Sorry, Americans, but you can't buy this amazing Xiaomi Mi 11 Android smartphone
Being an American is pretty great. After all, we get to live in the best country in the world. We have many freedoms that other countries do not, such as speech, press, and religion to name a few. And when it comes to tech products, we usually get access to the best. Thanks to the xenophobic Donald Trump we can't have Huawei products, but I digress.
With all of that said, China gets some amazing tech exclusives -- especially when it comes to smartphones. For instance, Xiaomi phones are quite beautiful and powerful, but rarely destined for the USA -- unless you import one. Today, that company unveils its latest Android-based flagship. Called "Mi 11," it is gorgeous with impressive specs, but it will not come to America officially.
The 8.06mm-thin Mi 11 is powered by the cutting-edge Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 CPU, Adreno 660 GPU, and either 8GB or 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM running at 3200MHz! It has a 6.81-inch AMOLED screen with an impressive 120Hz refresh and 3200×1440 resolution. The 4,600mAh battery should provide all-day battery.
"Equipped with the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 Mobile Platform, which is manufactured using the most advanced 5nm process, Mi 11 offers breakthrough performance with superior power efficiency. The ultra-large core Arm Cortex-X1, designed for maximum performance, has powerful computational capabilities, along with the new A78 offering the best to-date power efficiency – these two combined provide for a CPU performance increase of 35 percent while being 20 percent more power efficient," explains Xiaomi.
The Chinese company further says, "Mi 11 features one of the industry’s top quality displays with a 6.81-inch AMOLED quad curved DotDisplay panel and WQHD+ 3200×1440 resolution. The screen is made of the new E4 light emitting material and offers peak brightness of 1,500 nits meaning that even the brightest sunlight will not be an obstacle. Mi 11 supports 120Hz refresh rate and an ultra-high touch sampling rate of 480Hz. For an even better use experience, Mi 11 uses the new and currently toughest Corning Gorilla Glass Victus."
As a flagship, it obviously has newer technology that you should expect, such as 5G, Wi-Fi 6, an in-screen fingerprint sensor, reverse charging, and USB-C. It even has a 108MP main camera that is capable of recording 8K video. And yes, it runs the beautiful Android-based MIUI operating system.
Xiaomi shares specifications below.
| Mi 11 | |
| Display | 6.81” AMOLED quad-curve DotDisplay with TrueColor 20:9 Aspect ratio, WQHD+ 120 Hz refresh rate 480Hz touch sampling rate Color contrast ratio: 5,000,000:1 (typ) 900nits (typ), 1500nits max brightness (typ) Color gamut: Supports DCI-P3 Color accuracy: JNCD≈0.38，△E≈0.41 10-bit color depth HDR 10+, SGS Eye Care Display Certification |
| Color | Anti-glare frosted glass: Midnight Gray/ Horizon Blue/ Frost White Vegan leather: Lilac Purple/ Honey Beige |
| Body | Corning® Gorilla® Glass Victus™ |
| Dimensions | 164.3mm x 74.6mm x 8.06mm 196g（glass） 164.3mm x 74.6mm x 8.56mm 194g（leather） |
| Performance | Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 888 5nm power-efficient manufacturing process Octa-core design, ultra-large core Arm Cortex-X1 AdrenoTM 660 GPU, 6th generation Qualcomm® AI engine X60 modem for lightning-fast 5G connectivit Enhanced LPDDR5 3200MHz RAM + UFS 3.1 storage Variants: 8GB+128GB, 8GB+256GB, 12GB+256GB |
| Rear camera | 108MP wide-angle camera 1/1.33” sensor size, f/1.85, 7P lens – OIS, AF 0.8μm pixel size, 1.6μm 4-in-1 Super Pixel 13MP ultra-wide angle camera 123° FOV, f/2.4 aperture 5MP telemacro camera f/2.4, AF (3cm-10cm) |
| Front camera | 20MP in-display selfie camera 0.8μm pixel size, 1.6μm 4-in-1 Super Pixel f/2.4 aperture |
| Connectivity | Dual SIM, dual 5G standby Wi-Fi 6 Multi-functional NFC and IR blaster USB Type-C |
| Unlock | In-screen fingerprint sensor with heart rate monitoring Face unlock |
| Charging | 4,600mAh (typ) battery 55W wired and 50W wireless fast charging 10W reverse wireless charging |
| Audio | Dual speakers, SOUND BY Harman Kardon Hi-Res Audio Certification Hi-Res Audio Wireless Certification |
| Motor | X-axis linear vibration motor |
| System | MIUI 12 based on Android 10 |
| Storage variants | 8GB+128GB 8GB+256GB 12GB+256GB |
If you are in China, the Xiaomi Mi 11 can be pre-ordered immediately in several colors, with pricing starting at RMB 3999 (which converts to approximately $612 USD). In other words, this is not an inexpensive phone for the Chinese market. Sadly, Americans cannot experience this device, although they may be able to import one later.