Slowly but surely, the Chinese brand Xiaomi is gaining popularity in the Netherlands. That is not unjustified, because the Chinese manufacturer says that you do not have to sacrifice anything for a competitive price. With this Xiaomi Mi 9T, Xiaomi makes that known more than ever.
Xiaomi Mi 9T
Price € 349,-Colors Black, Blue, Red
OS Android 9.0 (MIUI 10)
Screen 6.4 inch amoled (2340 x 1080)
Processor 2.2GHz octa-core (Snapdragon 730)
RAM 6GB
Storage 64 or 128GB
Battery 4,000mAh
Camera 48, 8, 13 megapixel (rear), 20 megapixel (front)
Connectivity 4G (LTE), Bluetooth 5.0, Wi-Fi, GPS, NFC
Format 15.7 x 7.4 x 0.9 cm
Weight 191 grams
Other fingerprint scanner behind screen, usb-c, dualsim
Website //www.mi.com/en 8 Score 80
- Pros
- Price quality
- Complete
- Screen
- Negatives
- No wireless charging
- MIUI
The Xiaomi Mi 9T is easily confused with another smartphone: the Xiaomi Mi 9. The latter has been available for a while and received an excellent rating from us. The device has the most powerful specifications in a luxurious housing, while the price is sharp from 449 euros. Still, the smartphone had some drawbacks. First of all, the MIUI software, which is not an advancement over the regular Android base. Second, there is no 3.5mm jack for your headset. The Xiaomi Mi 9T is even more affordable: about 350 euros. Moreover, this device does have a headphone connection and all the luxury that the regular 9 also offers. The small differences are in the slightly less powerful chipset and the fact that the Mi 9T smartphone has a pop-up front camera instead of a camera in a notch on the front of the smartphone.
It is also striking that for 350 euros you get a remarkably complete smartphone, which is equipped with all the luxury parts that the most expensive smartphones also have: a triple camera on the back, pop-up front camera and even a (reasonably performing) fingerprint scanner under the cover. screen. Unfortunately, this fingerprint scanner is not yet as accurate and fast as a traditional physical scanner.
Housing
The Xiaomi Mi 9T has a luxurious appearance due to its glass housing. However, that makes the device vulnerable and wireless charging (which allows a glass housing, as opposed to a metal housing) is not possible. Fortunately, the black color ensures that fingerprints are not extremely noticeable and there is a plastic cover in the box. The smartphone is not above average in size, despite the fact that it has a screen that is 6.4 inches in diameter. Thanks to thin screen edges, the pop-up camera and a screen ratio of 19.5 by 9, a large part of the front consists of a screen and the smartphone is not too large.
The screen is also excellent quality for its price range. It's bright, the colors are deep and with its full-HD resolution, everything looks sharp enough.
chipset
Internally, everything is also fine: a battery capacity of 4,000 mAh is more than sufficient. Enough for about a day and a half - although that of course depends on your use. Fortunately, thanks to the included fast charger, you have the smartphone ready for use. The smartphone responds quickly, thanks to the Snapdragon 720 processor. This is an excellent chipset for this price range, but for those who want to run more powerful apps or games, the Xiaomi Mi 9T Pro may be a better choice. This is roughly the same smartphone, which is a few tens more expensive and has, among other things, a slightly faster Snapdragon 855 chipset.
Cameras
Don't be distracted by the number of cameras on a smartphone. More cameras does not guarantee better photos. Google proves this with its Pixel 3A smartphone, which has a similar asking price, but with its single camera lens on the rear shoots better photos than this Xiaomi Mi 9T.
However, the camera of the Xiaomi smartphone is more versatile. There are three lenses on the back, consisting of a wide-angle lens, zoom lens and a 48-megapixel main lens. Especially the main lens shoots absolutely no wrong pictures and can handle difficult lighting conditions reasonably well. Switching between the zoom lens and wide-angle sensor is a welcome addition, but you do notice that these lenses show noise faster in difficult lighting conditions.
Android 9 with MIUI 10
Software is a concern for most Chinese smartphone makers and unfortunately Xiaomi is no exception. Why Xiaomi also puts so much time and energy into breaking down a great Android base is completely beyond me. But unfortunately that is the case. For example, the 'Always On' functionality for VPN connections has been removed from the system. Huawei also does this, for example, probably to improve battery life. But it comes at the expense of security for those who like to protect their smartphone with a VPN connection. Ironically, the redundant and unremovable virus scanner gives you a false sense of security. There are also many unnecessary apps, such as two browsers, Xiaomi apps and advertising apps from Facebook and AliExpress. As a user, you should also not forget to uncheck the box when installing the smartphone to receive advertising on your smartphone. In that regard, Xiaomi can learn something from the other Chinese manufacturer OnePlus, which works carefully to improve Android. Unfortunately, the days when OnePlus also offers comparable competitive prices are behind us.
The Xiaomi Mi 9T runs on Android 9, the most recent version of Android. With the July security patch at the time of writing (end of August). That's acceptable. Unfortunately, little can be said about how Xiaomi scores in the field of update support.
Alternatives to the Xiaomi Mi 9T
For 349 euros you get an incredible amount back with the Xiaomi Mi 9T. There are only two good alternatives to name in comparable price ranges. First of all, the Xiaomi Mi 9T Pro, which may be a better choice than the regular 9T. For a few bucks more you have much better cameras and more powerful chipset. Those who have legitimate concerns about the MIUI software shell and update support can turn to the Google Pixel 3A. Although this smartphone is less powerful and luxurious, the software and support are a lot better and the camera is significantly better, especially in low light.
Conclusion: Buy Xiaomi Mi 9T?
If you don't want to miss anything in terms of functions, but don't want to pay too much, the Xiaomi Mi 9T is an excellent smartphone. Thanks to a modern housing, pop-up camera, fingerprint scanner under the screen, fast charger, 3 camera lenses, large battery and 3.5 mm connection, you have a very complete smartphone, which also scores well in terms of performance and screen quality. For the price tag of 350 euros you have an excellent choice, although you have to settle for a substandard software shell over Android.
Thanks to Belsimpel.nl for making a review copy available.
