The latest Mi 11 Ultra device from Xiaomi is probably the strongest competitor to the Latest Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra and Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max. This is a super smartphone with an outstanding feature set and design that captivate the interest of every user.
Xiaomi has gone beyond innovations to introduce a 1.1-inch secondary display on the rear of the Mi 11 Ultra. This is absolutely huge and sits alongside the three powerful back lenses. However, this is just one of the several gratuitous features equipped in the Mi 11 Ultra that arguably kills its design.
This feature in many ways prevents people from buying the phone. Apart from adding to the weight of the phone, the secondary screen disrupts the phone’s wireless charging mat and makes the phone not rest perfectly when positioned horizontally. Also, it’s an always-on display which seems annoying and makes it easy to accidentally touch. In one way or the other, it’s also to blame for the Mi 11 Ultra’s hefty price tag, although other features contribute to that aspect, but it would have been less has it been altered.
Undoubtedly, the Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra is very similar to the Mi 11, although the former has better cameras, faster charging, and higher price, but they sport a lot of similarities than they don’t. Undeniably, we’ve got to commend Xiaomi for giving us this smartphone with a lot of qualities. There’s a Snapdragon 888 chip that makes the Mi 11 Ultra snappy to use especially on intensive gaming. The display is one of the best we’ve seen with up to 2k resolutions and a 120Hz refresh rate. In addition, the charging speed is on another level with a 67W wire that boosts the phone in less time.
At first glance, you’ll notice Xiaomi’s design prowess on this device, then the specs list will leave you bewildered. Below is our unbiased opinion and verdict about the phone.
Read also OnePlus 9 Pro Review: Full Specifications, Features, and Price
Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra Key Specifications
- Display: 6.81-inches AMOLED, 120Hz
- Resolution: 1440 x 3200 pixels
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 888
- Front Camera: 20-megapixel
- Rear Camera: 50-megapixel + 48-megapixel + 48-megapixel
- RAM: 8GB /12GB
- Storage: 256GB /512GB
- Battery Capacity: 6000mAh
- OS: Android 11, MIUI 12.5
Design
Even without the massive rear bump, the Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra is a mega smartphone. The device has dimensions of 164.3 x 74.6 x 8.4mm (minus the camera bump) and weighs 234g. Undoubtedly, this is one of the heaviest smartphones we’ve come across and they’re only found in the realm of giant gaming handsets.
On the bottom edge of the phone is a USB-C port and of course, no 3.5mm headphone port. This is normal for flagship devices and will be a turnoff for wired headphone fans. Meanwhile, on the right edge are the power button and volume rocker which we found easy to reach, while the opposite is the dual-SIM slot, but no expandable storage option.
There’s no doubt that the Mi 11 Ultra is a well-protected device with the screen being protected by Corning Gorilla Glass Victus, which is among the best quality. Fortunately, the Mi 11 Ultra is an IP68 rated device, meaning it’s dustproof and can survive in up to 1.5m of depth water for 30mins.
The Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra has a huge camera bump on the rear that you’ll easily recognize at first glance. However, in some ways, it’s a beauty to behold as it makes the phone unique and houses the three giant cameras and secondary display. Unfortunately, its presence makes the phone difficult to slide inside your pocket. In addition, the provided case fails to cover the bump and exposes the camera and the mini display to danger in case of any accidental drop.
Display
The Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra is a pretty large smartphone with a 6.81-inch display that’s curved at the edges and with a cut-out for the front camera in the top left corner. Undoubtedly, this is one of the biggest displays we’ve ever seen.
With 2k (1440 × 3200 pixels) resolutions, the screen has higher resolutions than the basic 1080p that’s on most phones. Other display features include a 120Hz refresh rate, 1700 nits Max brightness, HDR 10+ support, AMOLED panel, and up to 1B colors. There’s no doubt that this is one of the best displays we’ve currently in the smartphone world.
As for biometrics, there’s an in-display fingerprint scanner here. Fortunately, the challenges of having issues with this piece of tech like it was on other Xiaomi devices have been curbed here. Sometimes, you still have to lift your thumb and place it back for the scanner to recognize your print.
Like we earlier mentioned, there’s a secondary 1.1-inch display on the rear. This has a similar size to Xiaomi Mi Band 6 smartphone, but unlike the fitness tracker, the Mi 11 Ultra’s secondary display primarily performs three functions, although there are other ones.
Its main function is to act as an always-on display, so when your device is positioned side-down you can still see the time and battery percentage. However, it’s not actually ‘always-on’ as it’s called – it automatically switches off after a short time.
Also, it works as a viewfinder for photography. This means the subject can see him or herself from the rear display while taking photos. As you can imagine, a 1.1-inch is too small to see from a distance, this makes it less useful as its purpose isn’t fully utilized. In addition, the viewfinder only functions in default Photo mode, not portrait or ultra-wide.
Finally, when listening to music, a play/pause, and previous/next button will appear on this secondary display. Fortunately, you can easily use this as a control for your music. However, it’s quite annoying as you might accidentally press any of the buttons and skip a track. Meanwhile, this is regarded as the best feature of this display as we have fewer complaints here.
Camera
The Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra comes with triple sensors on the rear which is the same number as the iPhone 12 Pro Max, and one lesser than the OnePlus 9 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra. However, quantity doesn’t necessarily equate to quality when it comes to handsets.
The Mi 11 Ultra has a 50-MP sensor as its primary camera, followed by a 48-MP ultra-wide lens, and another 48-MP telephoto sensor. In addition, there’s a 20-MP front-facing camera with an f/2.2 aperture.
