120Hz refresh rate is a tad better than its counterpart, even though it consumes more battery. Nonetheless, on a smartphone that is competing on the hardware, the 120Hz refresh rate is a feature that buyers would sure miss.

2. No telephoto lens

While the camera setup of Mi 10 looks promising (at least on paper), the quality of zoomed-in images will take a hit due to lack of a dedicated telephoto lens. The phone features neither a telephoto lens nor a periscope lens to get the job done. It’s another feature that has become quite common in smartphones, not just in the premium segment but the mid-range category as well.

3. No IP rating

At a time when even OnePlus has launched a smartphone with IP rating, Xiaomi has gone with none on its flagship Mi 10. Although it has P2i liquid coating to keep the phone safe from minor splashes, good luck dropping the Mi 10 on water.

4. No 12GB RAM option

For anyone buying a truly maxed-out Android flagship in the Indian market today, 12GB RAM is a must. Samsung and OnePlus have been doing it for a while now, as do iQOO, Realme, and Motorola. However, the Xiaomi Mi 10 skimps on this feature for some reason, despite being priced more than the Realme X50 Pro and iQOO 3.

5. It’s a little overpriced

Despite all the great features that the Mi 10 offers, its Rs 49,999 price tag is slightly on the higher side if you count the hardware it’s missing out on. Most of this hardware, if not all, have become quite common on phones in the premium segment so not seeing them on a smartphone that is being touted as a flagship seems a little bit of a letdown, which becomes even more pronounced when we look at the price.