Xiaomi is the Chinese company that constantly challenges the concept of flagship smartphones by producing some devices that have top-shelf specs, premium design and a very low price. The Mi 5s is one of those phones. How does it stack up against the  8 month old Samsung Galaxy S7 edge? Learn more in our comparison review.

VIDEO REVIEW

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PRICE

First of all, the price. The prices of the Mi 5s start at about $330 via the third part resellers. The Galaxy s7 edge still costs at least as twice as much despite the fact it was released back in March.

In addition, please check out our in-depth Xiaomi Mi 5s review and Samsung Galaxy S7 edge review for more details.

DESIGN

When it comes to the design, we have a little bit different approaches here but let’s talk about the similarities first.

Both phones look and feel premium but the Mi 5s has unibody metal design as opposed to the glass on the S7 edge, which attracts fingerprints and smudges very easily….but you can always wash those smudges out as the Galaxy s7 edge is water resistant.

Both devices have capable selfie shooters, notification LED lights and fingerprint scanners on the front. The Mi5 s is a clear winner when it comes to fingerprint security as it is simply faster and more reliable.

The Mi 5s ships with just 5.15” 1080p display but the S7 edge is not that larger despite the fact it has a 5.5” 2k resolution panel.

Speaking of those displays, both are great but the S7 edge has a better overall panel, which looks sharper, more punchy and more visible outdoors.

When it comes to optics, we have 12MP Sony shooters on both devices. The S7 edge has an edge since it has a built-in OIS and a much brighter f/1.7 aperture as opposed to f/2.0 aperture on the Mi 5s.

As for loudspeakers, neither phone will impress you. Still, the Galaxy device has a better sound quality. Keep in mind that that S7 edge uses the micro USB port whereas the Mi 5s uses the USB type C port.

HARDWARE and PERFORMANCE

When it comes to hardware, things are getting interesting since the Xiaomi Mi 5s is a more powerful phone, at least on paper.

I have the high-end model that sports a brand new Snapdragon 821 chip, 4GB of LPDDR4 RAM and whopping 128GB UFS 2.0-based storage.

You can also opt in for a lower-end model that has 3GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. Keep in mind, however, that only the high-end model has a pressure-sensitive display.

The Galaxy S7 edge is already 8 months old but it still rocks some impressive hardware components.

My review unit is the EU model and it sports a home-brewed octa-core Exynos 8890 chip with the clock speeds of up to 2.6GHz, 4GB of RAM and 32GB of expandable storage.

As expected, both phones can handle anything you throw at them and the latest 3D just fly.

USER INTERFACE

Xiaomi and Samsung have completely different approaches when it comes to the user interface.

The Mi 5s runs on the MIUI 8, which is based on Android 6.0.

As usual, we have a ton of customization options, various settings, tweaks and little features to make the phone look your own.

One of the key features is the pressure-sensitive display, which works great with certain apps. It is not a feature I can’t live without but hey, if you get used to using it, it may increase your productivity.

The Galaxy S7 edge runs on the very familiar Touchwiz skin.

If you’ve used a Samsung device before, you will feel pretty familiar with the user interface. We have a bit cartoonish looking icons, a lot of quick settings toggles and what has become usual to the South-Korean manufacturer, quite a lot of features and customization options.

One of my favorite features is the always-on display, which makes the best out the power-efficient Amoled panel.

Both phones are pretty similar in terms of the UI performance as everything has been running smoothly without any lag.

IMAGE QUALITY

Xiaomi Mi 5s:

Galaxy s7 edge:

When it comes to the image quality, the Galaxy S7 edge is a better performer in most of the situations as the pictures usually look sharper and have more detail.

The s7 edge also tends to perform better in low-light thanks to the faster lens and OIS. Also, the Samsung phone shoots 4k videos that one of the best on any phone.

Still, the Xiaomi Mi 5s does a fairly impressive job both in picture taking and 4k video recording, and it definitely has one of the best cameras in its price range.

BATTERY LIFE

When it comes to the battery life, both phones perform great.

