Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 review

Benchmarking performance

Besides serving as a technology demo for the company's impressive bezel-less display design, the original Mix was also treated to a true flagship specs sheet through and through, for a well-rounded, albeit not exactly easily attainable offer. Now that the Mix 2 is a lot more sensible and likely intended for a wider audience, it only makes sense to stick to high-end flagship internals. After all, €420 is quite a pretty penny in Xiaomi terms, so prospective buyers are rightfully going to expect strong performance to match the stunning exterior.

The Mi Mix 2 does not disappoint. Qualcomm's Snapdragon 835 is still one of the top dogs around. As for memory, while we still stand firm by our belief that 8GB are a total overkill in the current state of Android OS and especially app ecosystem development, there are some potentially viable cases to be made for running 6GB of RAM. With that in mind, it is nice to see that Xiaomi bumped-up its base memory option to 6GB this time around, with 8GB only reserved for the Special edition.

Keep in mind, however, that depending on your personal needs and usage pattern, storage might still be a bottleneck, since Xiaomi skipped on a microSD card slot once again. Still, with both a 128GB and a whopping 256GB Mi Mix 2 variant on offer, it is just a matter of balancing your storage needs and budget.

Starting off with GeekBench and some pure CPU-based synthetic loads, the Snapdragon 835 inside the Mi Mix 2 performs about as expected. We do say "about", since the score is on the lower side. The chart shows that the Mix 2 only managed to outpace the Sony Xperia XZ Premium, based on the same chipset.

GeekBench 4.1 (multi-core)

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S8
  6656
• ZTE nubia Z17
  6622
• OnePlus 5
  6604
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 9 Beta)
  6593
• Huawei Mate 9
  6407
• HTC U11
  6393
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  6301
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 8)
  6234
• Sony Xperia XZ Premium
  5460
• LG G6
  4175
• Google Pixel XL
  4113

GeekBench 4.1 (single-core)

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S8
  1991
• ZTE nubia Z17
  1966
• OnePlus 5
  1932
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 8)
  1924
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 9 Beta)
  1919
• HTC U11
  1919
• Huawei Mate 9
  1859
• Sony Xperia XZ Premium
  1836
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  1832
• LG G6
  1767
• Google Pixel XL
  1582

It is also clear that there is more to squeeze out of the chip, so there is some room for optimization. Then again, MIUI is far from a pure Android experience, so, we can forgive a small dip in raw performance numbers. Especially when you take into account the synthetic nature of these numbers. In real-life scenarios, the Mi MIx 2 is as fast as they come on the current smartphone scene.

GeekBench 4 (multi-core)

Higher is better

• OnePlus 5
  6404
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 9 Beta)
  6372
• ZTE nubia Z17
  6275
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  6175
• HTC U11
  6125
• Huawei Mate 9
  6112
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  6106
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 8)
  5966
• Sony Xperia XZ Premium
  5837
• Huawei P10 Plus
  5821
• Xiaomi Mi Mix
  4288
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  4278
• LG G6
  4209
• Google Pixel XL
  4152

GeekBench 4 (single-core)

Higher is better

• ZTE nubia Z17
  2065
• OnePlus 5
  2031
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 9 Beta)
  2013
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 8)
  2007
• HTC U11
  1993
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  1945
• Sony Xperia XZ Premium
  1943
• Huawei P10 Plus
  1937
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  1915
• Huawei Mate 9
  1898
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  1824
• Xiaomi Mi Mix
  1815
• LG G6
  1733
• Google Pixel XL
  1507

Moving on to more compound benchmarks, we see a pretty identical picture in AnTuTu. While besting the Sony Xperia XZ Premium by a sizeable margin, the Mi Mix 2 actually falls behind its similarly-specked flagship competitors a bit. Again, this is hardly noticeable in real-world usage.

AnTuTu 6

Higher is better

• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 9 Beta)
  181570
• OnePlus 5
  180331
• ZTE nubia Z17
  178629
• HTC U11
  177343
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  174435
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  168133
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 8)
  160319
• Sony Xperia XZ Premium
  144223
• LG G6
  143639
• Google Pixel XL
  141186
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  140324
• Xiaomi Mi Mix
  133242
• Meizu Pro 7 Plus
  128498
• Huawei P10 Plus
  126252
• Huawei Mate 9
  122826

And just in case our re-assurance that the Mix 2 is a perfectly capable 2017 flagship is not enough, enter Basemark OS 2.0. Just like AnTuTu it is a compound benchmark, basing its score on various component speeds and metrics, including storage and RAM, to name a couple. It is a lot more generous to the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 while handing out scores. Again, a few hundreds variances aside, the conclusion to make here is that the Mix 2 can successfully throw punches with the other 2017 heavy-weights on the Android scene.

Basemark OS 2.0

Higher is better

• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 9 Beta)
  3612
• OnePlus 5
  3601
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 8)
  3578
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  3376
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  3319
• ZTE nubia Z17
  3281
• Sony Xperia XZ Premium
  3174
• HTC U11
  2970
• Huawei P10 Plus
  2940
• Huawei Mate 9
  2830
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  2381
• Meizu Pro 7 Plus
  2380
• Xiaomi Mi Mix
  2364
• Google Pixel XL
  2281
• LG G6
  2126

What about graphics? The ultra-wide 18:9 aspect ratio is sure to leave its mark on performance? Well, yes and no. In this transitional period as more and more manufacturers start adopting ultra-wide aspects, there is bound to be some turmoil in the graphics and particularly gaming department. Yes, a classic 16:9, Full HD handset, like the OnePlus 5 can definitely squeeze more on-screen frames out of the Adreno 540 GPU.

