I’ve said this many times before – Xiaomi is one of those companies that is present everywhere. That is especially true in the smartphone world – you’re getting the best value for your money with their devices. Recently, they announced the Pocophone F1 – a smartphone with flagship internals for around 300 euros. The Redmi 6 Pro got its official release in Asia, with the Mi A2 and A2 Lite around the globe. And now, the company announced their latest additions to the flagship market – the Xiaomi Mi 8 Pro and the Mi 8 Lite. Let’s take a closer look at them!
Design
Starting with the design, you won’t find many differences compared to the regular Mi 8. You’re getting a glass back design, rounded edges and a premium feel in the hand. There are also new gradient colors on both models, with the regular Mi 8 colors being present also. The display is getting the main change on both devices. The Mi 8 Pro gets a 6.21” notched OLED display with 1080 x 2248 resolution. Aside from that, it has a fingerprint sensor under the display, jumping on the trend that Vivo started. The smaller, Mi 8 Lite has a slightly bigger, 6.26 display, but it’s LCD instead of OLED. Unfortunately, the fingerprint sensor here is on the common back spot. Other than that, everything else is pretty much the same across all devices.
Features
On the inside, we have some slight differences between the regular Mi 8 and the Mi 8 Pro. The chipset is the same – the Snapdragon 845. The memory is where we’re getting a small difference. The regular Mi 8 has the options of 64, 128 or 256GB of internal storage. On the other hand, the Mi 8 Pro will be available only in 128GB of internal storage. The RAM options are the same – 6 or 8GB of it. The battery is also slightly smaller at 3000mAh capacity on the Pro version. Going over to the Mi 8 Lite, and we can clearly see that this is a midrange device. It houses the Snapdragon 660 processor, 4 or 6GB of RAM and 64 or 128GB of internal storage. The battery capacity here is capped at 3350mAh.
The cameras on the Mi 8 Pro are identical as those on the regular Mi 8. You’re still getting the 12 + 12MP combo on the back and the 20MP on the front. The Mi 8 Lite has some slight differences – you’re getting a 12 + 5MP combo on the back, with a 24MP shooter on the front. This clearly states that the Lite is definitely targeted towards the younger customer base. Nevertheless, all cameras are excellent, and will take excellent pictures and videos.
Finally finishing with the software, both versions running MIUI 10 based on Android Oreo 8.1. As you already know, they’re heavily modified, but pack a lot of useful features.
Pricing and availability
Both devices will be available across Asian markets, with more to follow up in the upcoming period. The Mi 8 Pro will start at around $467, while the Mi 8 Lite will start at around $204.
So, what are your thoughts on the Mi 8 Pro and the Mi 8 Lite? Share them in the comments below.