Xiaomi Mi 8 long-term review

04 February 2019
The Xiaomi Mi 8 was the company’s top of the line offering when it launched in the first half of last year, but it’s still very interesting to take a look at because it is now one of the most affordable smartphones you can buy with a Snapdragon 845 inside.

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I own this right now and it's a great device for the price I paid.
It has some letdown sure, but all phones have some, and the Mi8's are not that significant to be honest.
If you can live with the notch you're good really.

    Anonymous, 05 Feb 2019I dont understand why OnePlus 6 got so much more love than ... moreIf you count only specs and price - yes, mi8 is a better buy.
    But I prefer OP6 because of design, OxygenOS, no throttling issues and a headphone jack.

      • n
      • niXYZ
      • 3bM
      • 05 Feb 2019

      I have just bought it a few days ago. In terms of software hassles I know that it is still not the most optimized for the international users, but there are great communities such as xiaomi.eu where you can get a optimized version of the MIUI experience which is much better than the MIUI version you are getting with the global rom. I know this is no easy task for a user that is not familiar with phone unlocking & system flashing. Especially it might sound as a big no no for users when they realize that you are losing the warranty if you install a custom rom. I hope that this will become easier in the future for the less tech savvy. But that is why many of us buy the device from China because it is cheaper than buying it in physical store in EU for example and flash a custom rom that works without a problem on a device that is intended for use only in China. This is one of the reasons why xiaomi introduced the Anti Roll Back function so that their China based devices are a bot harder to crack for international users but if you are careful you can still get around it and have the same device cheaper. Final conclusion is that the device is even greater if you manage to run the EU optimized version of MIUI 😊

        • D
        • Dan
        • 2Wn
        • 05 Feb 2019

        Best midrange phone ever!

          I own it since the last September, a few thoughts of this mi phone.

          A common battery, cannot say it rocks with my usage, usually charging it in the end of the day, but no two-day usage, definitely no.
          Got installed gcam mod after miui 10.1 update, and it's just get better, especially for the photos with low-light. Opposite, the stock camera, they still haven't add 60FPS option. Well, at least 960fps option is there.
          Notch hiding - true, this is embarrassment how they deal with the customers. "We decided that for better user experience that is not needed" - a good answer to the notch hiding lack feature question. =)
          Camera unlocking - maybe it is only my experience, but it even worked till 10.0 update with HK or China region, after the update, that feature is just not able to recognize anybody. Questioned the support, what is wrong with it, got a standard answer that it is a region dependable feature. Even that it is hardly associated with the region, it's just not working.
          Cannot agree with the author opinion about sound - it's not bothering while talking or listen via speaker, so it quietly not the disadvantage to me. Lacking of audiojack is about chineese stupid c/p from the one of the US companies.
          Display, connectivity, device speed - more then satisfied.
          But must say, some miui strange acts actually can easily blow your mind, for the example, after applying dark theme from the official themes app. the only way to get device online was the hard reboot...

            Nicolas F, 04 Feb 2019Whoa, russian books about photography on 3rd page! =)It's in Bulgarian actually;

              • ?
              • Anonymous
              • nps
              • 05 Feb 2019

              faster than iphone 8

                • M
                • Maria
                • 6cY
                • 05 Feb 2019

                Just in case, Mi8 (not lite) is coming to Indonesia, I am sure 100% to buy it.

                  • ?
                  • Anonymous
                  • QNv
                  • 05 Feb 2019

                  I dont understand why OnePlus 6 got so much more love than this phone... Pretty much identical hardware with Mi8 even having a better camera. All in all, it’s cheaper too so I see no reason to get the OnePlus 6 over the Mi 8

                    Oof I'm very happy to see pictures from Romania here. Have you been visiting Brasov by any chance? I live in Romania and I was totally not expecting a MI 8 review to have anything to do with it lol.

                      Whoa, russian books about photography on 3rd page! =)