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Review: Xiaomi’s Mi Max – a big-screen smartphone aimed at heavy media users

With its impressive screen real estate and battery life, this model will appeal to users who like watching TV shows and mobile gaming; its camera is very poor

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Smartphone size comparison: (from left to right) Galaxy S7 Edge, Xiaomi Mi Max and the Nokia 1520. Photo: Eric Wong

A huge screen and big battery, which come in a slim metallic chassis and with a relatively small price tag – Xiaomi’s Mi Max just might be the mid-range handset that you have been waiting for, as long as you are not big on taking high-quality photos or selfies.

Design and hardware

I went into the review dreading having to live with this behemoth of a phone, especially since I typically exercise with one. I was right for the most part. The Mi Max takes the term “phablet” to some extremes with its 6.44-inch display.

Xiaomi’s Mi Max. Photo: Eric Wong
Xiaomi’s Mi Max. Photo: Eric Wong

It’s not a comfortable fit at 88mm (iPhone 6+ is 77mm). My hands are small and I need two hands to operate it. Vertically, my thumb can’t get anywhere near that notification bar.

But thanks to the one-handed mode, a tap on the Home button followed directly by a swipe of the back button allows you to pick screen sizes between 3.5- and 4.5-inch simulations in the big screen. At least that is a compromise of sorts.

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