2021/2022 Xiaomi 12 Review, Price, Spec
Finally, Xiaomi 12 is also present on our review table. Bringing a number of advantages ranging from a tiny design, the latest hardware and other support.
Xiaomi 12 key specs: · 5G · 6.28″ 120Hz AMOLED display · 8-12 GB RAM · 128-256 GB storage · Snapdragon® 8 Gen 1 chipset · 4500 mAh battery, 67W wired + 50W wireless turbo charging · Triple Rear Camera (50 MP+13MP+5MP) · 32MP front camera
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| Photo of Xiaomi 12 Android smartphone. Released: December 2021 Price: US$322,00 |
Talking about flagship phones, we often face products that are made as big as possible. Often offering a wide screen to display the beauty of the UI, supported by performance that is indeed capable of doing so. But not many vendors still provide other versions with a size that is more comfortable to hold with one hand, such as the Xiaomi 12 which we are reviewing this time.
The Xiaomi 12 series is officially here. Consisting of the Xiaomi 12 and Xiaomi 12 Pro with several differences. We will explain in a different article. From the event held online, the assumption emerged that this cellphone was made to meet maximum photography needs. But is that really true?
Price: Rp. 9,999,000
Color Options: Gray (which we reviewed), Purple, Blue
Sales Package: Xiaomi 12 cellphone, Silicon Case, 67W Ultra Charging charger adapter, USB Type C data cable, manual, warranty card, SIM Ejector
Xiaomi 12 Full Specifications
| Xiaomi 12 Specs | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Dimensions & Weight (mm&grams) | 152.7 x 69.9 x 8.2 mm / 179 grams |
| Networks | Dual Nano SIM, 5G/4G LTE/HSPA+/3G/2G, WiFi |
| Operating System (OS) | MIUI 13 berbasis Android 12 |
| Supported storage eksternal | No |
| Display | 6.28 inches, 2400×1080 pixels, AMOLED, 120Hz Adaptive Sync, Dolby Vision, HDR10+, Low Blue Light Certification, Corning Gorilla Glass Victus protection |
| Prosesor/ CPU | Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 (4nm); Octa-core (1×3.00 GHz Cortex X2 + 3×2.5 GHz Cortex A710 + 4×1.8 GHz Cortex A510), GPU: Adreno 730 |
| RAM & Internal Storage | 8GB + 128GB, 8GB + 256GB, 12GB+256GB LPDDR5 RAM + UFS 3.1 storage |
| Camera (MP/features) | Rear triple: 50 MP f/1.8 Main Camera 13 MP f/2.4 Ultra Wide Camera 5 MP Tele Macro Camera Video: up to 1080p 60fps, 4K 60fps and 8K 24fps Front Single: 32 MP f/2.45 Video: 1080p@60fps |
| Battery (capacity, type) | 4500 mAh Li-po (non-removable), 67W Turbo Charging |
Xiaomi 12 Features
| Removable battery | No | Fingerprint | Yes |
| Multitouch | Yes | Dual Front Camera | No |
| Dual SIM | Yes | External Memory | No |
| 3G HSDPA | Yes | Gyroscope | Yes |
| 4G LTE | Yes | Stereo Speaker | Yes |
| 5G Ready | Yes | 4K video recording | Yes |
| NFC | Yes | Video player | Yes |
| USB On-the-go | Yes | Music player | Yes |
| GPS | Yes | 3.5 Audio Port | No |
Xiaomi 12 Advantages & Disadvantages
| ADVANTAGES | DISADVANTAGES |
| Flagship chipset with all its advantages SD 8 Gen 1 especially in terms of performance | Although it has been equipped with heat dissipation technology, there is still a significant increase in temperature |
| Compact design, comfortable to use with one hand | Because of the edge screen, there are still frequent mispresses, especially for those with large hands |
| The edge screen makes the process of browsing menus and social media more intuitive | The back cover can be scratched by careless use |
| AMOLED screen 120HZ with Adaptive sync refresh rate and modern display features Dolby Vision, HDR10+, HLG | MIUI 13 may not be for everyone |
| MIUI 13 with a fresher and simpler appearance | |
| Camera with recording capabilities and built-in features that make editing easier |
Xiaomi 12 Reviews
Compact Design, Comfortable to Hold
When all phones have the same features, especially a flagship with guts that have definitely been maximized, design becomes an important factor. In fact, it is often the main reason for someone to move from one flagship to another, from one OS to another.
The approach taken by Xiaomi 12 is quite interesting. By offering a more compact size than the pro variant, this phone is a small flagship with a wide screen span to the edge, or often referred to as an edge display. A design that was once the “uniform” of flagships several years ago.
This phone only carries a 6.28-inch screen span. Keep in mind that this screen juts out to the right and left edges. This means that the actual size of the surface of this phone is smaller. Equivalent to other phones that carry 6 or 6.1 inch screens.
