Xiaomi has launched a lot of devices in India this year, and the Mi 10T is the latest smartphone from the company. While we have seen the brand focus on Midrange smartphones, the Mi 10T attracts the audience who are looking for an upper-midrange device with a flagship processor.
Talking about the specs, the Mi 10T comes with a 6.67-inch Full HD+ LCD screen with a 144Hz refresh rate. Under the hood, the device is powered by the flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 chipset which is coupled with 8GB RAM and 128GB Internal Storage. The device goes on sale via Flipkart and starts from Rs.35,999 in India. Is the Mi 10T worth your money? Let’s find out.
Xiaomi Mi 10T Specifications
- Display: 6.67-inch Full HD+ LCD screen with 2340 × 1080 pixels resolution, 144Hz refresh rate, 20:9 aspect ratio, HDR10, MEMC, 98% DCI-P3 Color Gamut, and Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection
- CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 7nm Mobile Platform
- GPU: Adreno 650 GPU
- RAM: 6/8 GB LPPDDR5 RAM
- Storage: 128 GB UFS 3.1 internal storage
- OS: MIUI 12 based on Android 10
- Rear Camera: 64 MP Sony IMX682 primary sensor + 13 MP 123° ultra-wide-angle lens + 5 MP macro lens
- Front Camera: 20 MP with Samsung S5K3T2 sensor, f/2.2 aperture
- Others: Side-mounted fingerprint sensor, Stereo speakers, Hi-res audio
- Connectivity Options: 5G SA/NSA Dual 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 6 802.11 ax (2.4GHz + 5GHz) 4×4 MIMO, Bluetooth 5.1, GPS (L1 + L5), NFC, USB Type-C
- Battery: 5000 mAh with 33W fast charging
Design, Display and Build
Talking about the design and build, the Mi 10T comes with a Glass + Metal body and weighs around 216 grams which is quite heavy when you compare it with the other devices in this price range. Thanks to the amazing build quality, the device feels premium when you hold it in your hands however it is really tall and because of this, the people who have smaller hands may have a problem with one-handed usage.
We got the Lunar Silver variant to play around with but Xiaomi also sells this in a Cosmic Black color variant. The glass back attracts a lot of fingerprints so if you are planning to use the device without a case we’d recommend you to pick up the Black variant so your fingerprints are not easily visible on the back. The device comes with a rectangular-shaped camera module on the back and surprisingly it’s bigger than most of the smartphones we’ve seen out there. It helps to give the device a unique look however it also makes your phone wobble at a flat surface. Along with the Camera Module, you also get the Xiaomi Branding on the left side of the glass back.
The Volume Keys and a Power Button which doubles up as a Fingerprint Scanner is placed on the right and they can be easily accessed with your thumb when you are using the device with a single hand. On the bottom, there’s a USB Type-C Port, a SIM Tray along with the speakers that deliver great sound output. A 3.5mm headphone jack is missing from the device so if you want to connect your wired headphones or AUX Cables you’ll have to use a USB Type-C to 3.5mm converter. Just like most of the Xiaomi phones out there, the Mi 10T also comes with an IR Blaster on the top that allows you to control your TV.
Unboxing Mi 10T is a great experience, the device comes with a premium-looking black box and along with the Mobile Phone, Xiaomi also offers a Type-C to 3.5mm headphone adapter in the box. Thanks to this, users won’t have to purchase the adapter separately and this would easily save them Rs.300. In addition to this, you also get a USB Type-C cable, a 33W fast charger, a SIM Eject Tool, and a soft case inside the box.
Moving on to the display, the Mi 10T comes with a 6.67-inch Full HD+ LCD screen with a 144Hz refresh rate. It supports HDR10 and MEMC motion compensation technology. It comes with a 2340 × 1080 pixels resolution, 98% DCI-P3 Color Gamut, and Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection on both front and back.
At this price, we would have loved to see an AMOLED Panel because Xiaomi has already offered it in the past with the Redmi K20 Series. However, the LCD Panel Xiaomi is using on this device is top-notch. The colors are vibrant, viewing angles are great and In addition to this, you won’t face any issues while using the smartphone in direct sunlight as everything on the screen is easily visible.
In real life usage, you won’t notice much difference between an AMOLED panel and the LCD Display on this one unless you compare them side by side. The 144Hz display makes the everyday usage great and everything feels super smooth. Overall, the display on the Mi 10T is good and manages to get the job done well.
User Interface and Software
The Mi 10T runs on the latest MIUI 12 based on Android 10 out of the box and as a result, it brings in a lot of additional features. While MIUI is known for its ads, the Mi 10T offers a complete Adfree experience.
Mi Browser is removed from the device since the Indian Government banned it which removes half the notifications that users were getting and In addition to this, there is not much bloatware on the device. The only preinstalled apps you get on the device are Google Apps, Amazon, Flipkart, WPS Office, and Zili which is an alternative to TikTok however you can uninstall most of them.
Apps like Mi Message and Mi Dialer are also removed and Xiaomi has replaced them with Google Messages and Phone by Google. The overall experience with the MIUI 12 was great, we noticed no bugs or app crashes and everything went pretty smooth. The Animations load up quickly and you also get an App Drawer which means that your apps won’t pile up on your Home Screen. The smartphone already has a Software Update which updates the security patch to November 2020.
