ASK why Xiaomi called its latest mid-range challenger, the Xiaomi 12 Lite and one wonders if they meant “lite” as in compact or “lite” as is the way the back of the device plays with light.
The very first impression I had of the phone is exactly that. How the back cover of the phone changes its hues depends on how light reflects back on it. The very shiny, polished cover, even in the black finish surprisingly refracted and reflected light back. It would be a shame to cover it even in the transparent jelly case supplied with the smartphone.
Lite may also mean its weight and thickness–the satisfyingly sized 6.55-inch FHD+AMOLED screen–is framed by. A slim profile. The dimensions provide a proper grip and the edges are “sanded down” smooth. The volume controls and power buttons are flush but still detectable and all this combine to create a feel that light without feeling cheap.
Once switched on the immediate impression is the screen’s brightness. Running on 95 nits (according to Xiaomi) the screen is good enough in the brightest noontime light. Xiaomi’s website specifies the screen has a range of 68 billion colors. The display delivers more vibrant colors and stronger contrasts. Almost true high-definition colors and screen reaction times is provided by the HDR10+ and Dolby Vision technologies. Watch any Marvel superhero movie with cinematic quality, and sound with Dolby Atmos and dual speakers.
One more thing about the screen in relation to the profile is that it is a simple straight screen, with this fancy side lighting warning that mimics a curved screen without that useless option. I did a phone clone coming from a Samsung S22 which did not include uploading of the games installed. So I loaded up a few on to test without going through the metered testing the real world, multi-tab speed of the Snapdragon 778G 5G chipset. Yes, you read right, 5G. To get a report on that performance we need to get more tests done in the longer review to follow.
The chipset rests on a high-performance graphite bed for better heat dissipation. Lower heat of course results in better performance specially under the heavy stresses of surfing and gaming.
Two more things in this initial impression. First, the 4300 mAH feels like 5000 mAH–with Xiaomi claiming 18 hours of standby time (I did 16.45 hours with a game running, not playing, in the background) and long hours of music using wired headphones. It comes with a 67W fast charger. Fill to full in less than an hour (about 45 minutes) or get it up and running in 5 minutes with about 10 percent charge.
The second is the 108MP in the main lens camera and the 2 MP Macro lens. Both are very adept at what they were made for. The front camera is very useful and has a nice portrait bokeh effect in the software engine too. It has a fancy low light mode on the front camera for night selfies.
I want to add one more “lite” to the description. Does it mean light to the pocket? If the global prices are to be the basis for the 12 Lite’s Philippine pricing, I dare add that lite too. The expectation for this latest from Xiaomi is very high for a mid-range phone and we’ll come up with a more detailed review very soon.