Some people call it compact, not compact like a parade but more compact. It feels right in the grip of an adult’s hand. Can be used with just one hand, because almost all corners can be reached easily.
The screen that juts out to the right and left sides also gives a luxurious and beautiful effect at the same time. Makes it look expensive. However, there are quite a few who don’t like this shape. Especially those with large hands, because when holding it normally, the part of the palm that supports the thumb also often touches the screen, so that sometimes it activates several functions accidentally.
Meanwhile, the back cover is designed with the same approach as several previous Xiaomi phones that we have reviewed, such as the Mi 10T or Redmi Note 10 Pro. Namely, displaying a single color with a matte finish, looks metallic but is not too reflective. So it doesn’t feel slippery and doesn’t get dirty easily due to fingerprints.
Unfortunately, you have to be a little careful about placing this phone. The reason is, when we tried to store it in a pocket with keys and coins, we found that there were parts that were scratched, although very minimal. Our advice is of course to always use the phone’s default Silicon case, or use a third-party case so that the back cover remains neat and tidy.
There is no 3.5mm audio jack on this phone. It’s only natural because unwritten, this is a characteristic of a flagship phone. However, as a member of the Xiaomi family, the Xiaomi 12 still carries an IR blaster at the top of the phone to accommodate the needs of the Mi smart home and the Mi Remote feature embedded in the phone.
Interestingly, this phone carries two speakers to emit stereo audio effects. Located above and below the phone, in one symmetrical position. This means that when the phone is positioned horizontally, the right and left speaker holes will be both at the top corner, or both at the bottom corner.
This will provide an advantage when we play games. We can position our hands so that they do not cover the speaker holes, both right and left.
It gets even more interesting when these speakers support Dolby Atmos and are also tuned by Harman Kardon. Different from the Pro version, the Xiaomi 12 only carries a pair of speakers, aka dual stereo speakers, not 4, aka quad stereo speakers.
120 Hz AMOLED screen
The Xiaomi 12 carries a screen with a diagonal span of 6.28 inches. It looks big, but it’s not. Considering the phone’s screen fills almost the entire front surface of the phone. Even jutting out to the right and left side edges.
The appearance is certainly striking with a very high contrast value. Because the panel used is AMOLED. A panel like this will provide a very dark black color, because it is enough to turn off some LED points that are responsible for displaying the black color.
Xiaomi decided to bring all the technology supported by the screen and Chipset. Almost all HDR formats are brought. Starting from Dolby Vision support to watch compatible shows, such as Netflix. Also supports HDR10+ display to enjoy shows or movie files that carry the HDR format. Also HLG and HDR10.
This screen also carries a wide Color Gamut, and also an adaptive refresh rate of 120 Hz, 90 Hz and 60 Hz. By activating this adaptivesync Refresh Rate, the system can choose when the screen should be set to 120Hz, when to 60Hz so that it can save energy.
Unlike the back cover, the screen has been protected with Corning Gorilla Glass Victus. So that the screen, or the front surface of this cellphone is claimed to be able to withstand falls up to a height of 2 meters on a rough surface, bumps and scratches. Tempting us to put the phone face down on the desk or dining table.
MIUI 13
Xiaomi 12 runs the MIUI 13.0.1 custom UI based on Android 12. For veteran Xiaomi users, the appearance, layout and a number of built-in features are certainly well known. However, for new Xiaomi users, they may have to adjust. It doesn’t take long, because basically the features brought are intended to complement the Android 12 features that are the basis of this UI.
Like MIUI and other custom UIs from several vendors, a number of advertisements are found when entering the built-in features of MIUI 13. However, this time we admit that the number is not as many as the old version and tends not to be annoying. At least during our review.
A number of features to enhance the gaming experience are present with a pleasing appearance and customized functions.
Latest Chipset, with LiquidCool Technology
Before discussing the performance of this phone, it should be noted that flagship class chipsets are known to produce quite excessive heat. Since the previous generation, such as the Snapdragon 888, we have complained a lot about this when reviewing phones with this chipset.
Now in the latest generation, Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, this is still haunting. Forcing vendors to think hard, whether to take the Ninja path with an effective cooling system, or to limit (read: customize) the CPU and GPU clock speeds. The second path is indeed just a guess, but it is considered effective in reducing heat in several cellphone products with flagship chipsets.
Xiaomi 12 does not seem to be tinkering with CPU and GPU performance. Instead, it chooses the path of presenting a cooling technology called LiquidCool Technology. Consisting of a fairly large VC layer with an area of around 2600 mm2 and more than 10,000 heat dissipating graphite.
When testing using the Antutu synthetic benchmark, there was a significant increase in temperature. Likewise when playing the Genshin Impact game in maximum graphics settings and a frame rate of 60 fps. But the level of heat generated is not enough to make us stop playing. Although the fluctuations are indeed felt.
