The Xiaomi 12 Series has only recently been released outside of China, having been available in China since December. For a while now, the global variant of the top-of-the-line 12 Pro has kept us company, and now it’s here in all its glory.
Xiaomi is also careful about its portfolio ranking. While the 12 Pro comes with a capable trio of 50MP cameras (a new main camera, an ultrawide camera, and a short tele), it falls short of giving the biggest and best in the photography category – this isn’t an Ultra.
It’s got the latest top-end Snapdragon at the helm, as is customary, and a Samsung LTPO OLED display that’s all kinds of fantastic. Because of the 120W support, charging should be class-leading, which is a good sight given the high-end hardware’s relatively small battery capacity.
Review of the Xiaomi 12 Pro
Below are some numbers and features that I hand-picked. Don’t miss the infrared emitter that Xiaomi will continue to include on its phones in 2022, much to the joy of non-connected device owners.
Specifications of the Xiaomi 12 Pro in a nutshell:
- Glass back, aluminum frame; 163.6×74.6×8.2mm, 204g
- 6.73 inch display “LTPO AMOLED, 1B colors, 120Hz, Dolby Vision, HDR10+, 1000 nits (HBM), 1500 nits (peak), 1440x3200px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 521ppi, LTPO AMOLED, 1B colors, 120Hz, Dolby Vision, HDR10+, 1000 nits (HBM), 1500 nits (peak), 1440x3200px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio,
- Adreno 730; Qualcomm SM8450 Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 (4 nm): Octa-core (1×3.00 GHz Cortex-X2 & 3×2.50 GHz Cortex-A710 & 4×1.80 GHz Cortex-A510); Qualcomm SM8450 Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 (4 nm): Octa-core (1×3.00 GHz Cortex-X2 & 3×2.50 GHz Cortex-A710 & 4×1.
- Memory: UFS 3.1; 128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 8GB RAM, and 256GB 12GB RAM.
- Android 12 and MIUI 13 are the operating systems and software.
- Wide (primary) camera: 50 MP, f/1.9, 24mm, 1/1.28 “, 1.22m, OIS, Dual Pixel PDAF; Telephoto: 50 MP, f/1.9, 48mm, PDAF, 2x optical zoom; ultra wide angle: 50 MP, f/2.2, 115; telephoto: 50 MP, f/1.9, 48mm, PDAF, 2x optical zoom
- 32 MP, 26mm (wide), 0.7m front camera
- Video capture: rear camera: 8K@24fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240/960fps, gyro-EIS; front camera: 8K@24fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240/960fps, gyro-EIS; 1080p@30/60fps, 720p@120fps front camera
- 4600mAh battery; 120W fast charging, 100% in 18 minutes (advertised), 50W fast wireless charging, 100% in 42 minutes (advertised), 10W reverse wireless charging, Power Delivery 3.0, Quick Charge 4+
- Miscellaneous: Fingerprint scanner (optical, behind the display); NFC; Infrared port; Virtual proximity sensing
Unboxing of the Xiaomi 12 Pro
When it comes to packing, Xiaomi Pros and Ultras get special treatment, with black boxes instead of the white livery seen on lesser models.
Review of the Xiaomi 12 Pro
A clear silicone cover meets you on the inside of the hefty cardboard box – not the most premium protective option, but you can’t argue with a free case. It’s difficult to complain about a bundled 120W adaptor, but because we’re experts at whining, we can’t help but point out that it’s far too heavy and unwieldy to leave the house with. There’s also a USB-A-to-C cable included, and to obtain the fastest charging speeds, you’ll need both proprietary peripherals.