Mi 10T also has a Control Centre that gives you quick access to shortcuts and allows you to make changes to your WiFi, Bluetooth, and more. Since all the shortcuts have moved to the Control Centre users now get a separate space for their Notifications. Swiping down from the left side of your screen brings up Control Centre whereas swiping from the right gives you access to your Notification Panel which is really cool.
Widevine L1 certification is present on the device which means that you’ll be able to enjoy all your videos in the best quality on Apps like Amazon Prime, Netflix, and more. You can have a look at the MIUI 12 below.
Hardware, Performance, & Gaming
Mi 10T is powered by the flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 7nm processor which is further coupled with an Adreno 650 GPU and 6/8 GB of LPPDDR5 RAM. It comes with 128 GB UFS 3.1 internal storage which makes it stand out from the competition. As of now, this is one of the very few smartphones that offers a Snapdragon 865 chipset under Rs.35,000 which is a great thing for gamers who are on a tight budget.
We got the 8GB RAM Variant to play around with and in our everyday usage the Xiaomi Mi 10T handled everything we threw at it. You can multitask with ease and mostly every game runs at the maximum settings. We tried playing Call of Duty and Asphalt 9: Legends on this one and the gaming performance was impressive. Even after 2 hours of continuous Call of Duty matches the device didn’t heat up and there were hardly any frame drops ingame. Since PUBG Mobile is coming back soon in India this can be a great smartphone for gaming if you are on a tight budget of Rs.35,000.
Talking about the Connectivity, the Mi 10T comes with support 5G SA/NSA Dual 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 6 802.11 ax (2.4GHz + 5GHz) 4×4 MIMO, Bluetooth 5.1, GPS (L1 + L5), and NFC. Since 5G is expected to roll out in the second half of 2021 in India, having support for it right now makes the device future-proof and you won’t have to upgrade it when 5G rolls out.
Moving on to the Benchmarks, we ran a couple of benchmarking apps on this device including Geekbench 5, 3DMark, AnTuTu, and Androbench. The device performed great however it was unable to beat the scores for Flagship OnePlus devices on AnTuTu. The results for the benchmarking tests on the Mi 10T are listed below.
- AnTuTu Benchmark: 573538 defeated 76% of users.
- Geekbench: 907 Single-Core, 3365 Multi-Core
- 3DMark – The Gamer’s Benchmark: 5996 on Sling Shot Extreme- Open Gl ES 3.1
- Androbench Storage Benchmark: 1666 MB/s Maximum Read Speed, 727 MB/s Maximum Write Speed
- PCMark Work 2.0: 9449Work 2.0 Performance Score.
Camera
The only thing which differentiates Mi 10T from the Mi 10T Pro is its Camera Setup. Mi 10T comes with a 64 MP Sony IMX682 primary sensor + a 13 MP 123° ultra-wide-angle lens + and a 5 MP macro lens. Whereas the Mi 10T Pro comes with the 108 MP Samsung HMX primary sensor + a 13 MP 123° ultra-wide-angle lens + and a 5 MP macro lens. While the Ultra Wide Angle Lens and the Macro camera are the same on both devices, the primary sensor is different.
The 108 MP Samsung Sensor manages to capture more detail however that doesn’t make the 64 MP Sony IMX 682 any bad. The camera on the Mi 10T works really well in Day Light conditions and the pictures you get have punchy color tones and nice details. In everyday usage, you won’t find much difference between the photos shot using Mi 10T and 10T Pro unless you zoom in. The device also comes with a 20 MP with Samsung S5K3T2 sensor with f/2.2 aperture on the front which takes care of your selfies and video calls.
Portrait Selfie Mode is present on the device and the blurred background that you get in photos shot it Portrait Selfie mode is better than most of the devices under Rs.30,000. The edge detection works well too and there are hardly any scenarios where the camera blurs out the main sections of your photo. Other Camera Modes include Night Mode, 64MP Mode, Panorama, Vlog, Long Exposure, and Pro Mode. The Mi Camera App is the only app that offers so many modes right now and helps you to get your photography to the next level. You can have a look at the images shot using Mi 10T below.
Battery
Mi 10T packs a 5000 mAh that comes with support for 33W fast charging. The battery on the Mi 10T holds up pretty well and easily gets you through the day. While having the smartphone one 144 Hz increases the Battery Consumption you can lower your refresh rate to 90Hz or 60Hz when you want to save your battery life for using your smartphone in an emergency. In addition to this, the device also comes with a battery saver mode that helps you to enhance battery life.
The 33W fast charger works well and takes about 50 mins to charge the smartphone up to 70% which is really good since it packs a massive 5000 mAH battery. Xiaomi includes the fast charger in the box which is good and it helps the customer to save a few bucks. Overall the battery on the Mi 10T is impressive and you won’t face any problems in the longer run.
Verdict
Mi 10T is a bang for a buck. The device offers everything that you can expect from a Flagship Device. As it is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 chipset it manages to handle everything you throw at it. The animations are smooth and thanks to the higher refresh rate using the smartphone in everyday life get better. There are no Ads on the device and MIUI offers a lot of customization options. If you are on a tight budget of ₹35,000 then this is one of the best devices that you can get in the market right now.
And if you can extend your budget the OnePlus 8 and OnePlus 8T are also worth checking out.
