Xiaomi 13 Lite review

Introduction and specs

This year's Lite model from Xiaomi's numeric flagship series shapes up to be a proper Lite compared to its vanilla 13 and 13 Pro siblings. The "Lite" designation has been associated with less than stellar hardware for those on a budget, and these models often ride on the success of their true flagship alternatives in the same lineup. However, this year's Xiaomi 13 Lite seems like the real deal. There are quite a few upgrades over the Xiaomi 12 Lite as well.

The display is largely the same as last year's, except that it's curved this time around, and the diagonal is still 6.55", making it a somewhat compact mid-range solution. One of the most notable changes is the new chipset, though. This year, the Lite will be powered by the brand new Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 SoC, promising improved efficiency and performance compared to the older Snapdragon 700 series.

For the most part, the camera setup remains the same. Now the 50MP Sony IMX766 sensor is spearheading the setup on the back, which is just as big of a sensor as last year's 108MP one. Of course, the main shooter is assisted by the commonly used 8MP ultrawide camera, which isn't a surprise.

The front-facing configuration is entierly new, though. The pill-shaped notch is a home to a 32MP ultrawide angle camera with some advanced features and an 8MP depth sensor for better-looking portraits with bokeh.

Xiaomi 13 Lite specs at a glance:

• Body: 159.2x72.7x7.2mm, 171g; Glass front (Gorilla Glass 5), glass back, plastic frame; IP53, dust and splash resistant.
• Display: 6.55" AMOLED, 68B colors, Dolby Vision, HDR10+, 120Hz, 500 nits (typ), 1000 nits (peak), 1080x2400px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 402ppi.
• Chipset: Qualcomm SM7450-AB Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 (4 nm): Octa-core (1x2.4 GHz Cortex-A710 & 3x2.36 GHz Cortex-A710 & 4x1.8 GHz Cortex-A510); Adreno 644.
• Memory: 128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 8GB RAM; UFS 2.2.
• OS/Software: Android 12, MIUI 14.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 50 MP, f/1.8, 23mm, 1/1.56", 1.0µm, PDAF; Ultra wide angle: 8 MP, f/2.2, 119˚, 1/4.0", 1.12µm; Macro: 2 MP, f/2.4.
• Front camera: Wide (main): 32 MP, f/2.4, 100˚, 1/2.74", 0.8µm; Depth: 8 MP, f/2.3.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/60/120fps, 720p@960fps; Front camera: 1080p@30/60fps.
• Battery: 4500mAh; 67W wired, 100% in 40 min (advertised).
• Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, optical); Infrared port; single speaker setup.

The battery department also gets a slight bump. The cell is now 4,500 mAh instead of 4,300 mAh and still supports Xiaomi's 67W fast charging, which plays well with Power Delivery 3.0 too. Last but not least, build quality has been improved too, as the chassis is now entirely built from glass and metal while retaining lightweight and design.

But as we all know, it's not all just specs, so we suggest that you continue reading our review to find out more about the Xiaomi 13 Lite.

Unboxing the Xiaomi 13 Lite

The Xiaomi 13 Lite ships with the usual user manuals, the corresponding 67W charger and a USB-A to USB-C cable for charging and data transfer.

There's also an extra transparent silicone case.