How do I get a Xiaomi device in the U.S.? However, that is likely to change soon, starting with a new version of the MI 4. Is there any reason why I might not want a Xiaomi phone?īecause Xiaomi devices are available only in select international markets for now, they do not currently support 4G LTE networks in the United States. It also lets you more finely control app permissions, create and manage a block list, lock individual apps, set up a Guest Mode to keep your info private and more. The operating system lets you schedule security scans to check your device for vulnerabilities and remove them. In addition, you get more control over your security options with MIUI compared to standard Android. The software also gets updated every week, keeping your apps and security up-to-date. With Themes, you can manage exactly what your phone's interface looks like, and even skin it to look exactly like an iPhone, down to the parallax background effect. The beauty of MIUI lies in its customizability. And just as on iOS, all of your apps are laid out on the device's home screens there is no separate app drawer. The Mail and Calendar apps look almost exactly like their Apple counterparts in iOS 7, as do the lock screen and floating notifications. Of course, this feature may only work in certain countries. For instance, the Phone app in MIUI 6 will actively identify unknown numbers against a known phone number directory in China. The software replaces some stock Android apps, such as Phone, Calendar, Messaging and Mail, adding more functionality to each. Pronounced 'me-you-eye,' MIUI is Xiaomi's custom skin that ships on all its smartphones, a la Samsung's TouchWiz. That's hundreds of dollars less than you'll pay for the iPhone 6 or Galaxy S5. For example, the MI 4 smartphone has a 2.5-GHz quad-core Snapdragon 801 chip, a 5-inch full-HD display and a 13-megapixel camera, all for about $380 unlocked. For example, the Xiaomi MI 4 looks almost exactly like the iPhone 5s, while the MI Box streaming box looks like an Apple TV clone.Īnd despite the skimpy price tags, Xiaomi's devices are fairly powerful.

The company's products are also known for having a design that's very similar to that of Apple devices.

Want Apple's aesthetics combined with Android's openness? Xiaomi specializes in affordable Android devices that look good, and they've been well-received by critics. In Mandarin, Xiaomi's name literally translates to 'little rice.' The company also notes on its website that the MI in its logo stands for 'Mobile Internet' and 'Mission Impossible.' The latter is a reference to how the team felt about what the company set out to do (premium products at affordable prices) when it first started, saying it was 'quite impossible at that time.' What can I expect from a Xiaomi phone?

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