GFX 3.0 Manhattan (1080p offscreen)

Higher is better

• ZTE nubia Z17
  63
• OnePlus 5
  60
• HTC U11
  60
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  57
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 8)
  54
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 9 Beta)
  53
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  50
• Sony Xperia XZ Premium
  50
• Google Pixel XL
  47
• LG G6
  41
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  40
• Xiaomi Mi Mix
  38
• Meizu Pro 7 Plus
  34
• Huawei Mate 9
  30
• Huawei P10 Plus
  28

GFX 3.0 Manhattan (onscreen)

Higher is better

• OnePlus 5
  56
• ZTE nubia Z17
  56
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 8)
  50
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 9 Beta)
  49
• Sony Xperia XZ Premium
  47
• Xiaomi Mi Mix
  41
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  41
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  36
• HTC U11
  35
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  34
• Google Pixel XL
  30
• Huawei Mate 9
  28
• LG G6
  24
• Meizu Pro 7 Plus
  23
• Huawei P10 Plus
  19

However, even with more pixels to worry about in one direction, the Mix 2 handles its GPU potential magnificently. It even manages to outperform the Samsung Galaxy S8+ and Galaxy Note8, also avid early adopters of a wider aspect.

GFX 3.1 Manhattan (1080p offscreen)

Higher is better

• ZTE nubia Z17
  43
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 9 Beta)
  42
• OnePlus 5
  41
• HTC U11
  41
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  39
• Sony Xperia XZ Premium
  39
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 8)
  37
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  36
• Google Pixel XL
  32
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  30
• Xiaomi Mi Mix
  28
• LG G6
  26
• Huawei Mate 9
  22
• Meizu Pro 7 Plus
  22
• Huawei P10 Plus
  19

GFX 3.1 Manhattan (onscreen)

Higher is better

• ZTE nubia Z17
  41
• Sony Xperia XZ Premium
  41
• OnePlus 5
  40
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 8)
  32
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 9 Beta)
  32
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  30
• Xiaomi Mi Mix
  27
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  23
• Huawei Mate 9
  23
• HTC U11
  19
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  18
• Google Pixel XL
  17
• Meizu Pro 7 Plus
  13
• LG G6
  12
• Huawei P10 Plus
  12

It is worth mentioning that even though the Mi Mix 2 will likely have more than enough "oomph" for any Android game you throw at it, most are still made for a 16:9 aspect ratio. Unlike its Galaxy rivals, the Mix 2 doesn't have a native solution in place to stretch and crop. If the game does not wish to scale properly, you are left with black bars. Still, gradually, developers will more than likely adapt and deliver more aspect-fluent content on a mass scale.

GFX 3.1 Car scene (1080p offscreen)

Higher is better

• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 8)
  25
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 9 Beta)
  25
• ZTE nubia Z17
  25
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  25
• Sony Xperia XZ Premium
  25
• OnePlus 5
  24
• HTC U11
  24
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  23
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  20
• Google Pixel XL
  19
• Xiaomi Mi Mix
  18
• LG G6
  16
• Huawei Mate 9
  13
• Huawei P10 Plus
  12
• Meizu Pro 7 Plus
  8.4

GFX 3.1 Car scene (onscreen)

Higher is better

• ZTE nubia Z17
  25
• Sony Xperia XZ Premium
  25
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 8)
  24
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 9 Beta)
  24
• OnePlus 5
  24
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  20
• Xiaomi Mi Mix
  17
• Huawei Mate 9
  14
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  13
• HTC U11
  13
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  12
• Google Pixel XL
  11
• Huawei P10 Plus
  9
• LG G6
  8.5
• Meizu Pro 7 Plus
  4.8

Basemark X features a more diverse mix of tests, complete with plenty of emphasis on off-screen rendering. It is nice to see the Mi Mix 2 still hold its own, even though the benchmark seems to be clearly favouring the Exynos 8895 and the Mali-G71 MP20 in particular.

Basemark X

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S8
  42370
• OnePlus 5
  38844
• Sony Xperia XZ Premium
  38507
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 9 Beta)
  38474
• HTC U11
  38399
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 8)
  38349
• Xiaomi Mi Mix
  37346
• Huawei Mate 9
  36519
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  36506
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  34951
• ZTE nubia Z17
  33513
• Google Pixel XL
  30861
• Huawei P10 Plus
  30602
• LG G6
  30507
• Meizu Pro 7 Plus
  22472

Basemark ES 3.1 still has enough pixel-generating potential to bring some modern phones down to their knees. The Mi Mix 2 still holds its own with this load, but with plenty of room for improvement. Perhaps an outdated OpenGL ES 3.1 driver is to blame.

Basemark ES 3.1 / Metal

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S8
  1189
• Sony Xperia XZ Premium
  842
• HTC U11
  836
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  817
• OnePlus 5
  796
• Huawei Mate 9
  794
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 9 Beta)
  742
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (MIUI 8)
  739
• Google Pixel XL
  626
• ZTE nubia Z17
  619
• Xiaomi Mi Mix
  558
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  556
• LG G6
  541
• Meizu Pro 7 Plus
  517

In any case, like we said before, less than stellar scores are no cause for concern. The Mi Mix 2 is nothing short of impressive when it comes to real-world performance.