New from Xiaomi: two smartphones and ... processor?
Hi, Geektimes! Xiaomi, it seems, has decided to literally overwhelm us with novelties this year. Having successfully debuted at CES 2017 , the company made a few more announcements within a month and began selling the long-awaited Redmi Note 4X . A couple of days ago, another presentation took place (whoa, easy!), Which triumphantly completed the first two months of this year for many of the beloved Chinese companies, because it presented not just another device, but its own processor. More under the cut.
Yes, this is not a joke to you - the Xiaomi brand processor carries the proud name of Surge S1. The chip is eight-core, manufactured using the 28-nm process technology from TSMC. The development of the processor lasted for several months and was carried out mainly thanks to a subsidiary of Xiaomi - Pinecone.
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The processor architecture is big.LITTLE, here we are met by four high-performance ARM Cortex A53 cores with a clock frequency of 2.2 GHz and four more energy-efficient ARM Cortex A53 cores with a clock frequency of 1.4 GHz. Quad-core graphics ARM Mali T860, of course, included. In addition, the chip is equipped with a 14-bit dual image processor - this allows equipping smartphones under its control with cameras with a resolution of up to 36 megapixels. There is support for LTE Cat.4 and VoLTE, as well as a 32-bit digital signal processor. In general, everything is quite interesting in words, but in reality?
But in reality, the Surge S1 is “done” by the 14-nanometer Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 and MediaTek chips, with the exception of the Helio P20. Benchmarks, of course, are provided by Xiaomi itself, so there should be independent tests.
However, Xiaomi decided not to be unsubstantiated - she took and showed the smartphone Mi 5c, which became her first-born with S1 on board. 5c replaced Xiaomi 4c: the latter was introduced at the end of 2015 and enjoyed an enviable demand from buyers.
Unlike the Mi 4c, the device is encased in a metal case. A fingerprint scanner appeared, embedded in the Home button. With a display diagonal of 5.15 inches, this is permissible — a little more, and I would have had to move the scanner to the back panel. The screen, by the way, has increased in comparison with Mi 4c, however the resolution remained unchanged - the same honest 1920 x 1080 pixels.
The core of the program, of course, is the processor - the six-core Snapdragon 808 (4 Cortex-A53 cores and 2 Cortex-A57 cores) replaced the above-mentioned eight-core Surge S1. As a smartphone will show itself in the benchmarks, we will see, but progress is evident. Supplement it with 3 GB of RAM and 64 GB of flash memory: Mi 4c was offered with a maximum of 32 GB of internal memory. The battery capacity was 2 860 mAh against 3 080 mAh of its predecessor. The main camera is 12-megapixel, but the front camera was upgraded from 5 to 8 megapixels.
Otherwise, everything we used to: USB Type-C, Bluetooth 4.1, GPS, support for two SIM-cards, Wi-Fi 802.11ac and ... yes, a 3.5 mm audio jack is in place. In general, it is not much different from the same Xiaomi Mi5 ($ 249.99 for promo code MI5GB3 or more abruptly for $ 394.99 with coupon Mi5ABG ), which you can not wait and buy now. True, they promise support for Android 7.1 Nougat, the proprietary shell MIUI 8 has not gone away.
Xiaomi itself is positioning the novelty as a mid-budget smartphone - not the cheapest, but not the Mi Mix for the price. The color choice is unusual: silver lovers were cheated, as a result we only have black, gold and pink-gold. And the main thing is not even the fact that the smartphone will soon go on sale, but that you will be among the first to know about its appearance on Gearbest !
Yes, Xiaomi took and finally rolled out a budget smartphone Redmi 4X, rumors of which have been going on for the past few months. Despite the low price, the device also has a metal case (many were waiting for plastic) and even a fingerprint scanner on the back panel.
The 5-inch display (IPS) has a HD resolution (alas, but such is the burden of state employees) and 2.5D glass with rounded edges. The smartphone works thanks to the eight-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 435 processor with a clock frequency of 1.4 GHz and Adreno 505 graphics. According to the already established tradition, Xiaomi offers two versions of the smartphone: with 2 GB of RAM and 16 GB of built-in under the hood and 3 GB of RAM with 32 GB of flash - memory. Two SIM cards are supported, but if you want to expand the internal memory with a microSD card up to 128 GB, you will have to use only one SIM card. The second shares its bed with a memory card.
Otherwise, everything is more or less standard - 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi (802.11 b / g / n), Bluetooth 4.2, GPS. There is no USB Type-C here at all, only micro USB. The colors are again interesting: black, gold and pink gold. I would like to immediately note the impressive battery capacity of 4,100 mAh, as well as a 13 megapixel rear and 5 megapixel front camera: just like the Redmi Note 4X , which also went on sale in February of this year. The latter is now available at a good discount on coupon Note4ABG , and Redmi Note 4 - for $ 189.99 with coupon NOTEM .