As for photography, pictures taken with the primary sensor looks fantastic with a lot of details and are bold, bright, with natural-looking depth effects. Also, in low-light shots, photos were sharp, at least to an admirable degree with accurate details.
The periscope telephoto lens handles zoom shots. Amazingly, Xiaomi equipped it with up to 5× optical zoom. Photos taken were the same as when it was un-zoomed and we found it better than the one on iPhone 12 Pro Max. Also, the hybrid photos is at 10× which is a combination of optical and digital zoom looks impressive with much-needed details.
However, we noticed a few distortions at the edges while using the ultra-wide lens. This is caused by its larger ultra-wide lens, but you can easily crop it to remove the worst of it. Similarly, the macro shots suffer from the same distortion problem as the ultra-wide lens.
Flipping over to the front, you’ll find a 20-MP lens positioned on the top left corner of the phone. Photos taken are pretty good, with enough details, brightness, and natural color reproduction. In addition, you can equally use the rear camera for selfies and use the viewfinder to compose them. This way, you’ll get great-looking photos with depth effects and cool natural colors.
Fortunately, video recording is highly enriched with 8k videos at 24fps, 4k at 30 /60fps, and 1080p at 30 /60 /120 /240 /960 /1920fps. Video recording uses both the selfie and rear cameras with all the benefits we’ve earlier discussed.
Performance, Specs, and Software
Like most flagship Android smartphones of 2021, the Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra has Snapdragon 888 as its chipset. This is paired with either 8GB or 12GB of RAM depending on the variant you’re optioning for. Because of these strong internals, the handset is powerful enough and has no problem running all apps efficiently.
As expected, we didn’t notice any abnormalities when gaming, even on high-end games like Call of Duty or PUGB. However, the phone started heating up after long hours of gaming which could be a setback for intense game lovers.
The Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra runs Android 11 with MIUI 12.5 user interface laid overlay.
Undoubtedly, the MIUI interface has become a divisive subject debate among Xiaomi fans, with some loving it and others having a lot of complaints. However, it’s fairly good and has a lot of customization options that allow the users to personalize some settings to their taste.
Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra: Battery Capacity
The Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra has a 5000mAh battery capacity. This is debatable average battery life as it’ll be difficult to keep up with the massive 120Hz refresh rate, the secondary display, and powerful processors. This makes the phone to hardly last for 24 hours after full charge or you’ll get about 20% left if you’re a light user.
Fortunately, charging is incredibly quick with up to 67W wired solution which powers the phone from empty to full in just 39 minutes. Thankfully, wireless charging is at the same speed and this is the quickest we’ve on a smartphone.
In addition is a 10W reverse wireless charging support, meaning you can use the Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra to power up other Qi-compatible smartphones, earbuds, or watches.
Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra: Price in Nigeria and Availability
Undoubtedly, the Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra is an expensive device and that puts it in competition with Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max and Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra. The smartphone costs ₦608,000 (roughly $1,600). By been a new phone, this makes it hard to see in Nigeria, unless you’re ready to order from intensional online stores like aliexpress and amazon.
At that price, the Mi 11 Ultra rivals against Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max at ₦582,000 and Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra which costs ₦520,000.
Read Also Xiaomi Mi 11 Review: Full Specifications, Features, and Price in Nigeria
Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra Full Specifications
General
- Brand: Xiaomi
- Model: Mi 11 Ultra
- Release Date: April 02, 2021
- Operating System: Android 11, M1UI 12.5
- Weight: 234g
- Colors: Ceramic White (Cosmic White), Ceramic Black (Cosmic Black)
Display
- Touchscreen: YES
- Type: AMOLED, 120Hz, 1B colors, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, 900 nits (HBM), 1700 nits (peak)
- Display Size: 6.81-inch
- Screen Resolution: 1440 x 3200 pixels
- Dimensions: 164.3 x 74.6 x 8.4 mm (6.47 x 2.94 x 0.33 in)
- Facelock Support: YES
- In-display fingerprint scanner: Yes
- Sensors: Fingerprint (In-display)
Platform
- Chipset: Qualcomm SM8350 Snapdragon 888 5G (5 nm)
- CPU: Octa-core (1×2.84 GHz Kryo 680 & 3×2.42 GHz Kryo 680 & 4×1.80 GHz Kryo 680)
- GPU: Adreno 660
Memory
- RAM: 8GB /12GB
- Inbuilt Storage: 256GB /512GB
- SD Card slot: No
Camera
- Rear Flash: LED Flashlight
- Rear Camera: 50-MP f/2.0 (wide), 48-MP f/4.1 (ultrawide), 48-MP f/2.2 (periscope telephoto)
- Video: 8K@24fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240/960/1920fps, gyro-EIS, HDR10+ rec
- Front Camera: 20-MP f/2.2 (wide)
- Front Flash: —
Connectivity
- Wi-Fi: YES
- Bluetooth: 5.2
- USB: MicroUSB-C 2.0
- GPS: YES
- WLAN: YES
Network
- SIM: Single SIM (Nano-SIM) or Dual SIM (Nano-SIM, dual stand-by)
- Technology: GSM | CDMA | HSPA | EVDO | LTE | 5G
- 3G Support: Yes
- 4G/ LTE Support: Yes
- 5G Support: Yes
Battery
- Capacity: Li-Po 5000 mAh, non-removable
- Fast Charge: 67W
Price
- Price in Nigeria: ₦608,000
- Price in Dollar: $1,600