The Xiaomi Mi 5s has a smaller 3100mAh battery that supports Quick Charge 3.0 but the phone does not ship with the fast charger. The phone will get you through the day even if you are a heavy user and you will get at least two full days if you are a light user. That translates to over 6 hours of screen-on time, depending on the usage.

The S7 Edge has a 3600mAh battery that can be charged using the supplied fast charger in just 1:15 mins. Also, you can charge the phone wirelessly, which is very convenient in practice.

The battery life is very similar on the Galaxy phone. You will get around 2 full days or around 5-6 hours of SOT, depending on the usage.

CONCLUSIONS

So, there you have it, Xiaomi Mi 5s vs. Galaxy S7 edge.

Obviously, the S7 edge is a better phone overall but the Xiaomi Mi 5s is no slouch at all.

Sure, the Galaxy phone has a better camera, water resistance, wireless charging, sharper display but when I say better, the gap is not always that significant.

The Mi 5s is comparable to the Galaxy S7 edge in some of the departments and it is even better in others like 128GB of on-board storage or more features in the UI.

Even though the Samsung phone has an edge, the Xiaomi Mi 5s is a very solid phone, for half the price.

The post Xiaomi Mi 5s vs Samsung Galaxy S7 edge: The $300 Difference appeared first on Gizmochina.

As you know, the Chinese company Xiaomi has been on a roll recently as they released one phone after another. The Mi5s and the Mi5s Plus are the latest flagships that sport premium design, all the latest and greatest specs you can find on any phone and a lot more. Which phone is the right choice for you? Learn more in our detailed comparison.

We wanted to say thanks to Oppomart for sending Xiaomi smartphones for a review.

Xiaomi Mi5s vs. Xiaomi Mi5s Plus: VIDEO REVIEW

Xiaomi Mi5s vs. Xiaomi Mi5s Plus: SPECS

Xiaomi Mi5s vs. Xiaomi Mi5s Plus: DESIGN

Just before we start, we have already made an extensive Xiaomi Mi 5s review and the Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus review, so you can check them out for more details.

The very first difference that you are going to notice is the size. As the name implies, the Mi5s Plus is a larger phone due to its 5.7” 1080p display.

The Mi5s has a smaller 5.15” display and thus, the phone is much more compact and it can be better managed in one hand.

Speaking of those displays, both panels are sharp, vibrant and nice to look at.

On the top, both phones have 4MP selfie shooters and highly customizable notification LED lights. Also, both devices sport nicely backlit capacitive buttons but only the Mi5s has a large home button that has an embedded fingerprint sensor whereas the Mi5s Plus has the sensor on the back.

Speaking of the fingerprint sensors, both phones are fast and accurate in this department but I found the Mi5s Plus to be faster and more reliable at times.

Both phones are made almost entirely of metal, but I prefer the Mi5s as it sports a matt aluminum finish, which does not attract any fingerprints like the brushed glossy metal finish on the Mi5s Plus. Also, the latter phone has plastic top and bottom parts for antennas.

As for cameras, we have completely different setups. The Mi5s is a more conventional choice as it sports a 12MP Sony shooter. The Mi5s Plus sports two 13MP cameras. The first is a regular shooter and the other is a monochrome sensor that takes images in black and white and it is mainly used to maximize light and contrast in every photo taken.

It is a bit strange that the Mi5s Plus has the IR blaster but the Mi5s does not.

As for loudspeakers, the Mi5s Plus is a clear winner. The sound is more balanced and rich, and you can simply hear the difference in just a few seconds.

Xiaomi Mi5s vs. Xiaomi Mi5s Plus: HARDWARE and PERFORMANCE

Both Xiaomi phones are being called flagships for a reason. The Mi5s and the Mi5s Plus sport bleeding-edge specs and therefore the phones can handle absolutely anything you throw at them.

I have the high-end versions of each phone that sport Snapdragon 821 chips and 128GB of storage, which is, however, not expandable on neither of the devices.

