
Xiaomi is definitely working on becoming one of the most popular smartphone manufacturers in the world. Even though it is quite hard to take on competing companies like Samsung and Apple, the Chinese company seems to be doing just fine. Of course, in order to become popular, Xiaomi needs to impress fans of the biggest companies. The iPhone X is still one of the most desired smartphones in the world, so it’s not necessarily surprising that the Chinese company decided to copy it. It’s visible to the naked eye that the Xiaomi Mi 8 is almost a perfect clone of the iPhone X. If we ignore the Apple logo on the back of the iPhone, it really looks a lot like the Xiaomi Mi 8. Or the other way around. The most important question is: is the new Xiaomi handset worth its price?
The Xiaomi Mi 8 is, without a doubt, an eye-catching device. The base model is already quite good-looking, and the Xiaomi Mi 8 Explorer Edition only takes things further with its see-through glass back. The specs sheet of these two models is quite impressive too. Even the Xiaomi Mi 8 SE looks great on paper, especially for its price. The base model has the same camera notch as the one we’ve seen on Apple’s flagship device last year. Of course, this particular notch was copied by a lot of other companies too, however, the Xiaomi Mi 8 seems to be the closest in looks to the iPhone X. The only things that differentiate these devices at first look are their size, the fingerprint sensor of the Mi 8 on the back, and the Apple logo Xiaomi decided not to put on its handset.
Under the hood, the Mi 8 hides the powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chipset, paired with 6GB of RAM and up to 256GB internal storage. The smartphone is also available with 64GB or 128GB of flash storage. None of the devices feature a microSD card slot, so in their case, what you see is what you get in terms of storage. The Xiaomi device runs Android 8.1 Oreo out of the box and there is a high chance that it will get the next few Android upgrades too. Naturally, this ensures a totally different user experience than the iOS running iPhone X. Then again, it really depends on the user which operating system their prefer best. People are usually either Android fans or iOS fans, and nothing can change this.
The Xiaomi Mi 8’s base model already seems to be a more than decent smartphone, however, the Explorer Edition is even more impressive. It’s not only the fancy design that differentiates this model from its sibling, the Xiaomi Mi 8. The Explorer Edition also brings along a number of other great features which could easily turn it into a must-have smartphone. Unlike the Mi 8, the Xiaomi Mi 8 Explorer Edition features Face ID and it also offers a fingerprint sensor under its display. hile the Face ID feature is also present in the iPhone X, it doesn’t have a fingerprint sensor under its display. This particular feature is quite new, as only a few other devices offer it. In order not to drain the battery of the device with constant fingerprint scanning, the scanner will only do its job when pressure is applied to it.
Other features of the Xiaomi Mi 8, Mi 8 Explorer Edition, and the iPhone X are quite similar too. All three devices feature dual 12MP primary cameras, reversible connectors, Bluetooth 5.0, and fast battery charging. The Xiaomi Mi 8 seems to do better in the front-facing camera section and in the battery section than the iPhone X does. Then again, we do know that Apple manages to deliver great results with features that don’t necessarily look that good on paper, so these features might actually prove to be insignificant when opting for one model over the other.
One thing is sure: the Xiaomi Mi 8 and Mi 8 Explorer Edition are both a lot more affordable than the iPhone X. The Xiaomi Mi 8 SE is even less expensive, but then again, it doesn’t offer the same high-end features. So, those who would like a smartphone with high-end features and great looks now have another option. They can get the great looks of the iPhone X for a significantly lower price. For the lower price, they will also get some impressive specs. Of course, this isn’t an option for those who are committed to using only iOS running devices. They will just have to wait for Apple’s new devices that will launch in the fall.
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