Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 5G
If you’re desperate for a 5G smartphone, this Vodafone exclusive is the most affordable choice
SCORE
PRICE Unlimited Max contract, £ 53 (£63 inc VAT) per month, £24 (£29 inc VAT) upfront, from vodafone.co.uk
We liked last year’s Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 ( pcpro.link/300mix): at £499, it offered a fine alternative to the OnePlus 6T, even if the 6T’s superior rear camera and less fiddly software edged it ahead. Now the Mi Mix 3 has returned, but with a facelift. Not only is it more powerful but it supports 5G.
This is courtesy of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 chipset and the bundled X50 modem, which can connect to sub-6GHz 5G networks with download speeds up of to 2Gbits/ sec. This low-band frequency can’t match the speeds expected to be delivered by millimetre wave (mmWave) 5G frequencies, but it’s a promising start.
On testing in various 5G locations around central London, the Mi Mix 3 downloaded the entire 586MB 4K Blade Runner 2049 package on Prime Video in 30 seconds. In that time, its 4G network only managed 69MB.
Vodafone’s 5G coverage isn’t entirely reliable, though, at least when it came to our testing during a rainy afternoon in London. I used Ookla’s Speedtest app to measure average speeds and latency in three separate London locations: Soho Square, Howick Place and St James’s Park. And I couldn’t find a 5G signal in the latter location at all, even after an hour of searching.
Performance varied substantially, reaching lows of 48Mbits/sec and highs of 231Mbits/sec. Notably, that’s nowhere even close to the promised 2Gbits/sec. It clearly depends on location, though: for example, my colleague at our sister publication IT Pro reached a record high of 450Mbits/ sec in Birmingham. Average latency wasn’t too shabby
at 20ms, nor was the average upload speeds of 21Mbits/sec. Another key attraction of the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 5G is that it offers better CPU and gaming performance than its predecessor. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 855, accompanied by 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, outperformed the original phone’s speeds by almost 50%. In terms of performance, the Mi Mix 3 5G is essentially identical to the Oppo Reno Zoom 10x ( see p68). Finally, the Mi Mix 3 5G has a bigger capacity battery at 3,800mAh, compared to the original model’s 3,200mAh unit. Its battery life jumped from 17hrs 44mins to 22hrs 50mins in our video rundown test. To ensure consistent results, we run this test in Flight mode, but 5G doesn’t seem to negatively impact the phone’s overall battery life: it dropped to only 80% after two-and-ahalf hour’s worth of heavy use. Other than the new processor, X50 5G modem and the bigger battery, the 5G variant is much the same as the original Mi Mix 3. This is a phone with a large 6.39in 1,080 x 2,340 notch-less AMOLED display and a sliding mechanism that hides the selfie camera
“So, should you buy into the 5G revolution at this early stage? I’m unconvinced: the barrier for entry is alarmingly high”
away behind the display when it’s not being used.
The display’s colour accuracy is excellent, with an average Delta E of 1.65, covering 100% of the sRGB colour gamut. Readability is also top-notch, with a maximum screen brightness of 554cd/m2.
It’s also a great-looking phone and takes outstanding pictures, too, courtesy of its dual rear 12-megapixel cameras and 24-megapixel/2megapixel selfie cameras. Image quality isn’t quite a match for the Huawei P30 Pro, but it’s darned good output for a phone at this price.
So, should you buy into the 5G revolution at this early stage? I’m unconvinced: the barrier for entry is alarmingly high. Exclusive to Vodafone’s mobile network in the UK – the Mi Mix 3 5G can’t be purchased SIM-free – two-year contract prices start at £56 a month with an upfront cost of £29. This is for Vodafone’s Unlimited Lite package, which is capped at 3G-like download speeds of only 2Mbits/sec. The next tier, which costs £59 a month, is restricted to 10Mbits/sec.
To access the fastest possible speeds of up to 2Gbits/sec, you will pay £63 a month with the same upfront cost on the firm’s Unlimited Max plan. The Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 5G will cost a wallet-wilting £1,541 by the time your two-year contract comes to a close. That may sound expensive (and it is), but this is actually the cheapest unlimited data 5G contract on the market.
There’s also the question of where you live and work. Vodafone’s 5G network is currently live (in some capacity) in Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Glasgow, Liverpool, London and Manchester, with a total of 19 locations expected by the end of 2019. With patchy coverage and performance, there simply aren’t enough benefits of the souped-up mobile network to recommend picking up a lengthy (and ultimately expensive) 5G phone contract. However, if you’re aching to join the 5G fun – and it will be an exclusive club at the start – the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 5G is a solid choice. SPECIFICATIONS Octa-core 2.84GHz/2.42GHz/1.8GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 6GB RAM Adreno 640 graphics 6.39in AMOLED screen, 1,080 x 2,340 resolution 128GB storage dual 12MP/12MP rear camera 24MP front camera 802.11ac Wi-Fi Bluetooth 5 NFC USB-C connector 3,800mAh battery Android 9 74.7 x 8.5 x 158mm (WDH) 225g 1yr warranty