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Xiaomi’s Mix Flip is the Chinese manufacturer’s first folding flip-style phone release and is perhaps the best of that style on the foldable market right now, with a combination of high-end hardware, flagship-level cameras and clever software.
Unfortunately there are still a few drawbacks to any flip phone. A plastic screen designed to fold will never feel quite as smooth as a regular one, especially given the central “crease” along which the screen folds.
Perhaps one of the biggest frustrations with this type of phone is that they are very difficult to open with just one hand. Flipping them closed is highly satisfactory – especially as a way to end a call – but stiff hinges mean you essentially need two hands to access their full scope.
How does the Mix Flip measure up in these areas?

1. Hardware and design
The crease on this phone’s screen is remarkably hard to see and is essentially invisible when watching content. But probably the most impressive part of the Mix Flip is the outer screen.
It is not just because of the 4-inch screen’s design, which wraps around two camera lenses, but because of how useful it is, meaning there are few reasons to open the inner screen.
Xiaomi has designed several widgets that make clever use of the screen space available. The likes of WhatsApp, Spotify and Google Maps can all be used without having to open up the phone to use the larger screen.
The corner above the cameras is taken up by other handy widgets, including an app switcher that makes it surprisingly easy to multitask on the outer screen. You start to use the smaller outer screen for quick tasks: answering a message, putting on music, looking for directions.
Since the hinge is sturdy, you can keep it open at any angle. That means you can open the phone halfway and turn it into a desktop clock or webcam.

Oddly, the 6.86-inch inner screen is perhaps the more jarring one, given its unusually tall format. Your thumb barely reaches above the central crease without a stretch, adding to the requirement of two hands to use the phone.
Unfolded, though, the phone feels surprisingly normal and you would not notice at first sight that it can fold closed.
Both screens have everything you would expect from a flagship – decent peak brightness of 3,000 nits, a 120Hz refresh rate for smoother swiping and a pixel density of 460ppi.
Virtually all regular flagship phones these days are unlocked using a fingerprint sensor under the screen, but you will not find one here. Flip phones generally use a fingerprint sensor on the side, and the one here doubles as an unlock button.
2. Performance and battery life
One area where it might feel like a sacrifice has been made is with the camera. Instead of the usual flagship trio of ultrawide, normal lens and zoom, the Mix Flip has two 50MP lenses: one regular shooter and one telephoto lens (with about a 2x zoom).
This makes the Mix Flip great for portraits and slight landscape zooms, but the lack of a wide-angle lens makes it less useful for the likes of group selfies and photos in small spaces.
For a wide-angle lens from Xiaomi, you need to check out the new 14T Pro or consider Xiaomi’s camera champ, the 14 Ultra.

Unlike Xiaomi’s new 14T phones, the Mix Flip comes with its own 67W fast charger. Meanwhile, its huge 4,780mAh battery is even bigger than the one in Samsung’s large book-style folding phone, the Galaxy Z Fold6. Sadly there is no wireless charging though.
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip with 12GB of RAM and the phone’s 512GB of storage make for an overall smooth experience.
3. Conclusion
This is possibly the best debut for a foldable flip phone any brand has had, and it arrives without the raw and risky feel of previous new flip phones from other brands.
Having already made four generations of folding phones – albeit book-format ones that open out into a near-tablet-sized screen – Xiaomi knows what it is doing.
The Chinese manufacturer, long seen as a budget brand, is trying to take on Apple and Samsung in terms of high-end design. In August, Xiaomi even briefly overtook Apple to become the world’s number-two smartphone brand in terms of sales, according to analysts.

But for all its stand-out design, there is one more drawback to folding phones not mentioned yet: launch price.
The Mix Flip costs €1,300 (US$1,450) at launch in Europe, similar to the launch price of Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip6, which has since dropped to under €800.


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Clever software means the outer screen of the Xiaomi Mix Flip is sufficient for almost all quick tasks, which helps make the smartphone perhaps the best foldable flip phone currently available. Photo: Xiaomi

The Mix Flip open and closed. Photo: Xiaomi

The Mix Flip’s hinge is remarkably sturdy. Photo: Xiaomi

The Mix Flip’s screens are everything you would expect from a flagship phone. Photo: Xiaomi

The Mix Flip is Xiaomi’s first foldable flip-style phone. Photo: Xiaomi

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The titanium finish introduced last year returns on the Apple iPhone Pro Max. There’s a new button on the right side that Apple calls Camera Control, and it does exactly what the name suggests. Photo: Ben SIn


The Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max’s 6.9-inch screen is the largest display in an iPhone. The new handset offers minor upgrades, and an improved AI and smarter Siri coming in a software update in October. Photo: Ben Sin

The Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max’s 6.9-inch screen is the largest display in an iPhone yet. Photo: Ben Sin

An image taken at night by the Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max. Photo: Ben Sin

The titanium finish introduced last year has returned on the Apple iPhone Pro Max. There’s a new button located on the right side that Apple calls Camera Control, and it does exactly what the name suggests. Photo: Ben Sin

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Flip 6 first look: big software boost, US$100 price rise

A sample image (right) created by the new “Sketch to Image” software feature on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6. Photo: Ben Sin

A sample image (right) created by the new “Sketch to Image” software feature on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 - one of two new foldable phones from the South Korean tech giant, together with the Z Flip 6 - which created a real-looking hat and sunglasses from Ben Sin’s sketch (left). Photo: Ben Sin

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 (bottom), at 12.1mm, is slimmer than both the Fold 5 (middle) and Fold 4 (top). Photo: Ben Sin

The Z Fold 6’s main screen (right) is wider compared with the Fold 5 (left). Photo: Ben Sin

The front of the Galaxy Z Flip 6. Photo: Ben Sin

The Z Flip 6 in semi-folded form. Photo: Ben Sin

The inside screen of the Z Fold 6. Photo: Ben Sin

The back of the Z Fold 6 (right) and Z Fold 5. Photo: Ben Sin

Xiaomi Mix Fold 4 review, price, specs: new thinnest foldable phone still packs a punch

The Xiaomi Mix Fold 4. Photo: Ben Sin

With an 8,999 yuan price tag, the Xiaomi Mix Fold 4 is the new thinnest foldable phone but still has impressive specs. Check out our review below. Photo: Ben Sin

The Xiaomi Mix Fold 4 in its closed state. Photo: Ben Sin

Even when folded, the Mix Fold 4 (right) is barely thicker than the iPhone 15 Pro Max (left). Photo: Ben Sin

An image captured by the Mix Fold 4. Photo: Ben Sin

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High-end hardware, flagship-level cameras and clever software make the Xiaomi Mix Flip possibly the best foldable flip-style phone currently


High-end hardware, flagship-level cameras and clever software make the Xiaomi Mix Flip possibly the best foldable flip-style phone currently.


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An assessment or critique of a service, product or creative endeavour.  Film reviews, restaurant reviews, reviews of art exhibitions. (Eg. Crazy Rich Asians: an important film, yes, but a good one?)


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Review | Xiaomi Mix Flip may be the best foldable flip phone, with great cameras, software, design

High-end hardware, flagship-level cameras and clever software make the Xiaomi Mix Flip possibly the best foldable flip-style phone currently