Redmi 4X can be called the budget version of Note 4X, although the differences between the two smartphones are not so much, as evidenced by the same model name. Yes, the Redmi 4X does not have a "pumped-in" version with 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of flash memory, but otherwise everything is very good. Android 6.0 Marshmallow with a proprietary MIUI 8 shell, advanced “stuffing” and a tasty price - Xiaomi is clearly trying to make its devices more accessible. The blessing on the quality of smartphones is not affected.
Although waiting for the appearance of new products in the store is not so much, while we recall that in the arsenal of Xiaomi, and without this, many smartphones are available. Take the same Mi 5s : the new fall of last year with a full metal case, a quad-core Snapdragon 821 processor, 3 GB or 4 GB of RAM LPDDR4 and built-in high-frequency memory UFS 2.0 of 64 GB or 128 GB. And what about a camera with a Sony IMX378 sensor, a four-axis optical image stabilization system and six lenses! We have a blog, by the way, had a review of this flagship . Now you can buy it for $ 324.99 for the coupon Mi5sGAB , and the top version for $ 379.99 if you enter the promotional code Mi5sAB when ordering.
Or here is another worthy candidate - Mi Note 2 ($ 619.99 for the coupon GBNote2A ), which in a short time they managed to christen the “Chinese” Galaxy Note 7 (jokes aside). Curved on both sides of a large 5.7-inch OLED display, 23-megapixel camera and a very cool modern design. Under the hood - a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor with a clock frequency of 2.35 GHz, 4 or 6 GB of RAM LPDDR4 to choose from and 64 GB / 128 GB of internal memory.
Well, for a snack - Xiaomi Redmi 4 , yes, the same one, but without the letter X. Let 2 GB of RAM and 16 GB of internal memory not bother you: this kid takes the price, especially he is a worthy representative of his pedigree with a battery for 4 100 mAh, rear 13 megapixel camera and fingerprint scanner right below it. Now it is distributed at a tasty price with the promo code RE4GIT .
What can I say, Xiaomi once again proved that it knows how to surprise. As long as Apple is working on a new iPhone alone, resourceful Chinese are creating almost a dozen new devices, and the quality of the devices does not suffer predominantly. If you remember how much news we received from this once-unknown company in the first two months of 2017, it’s scary to even imagine what will happen next. In a good way.
8 excellent cores
Yes, this is not a joke to you - the Xiaomi brand processor carries the proud name of Surge S1. The chip is eight-core, manufactured using the 28-nm process technology from TSMC. The development of the processor lasted for several months and was carried out mainly thanks to a subsidiary of Xiaomi - Pinecone.
')
The processor architecture is big.LITTLE, here we are met by four high-performance ARM Cortex A53 cores with a clock frequency of 2.2 GHz and four more energy-efficient ARM Cortex A53 cores with a clock frequency of 1.4 GHz. Quad-core graphics ARM Mali T860, of course, included. In addition, the chip is equipped with a 14-bit dual image processor - this allows equipping smartphones under its control with cameras with a resolution of up to 36 megapixels. There is support for LTE Cat.4 and VoLTE, as well as a 32-bit digital signal processor. In general, everything is quite interesting in words, but in reality?
But in reality, the Surge S1 is “done” by the 14-nanometer Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 and MediaTek chips, with the exception of the Helio P20. Benchmarks, of course, are provided by Xiaomi itself, so there should be independent tests.
Xiaomi Mi 5c - more and more powerful
However, Xiaomi decided not to be unsubstantiated - she took and showed the smartphone Mi 5c, which became her first-born with S1 on board. 5c replaced Xiaomi 4c: the latter was introduced at the end of 2015 and enjoyed an enviable demand from buyers.
Unlike the Mi 4c, the device is encased in a metal case. A fingerprint scanner appeared, embedded in the Home button. With a display diagonal of 5.15 inches, this is permissible — a little more, and I would have had to move the scanner to the back panel. The screen, by the way, has increased in comparison with Mi 4c, however the resolution remained unchanged - the same honest 1920 x 1080 pixels.
The core of the program, of course, is the processor - the six-core Snapdragon 808 (4 Cortex-A53 cores and 2 Cortex-A57 cores) replaced the above-mentioned eight-core Surge S1. As a smartphone will show itself in the benchmarks, we will see, but progress is evident. Supplement it with 3 GB of RAM and 64 GB of flash memory: Mi 4c was offered with a maximum of 32 GB of internal memory. The battery capacity was 2 860 mAh against 3 080 mAh of its predecessor. The main camera is 12-megapixel, but the front camera was upgraded from 5 to 8 megapixels.
