Xiaomi has just launched a brand new smartphone that should be a welcome product for those looking for a long-lasting mid to high-end phablet for everyday use. The company just held a special launch event in Beijing today for its latest offering, the new Xiaomi Mi Max 2. As the name suggests, the new product will be sporting a large capacity battery as well as a large screen that is quite close to making it look like a tablet.
Biggest changes
Similar to last year's original Mi Max, the Mi Max 2 still comes with the same 6.44-inch IPS LCD display with a 1080 x 1920 pixel resolution.
The big upgrade this time around is the larger 5,300 mAh battery, which is larger than the 5,000 mAh unit on the previous Model. The biggest gripe from customers with the previous model was its painfully slow charging time. Xiaomi has now fixed this problem with the addition of Quick Charge 3.0 and a parallel charging system through the device's USB Type-C port. The feature will apparently charge the huge battery up to 68 percent in just one hour.
Hardware specifications
The Mi Max 2 now comes with a faster Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 chipset, which is paired with 4 GB of RAM. The combo should be more than enough to run the heaviest apps available. Unlike the previous model, there are no other RAM options available.
The new model also comes with the same internal storage options, namely a 64 GB model and a 128 GB variant. As for the camera, the phablet comes with a more powerful 12 megapixel Sony IMX386 camera sensor with a 1.25μm large pixel. The front camera is a slightly improved 5-megapixel sensor with an 85-degree wide angle lens.
Apple-like design
Xiaomi has taken a page out of Apple's iPhone 7 design handbook when it comes to the design of their latest offering. The "discreet antenna" design looks quite similar to Apple's flagship with its choice of materials and its rounded edges. The phone boasts a full metal unibody and premium materials all around.
As for its dimensions, the device is at 174.1 x 88.7 x 7.6mm and weighs just 211 grams.
Another big feature that was announced by Xiaomi is the phablet's smart stereo speaker, which is apparently able to switch between mono and stereo depending on the phone's orientation. Other features include a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner, an IR Blaster, and a slew of sensors that are normally found on high-end devices. The Mi Max 2 is priced at around $245 for the 64 GB model, while the higher-end 128 GB variant will cost just $290.
