Xiaomi MIX Flip: A Foldable Phone for Guys, Busting Girly Stereotypes

Xiaomi MIX Flip: A Foldable Phone for Guys, Busting Girly StereotypesRecently, I came across some interesting news: Two big names in the automotive industry got into a heated argument over something, and one of them even questioned whether guys using small foldable phones would make them look feminine. This got me thinking, does phone usage now have to be divided by gender? Are foldable phones exclusive to female users? Of course not

Xiaomi MIX Flip: A Foldable Phone for Guys, Busting Girly Stereotypes

Recently, I came across some interesting news: Two big names in the automotive industry got into a heated argument over something, and one of them even questioned whether guys using small foldable phones would make them look feminine. This got me thinking, does phone usage now have to be divided by gender? Are foldable phones exclusive to female users? Of course not.

For the past few days, I've been using Xiaomi MIX Flip as my main phone, and nobody has called me "girly" or given me weird looks. Instead, many people have asked if it's Xiaomi's latest release and have remarked how cool and fun it looks. See, people's reactions actually enhance my "social attributes."

So today, let's explore whether guys are actually suitable for using foldable phones. Well also delve into my experience using Xiaomi MIX Flip and compare it to the Honor MagicV Flip, to see which one is more suitable for guys.

Appearance: Refined and fashionable, even guys need it

The Xiaomi MIX Flip is indeed exquisite and looks good. However, its weight and thickness control aren't ideal. It has a closed thickness of 15.99mm, which is less impressive than the Honor MagicV Flip's 14.89mm. When unfolded, the Xiaomi MIX Flip is 7.88mm thick, slightly thicker than the Honor's 7.15mm. Both phones weigh around 195g, so the grip feels about the same.

The Xiaomi MIX Flip's back cover uses AG frosted glass, which feels smooth to the touch and emits a pearl-like luster when illuminated. The bright metal frame adds a touch of refinement. Xiaomi has rounded the edges and corners of the frame, and combined with the "equal-depth micro-curved small screen," greatly enhances the phone's feel.

To break free from the "beautiful little waste" label, Xiaomi has put a lot of effort into the camera design this time, but this has also resulted in a more prominent camera bump, looking like a "PlusMax" version of the Minions' big eyes. Personally, I think it's a bit too big. We'll talk about image quality later.

• Xiaomi MIX Flip's inner screen is also worth mentioning: 6.86 inches, 29121224 resolution, 460ppi, 1-120Hz LTPO, the quality and visual experience are very good. Regarding the crease issue, my opinion is: if you find the fold on a foldable screen unsightly, you haven't used a foldable phone at all. However, after a week of using the Xiaomi MIX Flip, its crease is indeed more noticeable than the Honor's, but I personally don't mind, as what's a foldable phone without a crease? If you have high demands in this area, you can check out Xiaomi's store to see if you can accept it.

Outer Screen: Full-screen design, no longer a "gimmick"

In the past, the outer screen of foldable phones has always been considered a secondary screen, often adding just a smartband-like function, so it's often considered a "gimmick. Xiaomi and Honor have adopted similar approaches, both making the outer screen into a "full-screen" display, allowing users to use the phone normally without unfolding it.

To accommodate the imaging module, the Xiaomi MIX Flip has specifically divided the screen into a main application area and a "smart floating window" area, which is a good way to maximize screen utilization, with the main application area reaching 3.5 inches with a 16:9 aspect ratio.

To enhance the practicality of the outer screen, Xiaomi has adapted a large number of applications for it, covering most of the apps we commonly use. It can do almost everything except play games. Additionally, features like Alipay, WeChat payment QR codes, scanning, etc., have separate switches. Real-time information like flight information, gate numbers, and estimated delivery times for takeout can also be displayed on this outer screen.

Although it's a small screen, the input method is well adapted, and users can still have the same typing experience as on the inner screen. As long as you want, you can use the phone normally without unfolding it.

