I put the SIM card into the MIX Fold 2 for a few days, and I found it to be a phone that I both love and hate. It has a lot of advantages, but it also has a lot of things that make me feel terrible. In this review, let’s talk about the MIX Fold 2 and how I feel about it in the past few days.
Thickness & Weigh
The biggest advantage of MIX Fold 2 is thickness, and the biggest disadvantage is also thickness. Although Xiaomi has been stressing that the MIX Fold 2 is the thinnest foldable phone, the thickness of 5mm after unfolding is indeed thinner than other foldable phones. It’s like holding a piece of hard cardboard, it is very comfortable whether I am using it one-handed or two-handed. But after closing the thickness is 11mm, which is very uncomfortable.
You may not know that foldable phone users spend most of their time using the outside screen, plus the 262g weight and super slippery frosted back cover, it’s really hard to operate with one hand. I feel like I’m holding a brick and my pinky finger is bound to break. If this is the lightest, thinnest foldable phone grip experience, then this problem must be more serious for other foldable phones. So I do not recommend users who like to operate the phone with one hand buy any foldable phone.
Video Ratio
Okay, you must think that the foldable phone is in its perfect form after expansion, then it may have to let you down. Because of the limitation of the screen ratio, most web video is actually not much bigger than the normal phone. The longer the screen ratio, the smaller the gap. Especially for movies, whether you use the outside screen or the inside one, it is the same size image.
APP adaptation
Besides watching videos, you will also not be able to enjoy the advantages of a large screen in your daily use because of the APP adaptation. Users who have purchased an Android tablet should know that APPs that the developer has not optimized is not experience-friendly on the tablet. In theory, you can use the large screen to display more content, but in reality, you only get a stretched UI. We downloaded 9 popular apps, and only 3 of them actually made good use of the big screen.
The only good thing about this big screen is multitasking, especially the Floating windows feature, which allows me not to miss any highlights when replying to messages. And the operation logic is so elegant that you can do everything with just one bar. I really like Xiaomi’s floating windows, compared to the split screen feature which is not so good. For example, it can only split the screen into left and right parts, not the top and bottom parts. This makes it very difficult for me to watch videos.
Hinges
When it comes to reviewing a foldable phone, there is no way to avoid the problem of hinges and folds. To make the MIX Fold 2 thin and light enough, the hinge has been simplified a lot. As I said in the Unboxing video, there is no way to keep it at a certain angle. Even if it happens to stay at one angle, Xiaomi didn’t make any features for it. The only thing that makes the hinge better than the Samsung Z Fold series is probably that there is no gap at the hinge after it is closed.
The creases are also average for a foldable phone, and I can’t see the creases in normal use anyway. In fact, this part rarely gets touched in daily use, so people who want to buy a folding phone really do not have to worry about the crease problem. This time we still tried to write on the MIX Fold 2 with the Xiaomi Pad Stylus. Just like what we expected, it really doesn’t support any stylus, so those who like stylus can consider buying the Samsung Z fold 4.
Gaming
The gaming experience on MIX Fold 2 also has its good points and bad points. There are games such as PUBG, where the unique screen ratio allows it to expand the field of view and make your chicken dinner come a little easier. There is nothing to complain about except for the fact that 90fps mode is not yet supported.
But there are games such as Genshin where the field of view narrows instead, like playing a game with a Magnifier. The picture clarity is much worse than the iPad mini 6. If you don’t unfold the phone to play the game, the frame rate decreases due to temperature increase and it is very hot. But if you unfold the phone, the main heating area is on the other side, my hands can not even touch that part, so this experience is good.
For such a thin phone, this frame rate performance is barely above the pass line, at least the game can run smoothly with reduced graphics. But Genshin Impact’s resolution on this phone is already low, and if you lower the resolution plus this zoomed-in image, your eyes might go blind. So am I giving it a good or poor rating for the gaming experience? I don’t know, I’ll leave this judgment call for you to make.
Camera
To be honest, the camera system of MIX Fold 2 is actually quite average and nothing special. The overall level of its camera system is probably somewhere between the Xiaomi 12S and 12S Pro. The main camera IMX 766 performs well most of the time, as long as it is not pitch dark it gets good photos.
The remaining two lenses are at the level of a $500 phone. The good thing is that the algorithm is good, so the color and dynamic range are good. But once you zoom in on the photo, the drawbacks are exposed. The white balance of the three lenses is also different, which is not created by the LEICA Authentic mode because I switch back to LEICA Vibrant and it’s the same. If you unfold the phone to take a picture, the sharpness of the viewfinder will be reduced, but of course, the picture is still clear.
The only thing I’m glad about is that all three lenses support 4k 30fps and the ability to switch lenses during recording. All in all, for a phone that takes superb photos, the Xiaomi 12S Ultra is definitely the better choice.
The MIX Fold 2 only has a front camera on the outside screen. As you know, Xiaomi’s front camera hasn’t been performing well except for the Civi series. But the foldable phone can use the rear camera to take selfies, so it doesn’t matter if the front camera is good or not.
Google services
People often ask: Does this phone support Google services? Well, as Xiaomi’s most expensive phone, of course it does. You just need to turn on Basic Google services in Setting, and GMS will work just fine. In fact, not only MIX Fold 2, almost all other Xiaomi phones can use GMS normally. For the record, normally all the phones we have reviewed can use all Google APPs. If some phones don’t, we will remind you in the video, so don’t worry.
As a foldable phone, the MIX Fold 2 is excellent. Although there are some missing features, but in exchange for the super light and super thin body, I think it is worth it. As a phone, it clearly flunked. I spent more money and got less features and experience than a regular flagship phone, which is ridiculous. All foldable phones have the same problem, so I wouldn’t recommend buying a foldable phone until you’re a millionaire. If you are, then the MIX Fold 2 might be a good choice.
You can buy Xiaomi MIX Fold 2 @GIZTOP.