The use of the default silicon case will help to reduce this heat so that it is not quickly felt on our fingers. At least until the temperature on the screen also increases.
Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 (mobile platform) itself is the most up-to-date ARM-based chipset used by cellphones. There are already quite a few flagships present in the Indonesian market carrying this chipset. And on average, they do encounter the same problem.
This chipset with 4nm fabrication carries an 8-core CPU consisting of 3 clusters. The first cluster consists of 1 Cortex-X2 core with a clock speed of 3GHz. Then the second cluster has 3 Cortex-A710 cores with a clock speed of 2.5GHz. And finally there are 4 Cortex-A510 cores with a clock speed of 1.8GHz.
These cores are new cores that implement the ARMv9 instruction set offering better performance than the previous generation.
In addition to the CPU with new cores, this chipset also carries the Adreno 730 GPU. Which according to Qualcomm has a 30% better performance increase than the previous Adreno flagship, the Adreno 660.
Then the update also occurs in the type of memory carried. Namely the LPDDR5 type with a speed of up to 3200MHz. And on the Xiaomi 12, 8GB of RAM is available with a UFS 3.1 type ROM of 256GB. For RAM, the Xiaomi 12 also carries a memory extension feature that adds 3GB of RAM from the ROM size if needed.
In terms of performance, there is nothing to doubt.
Large Battery and Fast Charging
Xiaomi 12 carries a battery with a capacity of 4500 mAh. With a number of fast charging technologies both with and without cables.
With the default cable and adapter in the package, we can charge up to 67W. While for wireless it can charge a maximum of 50W. But you will need a wireless charger that is not in the package, aka you have to buy another one. While for reverse wireless charging, this phone is capable of delivering 10W of power.
In the Turbo Charging experiment, we found several interesting things. First, if done during the day it can run effectively with graphics that continue to increase and are stable throughout charging. It takes about 40 minutes to fully charge the battery using this 67W Turbo Charging.
However, when tried at night, there is a phenomenon where charging is fast at the beginning and then slows down a few moments after, as a sign that the adaptive charge feature is running according to the alarm on the phone or the user’s sleeping habits. But we have to reconfirm this with Xiaomi whether it is true.
50MP Camera with 8K Video Recording
As a differentiator from the Pro variant product, the Xiaomi 12 carries a camera with a configuration of 3 cameras with different resolutions and functions. This phone carries one 50MP camera as the main camera with a large aperture of f/1.88. It is a camera with a Sony IMX 766 sensor, a sensor that has been popular on flagship phones for the past 2 years, has a large size, around 0.7 inches or 1/1.56”. With these specifications, this main camera is able to capture light well, typical of a flagship camera.
This 50MP camera is then accompanied by 2 other cameras, namely an ultra-wide camera with a resolution of 13MP and a 5MP telemacro.
There will be a lot to discuss on the camera side, for that there will be a special article to review the camera, from features to results. Also complete with video recording results. What is certain is that by default the main camera or rear camera of this phone is capable of capturing videos in 1080p resolution at 30fps. But we can change the settings to be able to capture shows at 1080p resolution at 60fps.
What about 4K and 8K? For 4K, this phone’s camera can record videos up to a frame rate of 60 fps. Capable of making cinematic videos in high resolution, or capturing videos in landscape position that can be edited to be vertical for TikTok, for example, without losing quality. With a smooth frame rate to suit the needs of social media applications. In this resolution we can record videos in HDR10+ format to be displayed on a compatible TV with the most beautiful colors.
While for 8K, it is only capable of recording at a frame rate of 24 fps. Understandable and still suitable for recording serious videos such as for wedding documentation or web series. But with the available memory we might only be able to record 8K videos for 6 minutes.
There is a Steady Video feature. Consisting of 2 levels, namely steady video and steady video pro, which will try to reduce shaking or vibration when capturing video. Which may be present due to user movement, such as when recording while walking.
When Steady Video and Steady Video Pro are active, we will be forced to record videos at a maximum resolution of 1080p 30fps only. The difference between these two steady levels is in the amount of video cropping performed by the system. So the steady Pro angle will be narrower than the usual Steady Video.
Meanwhile, for the front camera, the Xiaomi 12 carries a single camera embedded in the display with a resolution of 32MP. Also with a maximum 1080p recording capability at 60fps, complete with HLG and HDR10 + color formats.
Conclusion
As a flagship, the Xiaomi 12 is very tempting because of the size and design of the display that reminds us of the flagships in the 2020s. Because it is pleasing to the eye and comfortable when used with one hand. A number of sacrificed features, when compared to the PRO variant, are still logically acceptable and do not reduce the flagship impression it brings.
If your budget for buying a flagship phone is under 10 million, it feels like the Xiaomi 12 is worthy of being included in your purchase target. Even though there are competitors who are ready to put up resistance, in FEELS the Xiaomi 12 can still compete well.