If you need the absolutely top of the line specs-sheet, go with the Mi5s Plus as it sports 6GB of RAM and slightly more powerful version of the Snapdragon 821.

My Xiaomi Mi5s comes with 4GB of RAM but after using both phones for quite some time, I didn’t notice any difference whether I played the most demanding 3D games or just used the phones for the daily tasks.

Xiaomi Mi5s vs. Xiaomi Mi5s Plus: USER INTERFACE

Both phones ship with the MIUI 8, which is the Xiaomi’s highly customized skin of Android 6.0.

I have covered some features in the dedicated reviews, so make sure to check those videos out.

In short, both phones are equally fast and fluid on the daily basis despite having a ton of features, customization options, various tweaks and settings to play with.

Xiaomi Mi5s vs. Xiaomi Mi5s Plus: IMAGE QUALITY

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I have made an in-depth camera comparison review of these phones, where you can find a lot of camera samples, so make sure to check that video out.

Xiaomi Mi 5s:

Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus:

As for daylight images, the Xiaomi Mi5s tends to take a little sharper, more detailed and better-saturated pictures. The dual-camera or stereo mode on the Mi5s Plus does help in quite a few situations that lead to a better saturation, contrast and exposure in most of the shots. However, the results are not always that noticeable and sometimes the auto-HDR mode can take pictures that are more pleasing to the eye.

As for indoor and macro shots, the Mi5s tends to take a little sharper images most of the time. However, the Mi5s Plus is better in some of the shots, especially if you use the dual-camera mode.

As for low-light image quality, the Mi5s wins again. The images look sharper, brighter and they have more detail. On the other hand, the dual-camera mode on the Mi5s Plus really helps reducing the noise and bringing more detail, so if you shoot in this mode, you may achieve better results than with the Mi5s in some of the shots. However, I would say that the dual-camera mode is not always reliable.

I don’t really understand why but the Mi5s Plus takes sharper selfie images despite having the same camera sensor as the Mi5s.

When it comes to the 4K video, the quality of footage is comparable and I don’t really see a clear winner in this department, except for the fact that the Mi5s shoots better videos in low-light.

Xiaomi Mi5s vs. Xiaomi Mi5s Plus: CONNECTIVITY

Both phones come with a dual nano SIM card tray but there is no microSD card slot.

When it comes to connectivity, I didn’t have any issues with neither device as the call quality is good, Wifi, Bluetooth or GPS work fine.

Xiaomi Mi5s vs. Xiaomi Mi5s Plus: BATTERY LIFE

The Xiaomi Mi5s sports a 3200mAh battery whereas the Mi5s Plus has a 3800mAh unit.

Both devices are very similar in terms of battery life. I was able to get 5-6 hours of screen-on time on a mixed use, which a great result.

Both phones support Qualcomm’s Quick Charge 3.0 but you would need to buy compatible fast chargers separately.

Xiaomi Mi5s vs. Xiaomi Mi5s Plus: CONCLUSIONS

So, there you have it, the latest Xiaomi’s flagships – the Mi5s and the Mi5s Plus.

Both phones have quite a few things in common as they sport some bleeding-edge specs that allow the devices handle anything you throw at them. Also, both phones have premium design, they run on the same MIUI 8 and the devices have pretty good cameras.

However, I would choose the Xiaomi Mi5s because it is more compact, it does not have any plastic parts on the back (except for the nano-injected plastic inlays), and I simply prefer matt metal finish as it does not attract fingerprints so easily as the Mi5s Plus.

Also, the Mi5s has a slightly better camera.

On the other hand, the Mi5s Plus is slightly more powerful on paper, it has a larger display, a better loudspeaker, and a faster fingerprint reader.

Also, the dual-camera setup has some advantages that may give an edge over the Mi5s in some of the shots.

At the end of the day, both Xiaomi’s flagships are great phones for the price. I really hope that this comparison helped you but you have to consider all the pros and cons of each device before making a purchase.

The post Xiaomi Mi 5s vs Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus – The Battle of the MEGA Flagships from China appeared first on Gizmochina.