Xiaomi Unveils the Mi Note 2 – Specs and Availability

Chinese smartphone makers Xiaomi have unveiled the Mi Note 2 at an event in Beijing, China. Samsung’s (Galaxy Note 7) loss looks to be Xiamoi’s gain as the gorgeous looking phablet offers fantastic specifications that rival the Note. If you’re looking for an alternate option for the Note 7, check out what the Mi Note 2 device has to offer.

Mi Note 2 : Tech Specs

At first glance the Mi Note 2 looks a lot like the deliciously gorgeous looking Galaxy Note 7, with its curved glass panels and 5.7-inch flexible OLED display which encompasses the edges of the device. The display resolution is 1920×1080 pixels and it has a 77% screen to body ratio. The 3D glass on the front and back of the device gives it a polished premium look. While an aluminum frame holds it all together in its sturdy framework to complete the look.

Under the hood, the Mi Note 2 is powered by Qualcomm’s latest flagship chipset- the snappy Snapdragon 821 processor. It is paired with 6GB of RAM with an internal storage of up to 128GB. Despite being just 7 mm thick, the Mi Note 2 holds a 4,070mAh battery (much bigger than the Note 7’s) which can be charged quickly thanks to Qualcomm QuickCharge 3.0.

As far as the cameras go, the back camera is a slightly older 22.56 MP Sony camera (Exmor RS sensor). It does not offer optical image stabilization though. Xiamoi makes up for this with electronic image stabilization and a dual-LED flash. The front selfie camera is an 8 MP camera with panorama feature, autofocus and f/2.0 aperture. For recording smooth videos, the Mi Note 2 includes a 3-axis gyro-sensor. The back camera can shoot 4K videos at 30 fps.

Mi Note 2 also supports NFC, high precision GPS, and lossless audio. If you often travel to other countries you’ll be happy to know that the device supports 4G LTE and VoLTE for global LTE bands. This means there are lesser chances of suffering compatibility problems when you have to use foreign network providers. The phablet supports download speeds of up to 600Mbps.

Mi Note 2 : Price and Availability

Mi Note 2 is running Android 6.0 Marshmallow with the MIUI8 skin on top. It is available 64GB and 128GB storage variants with 2 color options: Piano Black and Glacial Silver. The 64GB variant with 4GB of RAM is priced $413 while the 128GB variant with 6GB of RAM costs $487.

If you’re a big fan of the Galaxy Note, you may consider getting yourself the Mi Note 2. Only issue is that the device may not be available in your region right away. The device will first land in China and other south east Asian markets. Hugo Barra, the Vice President of Global Operations, Xiaomi has confirmed that the Mi Note 2 will not be arriving in Indian markets, so that’s a loss. There’s no word on whether the device will land in the U.S although rumors abound.