Xiaomi 14 Civi Evaluation: Homecoming

Xiaomi is all set to hit the 10-year milestone in India this July. However you could be stunned to know that the corporate hasn’t been one to problem rival smartphone makers within the sub-Rs. 50,000 till the Xiaomi 14 Civi launch. The corporate has tried to reinvent this value section nicely and really with its newest 14 Civi (quick for Cinematic Imaginative and prescient) to tackle the rivals within the sub-Rs. 50,000. It has a premium look and is packaged like a flagship smartphone with all bells and whistles.

It is a busy time for Xiaomi because it not too long ago unveiled 14 and 14 Extremely just a few weeks again. However, the corporate would not wish to go away any stone unturned in relation to tapping shopper demand. With one foot firmly within the premium class with the Xiaomi 14 sequence and the opposite in mass market value segments (for instance, Redmi and Redmi Notice), 2024 already seems like a superb yr for the corporate with six months to go. In contrast to in earlier years, Xiaomi has learnt classes on the way to preserve its smartphone lineup extra streamlined, which it shared with the world throughout the Civi unveiling.

Lastly, with the 14 Civi, the sub-Rs. 50,000 section will get the smartphone it deserves, particularly contemplating the present telephones obtainable at this value, together with the OnePlus 12R and Samsung Galaxy A55, that are nice packages however totally on paper. Let’s break down the smartphone on this evaluation.

Xiaomi 14 Civi Evaluation: Aesthetically pleasing [Design]

• Dimensions – 157.20×72.77×7.45mm
• Weight – 179.3 grams
• Colors – Cruise Blue, Matcha Inexperienced, and Shadow Black

Because the identify suggests, the Xiaomi 14 Civi is a part of the corporate’s premium 14 sequence, which suggests you’ll be able to count on high-quality supplies on the telephone. It sports activities metallic frames and has an aesthetic design for one-hand utilization.

Xiaomi 14 Civi options Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2

 

I am blissful that Xiaomi has saved the Civi’s design dynamics nearer to the Xiaomi 14 than the 14 Extremely. By way of measurement, the 14 Civi (with a 6.55-inch show) strikes an ideal steadiness, sitting between the 14 (6.36-inch) and 14 Extremely (6.73-inch). It is also the lightest within the sequence at 179.3 grams, making it a cushty and straightforward alternative, particularly when in comparison with the competitors, which incorporates the OnePlus 12R (207 grams) and Samsung Galaxy A55 (213 grams). Unsurprisingly, the 14 Civi (7.4mm) can also be the slimmest on this value bracket, including to its practicality.

Xiaomi has taken consideration to element to the following stage with its three totally different colourways for the 14 Civi. It is available in Cruise Blue with a dual-slice design, Matcha Inexperienced with vegan leather-based utilized in one portion, and a singular again glass sample within the inlay. The third is the Shadow Black color variant with a traditional matte end, which I most well-liked for my evaluation.

Xiaomi 14 Civi weighs simply 179.3 grams

 

The symmetrical design with a quad-curve physique feels stable within the palms. On the rear, the starry Leica digicam ring housing all of the digicam sensors is a spotlight for me. All of the bodily buttons are positioned on the best facet and are very nicely throughout the fingers’ attain whereas getting used with one hand. The IR blaster is positioned on the highest panel, whereas the Kind-C port for charging is on the underside panel. The twin stereo audio system setup is an thrilling addition, and I’ll discuss concerning the high quality within the efficiency part.

General, the Xiaomi 14 Civi would not really feel like a tool designed with a thought to compromise on any design factor.

The light-weight and smooth design works in its favour. The one huge miss I felt was skipping the IP68 score on the Xiaomi 14 Civi. It will have saved within the league of its personal below Rs. 50,000.

Xiaomi 14 Civi is available in Shadow Black, Cruise Blue and Matcha Inexperienced colors

 

Xiaomi 14 Civi Evaluation: Small however mighty [Display]

• 6.55-inch Quad Curved AMOLED show
• 120Hz refresh fee
• 3000nits peak brightness

If you happen to’re somebody who loves greater shows, then Xiaomi 14 Civi might not excite you. In comparison with the competitors, the 14 Civi encompasses a 6.55-inch display, the 12R sports activities 6.78 inches, and the Galaxy A55 sports activities a 6.6 inches display. The Civi boasts an AMOLED quad-curved show, the primary on this value section. Different options embrace a 120Hz refresh fee, 3000nits peak brightness, Dolby Imaginative and prescient, HDR10+, 460PPI, and help for TÜV Rheinland Low Blue Gentle ({hardware} resolution) licensed.

Xiaomi 14 Civi encompasses a 6.55-inch show

 

In real-world utilization, the 14 Civi’s show is brilliant and ideal for binge-watching and gaming. The great half is that even below direct daylight, the legibility is great. The floating quad-curve show on the 14 Civi is barely a second after the 14 Extremely and provides a premium really feel to the complete show. General, the colourful, crisp and easy show on the 14 Civi makes it splendid for viewing high-definition video and photograph content material.