Honor's outer screen isn't as well-detailed as Xiaomi's. First, its input method is a bit small, fine for 9-key input, but too small for full keyboard. Second, the outer screen doesn't have a gravity sensor, which makes the experience not so good. However, some of the applications on the outer screen are better done by Honor than Xiaomi, for example, when the blog post author's ID name is quite long, Honor can adapt perfectly, while Xiaomi will have some blockage.

To meet users' personalized needs, both foldable phones have a series of exclusive lock screen UI and wallpapers, as well as enough rich widgets. Some of the cute pet wallpapers even made me, a big guy, find them adorable. You can also use Xiaomi's portrait cutout feature to put a picture of your girlfriend you've taken on the outer screen's lock screen, which is quite fun.

Photography: Top tier among foldable phones, recording life is easier

You might think that guys don't use cameras often, they just scan a code at most, but actually, for guys, it's not about how beautiful the pictures are, but about being able to record life.

This time, Xiaomi MIX Flip doesn't use an ultra-wide angle + main camera combination, but uses a main camera paired with a 2x telephoto lens, and both cameras have a balanced configuration:

• Main camera: 50MP wide-angle camera, 1/1.55-inch sensor, f/1.7 aperture, equivalent to 23mm focal length.

• Telephoto: 50MP 2x portrait lens, equivalent to 47mm focal length, supporting a focusing distance of 9cm.

From the sample images, Xiaomi MIX Flip's main camera has higher color saturation, especially in scenes with more vibrant colors like yellow and red, which delivers a strong visual impact, which suits my taste. Xiaomi's transition of light and shadow is also very natural.

Although there's no ultra-wide angle lens this time, I personally think it's not a big deal, it's still better to have a telephoto on a phone, and it makes framing easier. Although this 2x telephoto lens is a portrait lens, Xiaomi provides a 4x equivalent 94mm option, and from several pictures of billboards, it can be seen that the details are still quite rich, the mottled marks on the wall and the light box are all well represented.

This telephoto lens also supports a focusing distance of 9cm, which is very rare among foldable phones, personally, I think it's enough to casually record food, girls can use it to record jewelry, etc.

As a foldable phone, Xiaomi MIX Flip can be half-folded and placed on a table for shooting, or the outer screen can be used to monitor framing at the same time, which is convenient for guiding shooting.

Performance: Only with strength can you challenge

I've asked many friends around me, with a budget of 6000 yuan, would they buy a foldable phone or a straight screen flagship, they would all choose the latter, for one reason: straight screen flagships have better gaming performance, foldable phones are just a "waste".

Xiaomi MIX Flip wants to break this stereotype this time, choosing the current strongest processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, to prove that foldable phones can also play games smoothly.

Xiaomi MIX Flip scored 1.83 million points in AnTuTu, while there is a gap compared to straight screen flagship phones that also use Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, but this capability is still among the best among foldable phones.

In the actual game test, I used Xiaomi MIX Flip to play "King of Glory" for 30 minutes at the highest quality and highest frame rate, the average frame rate is 118fps, the temperature is around 40 degrees, it seems that King of Glory is just a walk in the park for Xiaomi.

In "Genshin Impact" with the highest quality and 60fps enabled, after running maps and fighting monsters continuously for 30 minutes, its average frame rate is 55fps, and the body temperature reaches 43 degrees. From the data graph, it can also be seen that the Xiaomi MIX Flip has been running at close to full frame rate, but as the body temperature rises, the frame rate will drop to 30fps, and when the temperature drops slightly, it will run at 60fps again, which is very strange, as if it only has these two options. This optimization leads to a strong sense of disconnect in the game, if you have to play games with it, it's still recommended to sacrifice some image quality to ensure fluency.

Overall, the performance of Xiaomi MIX Flip is good, if you expect it to be as good as straight screen flagships of the same price range, I think you're dreaming. At the same time, it's not suitable for heavy game players, if you just log in to do some daily tasks every day,