Product test
Xiaomi 15 tested: a compact top smartphone
by Jan Johannsen
Xiaomi Mi Mix 3: "Killed by Software" is actually a thing
6.3.2019
Translation: machine translated
Video: Stephanie Tresch
The Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 is lush green, has a gigantic screen and feels good in the hand. If only it weren't for the software, which is completely messed up.
The front is a screen. No notch, almost no edges. The back plate of the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 shines out at me in green. A bold colour, because green is difficult to achieve in plastic so that it doesn't look like a bathroom from the 1970s. Dual cam, with the fingerprint sensor slightly offset to the side in the centre.
The Mi Mix 3 is heavy in the hand. At 218 grams, it is massively heavier than the competition, which is reluctant to even come close to the 200-gram limit. Because the main feature of the Chinese phone needs a little more mass.
The Mi Mix 3 is one of the slider phones.
This means that the entire front of the smartphone can be moved. That in itself is extremely cool. If only it weren't for the rest.
Click click: The slider is fun
So if you want to activate the selfie cam, slide the screen down from the top of the Mi Mix 3. Don't worry, it works quite well. The slider is neither flabby nor stiff. Someone at Xiaomi must have spent a huge amount of time finding exactly the right resistance for the slider. Because this thing is fun. I find myself pushing the slider open and closed every now and then simply out of boredom and the thought of having to do something with the phone.
The slider engages with a satisfying click both when closed and open. I've been consciously paying attention to this ever since Knob Feel. I recommend you do the same.
Because it feels really good. Click click click. It's impossible for the slider to remain half-open, because the system is magnetically well solved. It's as if you're pulling or pushing the slider over a hill. At first it's hard going uphill, then it almost goes by itself when it goes downhill. Yes, yes, they did a really good job with the slider. Click click click.
The big but
Where Xiaomi could also have saved money: The development of the Miui. Miui is Xiaomi's user interface (UI). Just like x other smartphone manufacturers, Xiaomi thought "We can do better" and changed the entire user interface. And by changed, I mean "completely messed up".
Miui would like to be something like Apple iOS, but fails because it steals the flat look of Lineage OS from OnePlus and the arrangement of the icons from Apple. Horrible, but easy to fix. Install Nova Launcher, then restore the backup.
Of course, visually it looks nice, with the generous white space and all that. But if you can barely get more than three notifications in the space where other phones can easily manage five, then you're doing something wrong. What's more, the animation is so damn slow and sluggish. And nobody can tell me that the Mi Mix 3 is slowed down on the hardware side. Because there is no justification for the slowness of the phone on the hardware side.
But then the slider comes back and saves the day. Or at least makes it so that it doesn't leave a bad aftertaste. Because the slider starts the selfie cam by default. Makes sense. But in the settings you will find the menu item "Slider Settings", where you can set what the slider should do when you slide it open. You can set anything there, from functions to an app of your choice. This shows that Xiaomi does understand software. Just not about UI.
The big but to the but
Is the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 beyond salvation? No. If, like me, you can't live with Miui making your top-of-the-line smartphone slow, sluggish and ugly, then there is a remedy. But before I tell you that, a few disclaimers:
International versions of smartphones and smart devices are generally not affected by these regulations, as Chinese companies are also aware that international customers may refrain from making a purchase if metadata is leaked. Furthermore, international data waste is of no use to anyone. This is because violations of Chinese law cannot be penalised outside of China.
ROM flashing is also a good idea if you have absolutely no desire to use Xiaomi's Miui, but actually want to utilise the performance of your hardware and don't want to settle for "killed by software".
So, that's it. Hopefully my next phone will be better.
Journalist. Author. Hacker. A storyteller searching for boundaries, secrets and taboos – putting the world to paper. Not because I can but because I can’t not.