Xiaomi 14 Civi Evaluation: Nearly as good because it will get [Camera]

• Principal – 50MP with f/1.63 aperture and OIS
• Telephoto – 50MP with f/1.98 aperture & 12MP ultra-wide digicam with 120-degree discipline of view
• Selfie – 32MP main sensor & 32MP ultra-wide selfie digicam

The 14 Civi is the primary from the home of Xiaomi to carry Leica cameras to a value vary we might have by no means anticipated just a few years again. Straight leaping to real-world efficiency, the cameras are a spotlight of the telephone.

Xiaomi 14 Civi sports activities a triple rear digicam setup

 

It might probably take constant pictures throughout the day with wonderful autofocus capabilities. One of the best factor I preferred concerning the Civi was its capability to adapt brightness to totally different lighting situations. It manages pores and skin tones nicely in most lighting situations and has correct publicity whereas guaranteeing a large dynamic vary. The small print are dealt with nicely, particularly throughout well-lit conditions. Aside from pictures, the gadget is well-optimised to deal with movies as nicely.

The Leica options built-in into the digicam enable for a myriad of artistic experiments along with your portraits. The Grasp Portrait and Leica Portrait modes, my private favourites, are good for portraits. The 35mm mode with numerous Leica filters is a must-try for a contact of Leica classic. Among the many quite a few filters obtainable, the black and white filter stands out.

All of the above digicam samples clicked utilizing the first 50-megapixel digicam

 

Like different Xiaomi 14 sequence units, the Civi additionally does nicely in bokeh pictures. There’s correct topic segmentation and a pleasant blur within the foreground and background. Nevertheless, slight instabilities are noticeable in a number of the digicam samples in low-light conditions.

Xiaomi 14 Civi portrait mode in motion

 

Coming to low-light pictures the place issues get fascinating. It manages much less difficult pictures comprehensively, however there’s obvious noise in low-light pictures. In some pictures, goal publicity is barely off in extraordinarily low gentle situations. When zooming into pictures, tremendous particulars are misplaced in some low-light samples.

 

Xiaomi 14 Civi low-light digicam samples

 

 

The 14 Civi does nicely in ultra-wide pictures. Noise is dealt with nicely, whereas the extent of element is okay. It undoubtedly can get a costlier flagship smartphone a run for its value.

Xiaomi 14 Civi ultra-wide digicam in motion

Xiaomi 14 Civi comes with Leica-tuned digicam options, which is likely one of the highlights of this gadget

 

 

Coming to selfies, the 14 Civi brings again the give attention to the entrance digicam on this value section. It’s the solely telephone with twin cameras on the entrance, and all credit score goes to Xiaomi for making this occur. High quality-wise, Civi manages respectable pores and skin tones in selfies with good white steadiness and correct goal publicity. Nevertheless, you could have to show off the beautification mode in selfies because it unnecessarily flattens the color. The selfies are equally good in low gentle, however I observed some desaturation in some samples.

Xiaomi 14 Civi’s selfie digicam in motion

 

General, the Xiaomi 14 Civi will get a digicam setup that raises the bar within the sub-Rs. 50,000 section and no telephone – OnePlus 12R or Samsung Galaxy A55 come nearer.

Xiaomi 14 Civi Evaluation: Loads to love [Performance]

• Processor – Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 Cellular Platform
• RAM and storage – 8GB + 256GB & 12GB + 512GB
• LPDDR5X RAM & UFS 4.0 storage

Xiaomi 14 Civi joins the league of recent flagships that may pack the most recent Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 cell platform. This processor brings quite a few enhancements, though they is probably not instantly noticeable in on a regular basis utilization. The Civi, nonetheless, shines in its capability to deal with multitasking with ease. You’ll be able to effortlessly change between a number of apps with out experiencing any stutters. Throughout my evaluation, I used the 14 Civi as my main gadget, and it carried out flawlessly, with none glitches, over the course of a number of weeks.

Xiaomi 14 Civi is powered by Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 processor

Whereas testing video games, the Civi ran easily with the very best settings and graphics obtainable in COD Cellular, BGMI, and Genshin Influence. Video games like Want for Pace No Limits felt snappy. Surprisingly, Xiaomi is not advertising and marketing the gaming capabilities of the 14 Civi in any respect. Whereas extensively testing efficiency, the one problem I encountered was that the gadget will get heat, generally actually heat. That is once I noticed Xiaomi’s new IceLoop Cooling tech coming into play. Video games apart, the telephone additionally will get heat once you use the digicam extensively to click on pictures and movies. Now, I’ve to provide the good thing about the doubt to Xiaomi as I used to be testing the gadget in Delhi’s summer time, the place outdoors temperatures are hitting a whopping 45 levels and past. However let me add that the heating on the Civi is not as huge of a difficulty because it was on the Google Pixel 8a.

The 14 Civi is a perfect gadget for multimedia because of the highly effective mixture of wonderful show and stereo audio system. The Civi presents an in-screen fingerprint sensor, and face unlock – each snappy.

