Xiaomi 11T Pro Review: Not Worthy of its Pro Name
Xiaomi 11T Pro Review: Not worthy of its Pro name
"The Xiaomi 11T Pro is not an upgrade of the Mi 11, but at best a sideways step, and although it offers the required performance, it is difficult to justify its Pro name everywhere."
advantages
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Very fast wired charging
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Great performance for games
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Camera with many functions
disadvantage
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No watertightness
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No wireless charging
This review is definitely not about Mi as Xiaomi removed the name "Mi" from its phones, with the update to the six-month-old Xiaomi Mi 11 being simply referred to as the Xiaomi 11T. There are three models in the new range – the 11T, 11T Lite, and 11T Pro – and I used the top model, the 11T Pro.
You can't call the 11T Pro a sequel because it's not that drastically different from the Mi 11. Worse still, there isn't anything that makes it a pro phone here either, and that makes me wonder why it exists. Let's see if there's a hidden reason.
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The Xiaomi 11T Pro weighs 204 grams, is 8.8 mm thick and has a flat screen and a back that looks like glass that covers metal, but feels and sounds more like plastic. The addition of the "T" to the name indicates that this is not a full sequel to the Mi 11, but a refresh, as OnePlus once did with its own T models. However, this Pro version doesn't look as modern as the basic, older Mi 11.
Andy Boxall / Digital Trends
The curved glass above the Mi 11's screen didn't have a functional element, but it did give it some character, as did the multi-level camera module on the back. With the 11T Pro, that's all gone. The back has a glossy finish and an attractive brushed metal look, but it gets smeared and sounds pretty hollow. It offers enough support to hold it securely in your hands. although. It can be seen here in the color Meteorite Gray, but there are also white and blue versions.
What does it say about the rest of the phone's design if it's the power button that I like the most?
My favorite design element is the power key because it is very easy to use. It stands proudly on the chassis on the right, but still contains the fingerprint sensor. Since the last phone I used was the Nokia XR20 with its practically hidden fingerprint sensor, it's nice that the 11T Pro's sensor is easy to find and extremely responsive. I've never had to resort to any other unlock method while using the 11T Pro.
Andy Boxall / Digital Trends
However, what does it say about the rest of the phone's design if it's the power button that I like the most? It says it's a bit boring and forgetful. There is nothing wrong with the look of the 11T Pro, but nothing particularly stylish either. The 20: 9 aspect ratio of the screen, the chunky housing and the weight of more than 200 grams make it not particularly pocket-friendly or feel very modern. There is also no IP rating, which leaves it behind most of its competitors and puts it at a higher risk of harm.
screen
Covered with Gorilla Glass Victus, the 11T Pro's screen is a 6.67-inch AMOLED with a refresh rate of 120 Hz, a peak brightness of 1000 nits, a touch sampling rate of 480 Hz, HDR10 + certification and a resolution of 2400x 1080 pixels. This is a downgrade to the Mi 11's higher resolution screen and it really shows. It's less vibrant, has a cooler tone, poorer contrast levels, and is generally less visually exciting to look at. It might look a little more natural at best, but if you look at it side by side, your eyes will fall on the Mi 11 by default.
Andy Boxall / Digital Trends
The screen does not have an adaptive refresh rate, so it is set to either 60 Hz or 120 Hz. While the smoothness of 120 Hz is always visible when it's active, it tends to slow down scrolling in some apps and in the menu. On Twitter, for example, scrolling is much slower and the app feels slightly squishy. This is also evident in areas of the operating system. Switch back to 60Hz and it will go away. I also found the automatic brightness a bit overly sensitive and dimmed the screen when I didn't want it.
While not terrible, there isn't much on the screen that makes me think of the 11T Pro as a "Pro" phone, a trend that has continued throughout my review.
camera
The main camera has 108 megapixels and is supplemented by an 8MP wide-angle and a 5MP tele macro camera. The Mi 11 had a higher megapixel wide-angle camera. How did that affect the photo experience? It's pretty similar to the Mi 11. It takes some great photos and then some bad ones with strangely muted colors or poor white balance.
Andy Boxall / Digital Trends
The 2x digital zoom shows good detail as it doesn't get too close, and the main camera can take balanced photos that emphasize natural tones, but because the camera is inconsistent, I've often taken two or three photos from slightly different angles, in hoping one would come out well. The differences between them can be huge at times – see the photos of the roof structure in the examples below for evidence – and I don't trust the camera very much.
The 5 MP super macro mode is more useful than most because of an auto focus feature, and photos are more attractive and easier to take than phones with a simple 2 MP macro fixed focus camera. The phone records 8K video at 30 frames per second (fps) and it's all the same AI. Video modes from Mi 11 too. These offer cinematic looks like a super zoom-in-style shot, a lowlight tracking mode and a "time freeze" in which one object is frozen while everything else continues to move. In practice, all of these require very specific situations to shine, and most work best with another person in the shot.
