Xiaomi Tackles the Battery of Smartphones Head-on

Xiaomi is renowned for producing cheap technology. Hailing from China, the firm produces some amazing pieces while keeping a close eye on cost and functionality. In this case, Xiaomi have produced what could be claimed as an iPhone 5c clone, but better.

The Mi 4i hosts a 5″ 1080p LCD screen, an octo-core 64-bit Snapdragon 615, 2GB RAM, 16GB storage, 13MP rear-facing camera, 5MP front-facing camera, dual SIM support and a massive 3,120mAh battery; oh wait, it also costs just $205 (Rs. 12,999).

Most of the tech giants seem to be fixated on offering the latest designs, Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge for example, or the slimmest designs and leave the battery to the very end; only fitting in what will fit over what it needs to run for a useful period of time. Take a look at the Samsung Galaxy S6, massive specification list, but a mere 2550mAh battery, seeing a little over 8 hours of conservative usage, but a step backwards from the Galaxy S5 with its beefier 2800mAh battery.

Xiaomi stated it “put considerable effort into fitting the highest battery capacity possible”, which is something all companies should aim to do early on. It measures in at a reasonable 7.8mm, not too far off the iPhone 6 7mm.

On the construction side of things, we are informed that it uses a plastic, wrap around case, but with a matt, soft-touch finish; cheap and cheerful for a $200 phone. The place where most manufacturers seem to claw the money back is on the screen, using cheap materials to get 1080p or lowering the quality to 720p. The Mi 4i seems to debunk the trend and use a reasonable 1080p sharp screen protected by Gorilla Glass.

Operation is powered by a custom skin of Android operating system, but unlike older devices, the Mi 4i uses Androids latest version 5.0 with a Xaiomi custom skin.

The phone will release in India at the end of April. Would you be interested in buying the Mi 4i or are you loyal to a certain phone brand? Let us know in the comments.

Thank you to ArsTechnica for providing this information