Xiaomi 14 Civi comes with tons of preloaded apps

 

Speaking about benchmarks, the Xiaomi 14 Civi managed respectable scores throughout. Beginning with AnTuTu, it scored 139,2401 factors, nearer to what the OnePlus 12R achieved in the identical check. On the similar time, managing a great 1931 in single-core and 4946 in multi-core assessments. On the GFX Bench, Civi managed 6,727 frames in T-Rex (120fps) and seven,091 in Manhattan 3.1 assessments. One other time that I observed the gadget getting heat was when working artificial benchmarks.

Xiaomi 14 Civi benchmark scores

 

The decision high quality on the Xiaomi 14 Civi is great, and one of many highlights of the telephone is how quickly it latches on to networks once you get out of a raise or simply come out of your basement. Through the evaluation, it occurred loads of instances that Civi managed to latch on to networks inside seconds of popping out of the raise, whereas the iPhone 15 Professional Max took a great 20-30 seconds to be again with the community.

Xiaomi 14 Civi comes with 3 years of Android replace help

 

Speaking concerning the replace cycle, Xiaomi guarantees a complete of three years of Android updates and 4 years of safety updates, which scores much less on paper when in comparison with units like Google Pixel 8a and Samsung Galaxy A55.

The 14 Civi has launched with Android 14-based HyperOS and, as anticipated, will get tons of customisation choices. Beginning with the lock display, which will get vital visible modifications, then minor tweaks within the Gallery app to make it fascinating. The Management Centre additionally will get a refresh and appears much less cluttered. Nevertheless, the largest ease is the method to take away the bloatware apps.

Xiaomi 14 Civi runs on HyperOS primarily based on Android 14

 

Xiaomi has cleared its stance on AI and the way it will proceed with the complete adoption. The corporate has built-in some fascinating AI instruments into its gallery for AI Portraits and AI growth. I attempted the Erase and Sky options, which labored flawlessly. Different AI-enabled options are nonetheless a piece in progress and might be anticipated to be rolled out with future updates.

Xiaomi 14 Civi Evaluation: Attempting to maintain up with the competitors [Battery]

• 4700mAh battery
• 67W Quick charging help
• Ships with a charger within the field

The battery division was the true check of the Xiaomi 14 Civi because it packs the smallest within the competitors. The Civi packs a 4700mAh battery in comparison with the 12R and Galaxy A55, which include 5000mAh batteries. The Civi will get a 67W fast-charger brick within the field for quick charging, OnePlus ships a 100W brick with 12R, and Samsung would not ship a charger with Galaxy A55. 

Xiaomi 14 Civi packs a 4700mAh battery, which is smaller than the competitors

 

In real-world eventualities, the Xiaomi 14 Civi lasted nearly a full day on a single cost with heavy utilization, which included a number of apps open within the background, together with shopping the Web, just a few calls throughout the day, Outlook, WhatsApp, Telegram, X, Fb, Instagram, YouTube, and frequent digicam utilization. With medium utilization, the telephone may final over a day. In our video loop check, the Civi lasted 13 hours and quarter-hour earlier than the telephone powered down. The telephone did higher than the expensive Xiaomi 14, which packs a 4610mAh battery. 

With 67W fast-charging help, the telephone can totally cost from 0 to 100% inside 50 minutes, which is respectable however not a determine that is among the many finest within the section. To check, the OnePlus 12R, nonetheless, can totally cost in lower than half-hour. General, the Xiaomi 14 Civi might not surpass the competitors when it comes to battery efficiency, however it definitely holds its personal.

Xiaomi 14 Civi is available in two RAM and storage SKUs

 

Xiaomi 14 Civi Evaluation: Verdict

2024 for Xiaomi is all about reclaiming its mojo again, and the Xiaomi 14 Civi is a tremendous instance of the way to do it in model with out compromising on any division. One of the best half about this bundle is within the sub-Rs. 50,000 section, it would not really feel penny-pinching. To smartphone fans and Xiaomi followers, the 14 Civi will really feel like a homecoming. Xiaomi is lastly doing what it does finest – pricing its gadget competitively in a value section that by no means had a presence earlier.

There are many issues to love about Xiaomi 14 Civi, beginning with the design splendid for one-handed utilization, a show that is superb for multimedia consumption and complementing it with highly effective stereo audio system. The efficiency is corresponding to the brand new and pricier flagships that the second half of 2024 will get, and HyperOS is definitely likeable when you have used MIUI earlier. The battery is one division that isn’t corresponding to the competitors, whereas the bloatware scenario is considerably managed, although we did see some notifications throughout the preliminary part of the evaluation.

If you happen to’re out there and in search of a telephone below Rs. 50,000, Xiaomi 14 Civi deserves to be on the prime of that listing. The options at this value level embrace OnePlus 12R (Evaluation) and Samsung Galaxy A55 (Evaluation), whereas if you wish to attempt the brand new Pixel, then the Pixel 8a (Evaluation) can also be a great choice.