Xiaomi's addition of an optical zoom is welcome, but its presence isn't enough to really elevate the 11T Pro's camera over the Mi 11, and the name "Pro" was definitely not added to highlight camera improvements.
battery
The Xiaomi 11T Pro is the fastest charging phone I've tested. The 5000 mAh two-cell battery gets its power from an included wired 120 watt charging block that Xiaomi claims will reach 100% in 17 minutes. I couldn't believe the phone fully charged so quickly the first time I tried it, as the battery was full in around 20 minutes.
Andy Boxall / Digital Trends
Strangely enough, it doesn't always go that fast. Most days the total charge time was 20 minutes, but other days it went up to 30 minutes. Still fast, but the variation doesn't instill confidence in the system, which is important. I am using a European charging block with an adapter for use in the UK, which may affect the charging speed.
I didn't charge the 11T Pro overnight at all because the battery life is enough for about two working days or a day and a half of continuous use. This means that by using the 120W wired fast charge, I can fully charge the battery first thing when I'm doing something else, like showering or having breakfast. There's no wireless charging, and while I don't really see this as a major downside, it's a standard feature on many competing phones, and it was also the case on the Mi 11.
Andy Boxall / Digital Trends
Fast charging is very practical, saves energy and should also contribute to the longevity of the battery. The battery life is better than the Mi 11, due to a slightly larger battery capacity and improved efficiency of Xiaomi's MIUI 12.5 software. It's really the only vaguely pro aspect of the phone, and even then, it's a bit of a chore.
Performance and software
A Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 processor and either 8 GB or 12 GB of RAM fuel the 11T Pro. It has dual SIM 5G connectivity, NFC for Google Pay, Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2. Android 11 with Xiaomi's software MIUI Global 12.5 is installed.
First the good things. There's an app bar, a really pretty and highly customizable always-on screen, and new super wallpapers that look amazing – they're fully animated, very fluid and dynamic as they change their appearance with the time of day. The phone was reliable, I was able to uninstall most of the pre-installed apps, and I could also see some efficiency improvements from battery life.
On the other hand, there are various frustrations that ruin the experience. You select an app drawer during setup, but it still pops up all of the apps on multiple home screens for you to clean up. The always-on screens look great, but don't show app-specific notification icons on all wallpapers, just an unhelpful blanket icon for "You have notifications". The new version of the notification shade uses both sides of the screen – left for notifications, right for quick access controls – which isn't ergonomically good, but luckily you can switch to the traditional side. Dark mode is also problematic and doesn't always let apps display properly.
The Snapdragon 888 is a great performer, and the phone hasn't missed a beat, with more than enough power to handle video, games, photography, and other apps while multitasking without the slowdown. I played Asphalt 9: Legends without any problems and also Genshin Impact. As with all Snapdragon 888 powered phones, you won't have to worry about ditching the latest games or having enough power for almost any task.
Price and availability
The 11T Pro is unlikely to ever be officially available in the US, but you will likely be able to import it. In the UK, the 11T Pro will be released on October 1st with pre-orders starting September 24th, with the price set at £ 599 or € 650 for the 8GB / 128GB version or around $ 770. Two other versions will also be available, an 8GB / 256GB phone for £ 650 / € 699 or $ 830, and a 12GB / 256GB phone for £ 749 and $ 885 in select markets.
Our opinion
The question I have asked myself most about the Xiaomi 11T Pro is: “Why does it exist?” It has the same chip as the Mi 11, an almost identical camera and a lower screen, but a slightly larger battery and one faster charging. I find it doesn't look as good as the Mi 11, and when you hold the two at the same time, the Mi 11 feels like the superior, more expensive device. The last puzzle comes with the name because not only does it not beat the standard Mi 11 to deserve its Pro title, but I couldn't find anything that technically made it "Pro" at all.
Obviously, if you own the Mi 11, there is no need to upgrade. The bad news (for Xiaomi) is that since it's not a sensible upgrade over the Mi 11, which only launched in February, there are some strong alternatives from the competition. The Snapdragon 888 may make the 11T Pro seem like a flagship, but unfortunately it's surrounded by midrange technology that isn't always very well optimized and doesn't do justice to the chip or the Pro name.
Is there a better alternative?
Yes sir. We recommend the Samsung Galaxy A52 5G for a great mix of affordable price, powerful camera, great screen, and useful feature enhancements like water resistance and 5G connectivity. Alternatively, take a look at the OnePlus Nord 2, the Google Pixel 5a or the Realme GT. If you have to spend more, the OnePlus 9 Pro is still a good buy.
How long it will take?
They will be used for two years without any problems, but by then it may be ripe for a replacement. There's no water resistance here so you need to be careful with the phone, but a clear TPU case is included to keep it secure. There is 5G to keep the phone updated on connectivity for a while, and because of the top of the range processor, there are no performance concerns. Xiaomi sends out software updates on a regular basis, but these mainly apply to MIUI, and while the phone receives Android updates for three years, you have to wait longer on Android 12 than you would with a phone like the Google Pixel 5a.
Should you buy one?
No. It is not an upgrade compared to the Mi 11 and cannot compete with many other budget smartphones.
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