Otherwise, everything we used to: USB Type-C, Bluetooth 4.1, GPS, support for two SIM-cards, Wi-Fi 802.11ac and ... yes, a 3.5 mm audio jack is in place. In general, it is not much different from the same Xiaomi Mi5 ($ 249.99 for promo code MI5GB3 or more abruptly for $ 394.99 with coupon Mi5ABG ), which you can not wait and buy now. True, they promise support for Android 7.1 Nougat, the proprietary shell MIUI 8 has not gone away.
Xiaomi itself is positioning the novelty as a mid-budget smartphone - not the cheapest, but not the Mi Mix for the price. The color choice is unusual: silver lovers were cheated, as a result we only have black, gold and pink-gold. And the main thing is not even the fact that the smartphone will soon go on sale, but that you will be among the first to know about its appearance on Gearbest !
Redmi 4X - the state employee who have been waiting
Yes, Xiaomi took and finally rolled out a budget smartphone Redmi 4X, rumors of which have been going on for the past few months. Despite the low price, the device also has a metal case (many were waiting for plastic) and even a fingerprint scanner on the back panel.
The 5-inch display (IPS) has a HD resolution (alas, but such is the burden of state employees) and 2.5D glass with rounded edges. The smartphone works thanks to the eight-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 435 processor with a clock frequency of 1.4 GHz and Adreno 505 graphics. According to the already established tradition, Xiaomi offers two versions of the smartphone: with 2 GB of RAM and 16 GB of built-in under the hood and 3 GB of RAM with 32 GB of flash - memory. Two SIM cards are supported, but if you want to expand the internal memory with a microSD card up to 128 GB, you will have to use only one SIM card. The second shares its bed with a memory card.
Otherwise, everything is more or less standard - 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi (802.11 b / g / n), Bluetooth 4.2, GPS. There is no USB Type-C here at all, only micro USB. The colors are again interesting: black, gold and pink gold. I would like to immediately note the impressive battery capacity of 4,100 mAh, as well as a 13 megapixel rear and 5 megapixel front camera: just like the Redmi Note 4X , which also went on sale in February of this year. The latter is now available at a good discount on coupon Note4ABG , and Redmi Note 4 - for $ 189.99 with coupon NOTEM .
Redmi 4X can be called the budget version of Note 4X, although the differences between the two smartphones are not so much, as evidenced by the same model name. Yes, the Redmi 4X does not have a "pumped-in" version with 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of flash memory, but otherwise everything is very good. Android 6.0 Marshmallow with a proprietary MIUI 8 shell, advanced “stuffing” and a tasty price - Xiaomi is clearly trying to make its devices more accessible. The blessing on the quality of smartphones is not affected.
Although waiting for the appearance of new products in the store is not so much, while we recall that in the arsenal of Xiaomi, and without this, many smartphones are available. Take the same Mi 5s : the new fall of last year with a full metal case, a quad-core Snapdragon 821 processor, 3 GB or 4 GB of RAM LPDDR4 and built-in high-frequency memory UFS 2.0 of 64 GB or 128 GB. And what about a camera with a Sony IMX378 sensor, a four-axis optical image stabilization system and six lenses! We have a blog, by the way, had a review of this flagship . Now you can buy it for $ 324.99 for the coupon Mi5sGAB , and the top version for $ 379.99 if you enter the promotional code Mi5sAB when ordering.
Or here is another worthy candidate - Mi Note 2 ($ 619.99 for the coupon GBNote2A ), which in a short time they managed to christen the “Chinese” Galaxy Note 7 (jokes aside). Curved on both sides of a large 5.7-inch OLED display, 23-megapixel camera and a very cool modern design. Under the hood - a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor with a clock frequency of 2.35 GHz, 4 or 6 GB of RAM LPDDR4 to choose from and 64 GB / 128 GB of internal memory.
Well, for a snack - Xiaomi Redmi 4 , yes, the same one, but without the letter X. Let 2 GB of RAM and 16 GB of internal memory not bother you: this kid takes the price, especially he is a worthy representative of his pedigree with a battery for 4 100 mAh, rear 13 megapixel camera and fingerprint scanner right below it. Now it is distributed at a tasty price with the promo code RE4GIT .
Give spirit to translate!
What can I say, Xiaomi once again proved that it knows how to surprise. As long as Apple is working on a new iPhone alone, resourceful Chinese are creating almost a dozen new devices, and the quality of the devices does not suffer predominantly. If you remember how much news we received from this once-unknown company in the first two months of 2017, it’s scary to even imagine what will happen next. In a good way.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/402053/
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