Xiaomi launches the Mi A1 smartphone

Back in early August, Xiaomi India announced the imminent arrival of its first dual-camera handset. Although most rumors claimed this handset is the Mi 5X, it turns out they were all wrong. Earlier today, the Chinese brand introduced the Xiaomi Mi A1 as its first dual-camera smartphone to reach India. The Mi A1 is also the brand's first Android One handset, and it seems to be the most powerful Android One device to date.

The specs of this handset are impressive for its price range. The Xiaomi Mi A1 sports a Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor, 4 GB RAM, 64 GB internal storage. Its 5.5-inch full HD display is covered by Corning Gorilla Glass, but Xiaomi apparently forgot to mention which version. However, they revealed that the case has a dual pyrolytic graphite sheet inside that helps the handset stay cooler by improving heat dissipation.

The front camera is a 5 MP unit, but the dual camera setup on the back is the part of this phone everyone will be talking about. The Xiaomi Mi A1's main camera brings together a 12 MP 50 mm telephoto unit and a 12 MP 26 mm wide-angle image shooter. The two 12 MP sensors come with 1.25-micron large pixels and 2X optical zoom, delivering excellent results as revealed by the images that you can check at the end of this article. According to Xiaomi, this hardware setup "lets in at least 56% more light than typical sensors."

When talking about the connectivity features of this handset, what stands out is the IR blaster with support for thousands of TV sets, speakers, air conditioning units, but there is even more. The Mi A1 features a 10 V smart power amplifier and supports high-end headphones with an impedance value of up to 600 ohms. The 3,080 mAh battery is charged via USB Type-C. In India, the retail package also includes a custom 380 V charger that should be able to handle the frequent spikes in the country's electrical network. 

The Xiaomi Mi A1 runs Android 7.1.2 Nougat but runs the MIUI camera app instead of the default Google camera software. However, all the user's photos still get to enjoy the unlimited cloud storage space offered by Google Photos.

Xiaomi revealed that the Mi A1 is scheduled to receive Android O by the end of 2017, and it will become one of the first handsets to get Android P. It should be noted that the updates will be provided by Xiaomi and not by Google, as it happens for other Android One handsets.

The color choices are black, gold, and rose gold. India will get the Mi A1 on September 12 for INR₹14,999 or around US$234. Thankfully, many other markets should get this phone in the future as well, including Russia, Israel, Poland, Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, Chile, and Mexico. Sadly, the US is not on of those markets.