Xiaomi 12 series on the test bench: 12, 12X and 12 Pro in comparison

Xiaomi 12 Pro, Xiaomi 12 and Xiaomi 12 X in direct comparison

The Xiaomi 12 Pro leads the Chinese flagship lineup and relies on strong specs: Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, triple cam with three 50 MP sensors and quick charging with 120 watts are absolutely impressive. But the smaller models – the base model Xiaomi 12 and the cheaper Xiaomi 12X – are also exciting devices that we want to look at now. As always, we start with our table, from which you can find the most important technical data.

	Xiaomi 12 series
product
Illustration
screen	6.73 inch Curved AMOLED 3,200 x 1,440 pixels, 120 Hz adaptive	6.28 inch Curved AMOLED 2,400 x 1,080 pixels, 120 Hz	6.28 inch Curved AMOLED 2400×1080 pixels, 120Hz
SoC	Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1	Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1	Snapdragon 870 5G
Storage	128/256GB ROM 8 / 12GB RAM	128/256GB ROM 8 / 12GB RAM	128/256GB ROM 8 / 12GB RAM
software	MIUI 13	MIUI 13	MIUI 13
rear camera	Main camera: 50 MP Ultra wide angle: 50 MP Telephoto camera: 50 MP	Main camera: 50 MP Ultra wide angle: 13 MP Macro Camera: 5 MP	Main camera: 50 MP Ultra wide angle: 13 MP Macro Camera: 5 MP
camera in front	32MP	32MP	32MP
battery pack	4600mAh 120W 50W Wireless	4500mAh 67W 50W Wireless	4500mAh, 67W
connectivity	5G, Wi-Fi 5 & 6 (ac/ax), BT 5.2, NFC, Dual GPS/Galileo, GLONASS/ BDS	5G, Wi-Fi 5 & 6 (ac/ax), BT 5.2, NFC, Dual GPS/Galileo, GLONASS/ BDS	5G, Wi-Fi 5 & 6 (ac/ax), BT 5.1, NFC, Dual GPS/Galileo, GLONASS/ BDS
measurements and weight	163.6 x 74.6 x 8.16mm, 205g	152.7 x 69.9 x 8.16mm, 180g	152.7 x 69.9 x 8.16mm, 176g
price	from 1,049.90 euros	from 849.90 euros	from 699.90 euros
To offer*	will follow shortly	will follow shortly	will follow shortly

On paper, some differences become immediately apparent here. Nevertheless, the two cheaper variants also offer quick charging, AMOLED displays with refresh rates of 120 Hertz and fast SoCs. Now let’s go into detail!

Contents:

display and housing

Xiaomi uses AMOLED for all three smartphones and all three also offer us a refresh rate of 120 Hertz. They are all also curved displays, which is of course a matter of taste. At 6.73 inches, the Pro is significantly larger than its two 6.28-inch siblings. The panel also offers 2K instead of FullHD+ resolution and the refresh rate is adaptive (1-120 Hz).

With 1,500 nits, the display of the Xiaomi 12 Pro is very bright, but the other two devices also deliver with 1,100 nits. The touch sampling rate of 480 Hertz is identical for all three. In addition, the Xiaomi 12 series supports Dolby Vision and HDR 10+.

All three smartphones are protected by Gorilla Glass Victus. Unfortunately, Xiaomi does not have an IP certification for this. The three cameras on the back are combined in an island that protrudes on all three models. The punch hole for the selfie camera is located in the middle of the upper end of the display.

Xiaomi offers four color variants, one of which is green with a synthetic leather back. But we still have to verify whether they all make it to Europe. Apart from the imitation leather version, Xiaomi also uses glass on the back.

performance and connectivity

The Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 is currently Qualcomm’s flagship SoC, so it’s not surprising that the part is used in both the Xiaomi 12 and 12 Pro. The Chinese have given the Xiaomi 12X the still very usable Snapdragon 870.

All three have either 8 or 12 GB of RAM. With the (non-expandable memory) you have the choice between 128 and 256 GB. That’s pretty standard for 2022, but a 512GB variant would have looked good on the Pro model. All three smartphones transmit in the 5G network, support Wi-Fi 6 and NFC. However, the 12X has a small disadvantage in terms of connectivity: There is Bluetooth 5.1 instead of 5.2.

cameras

The main sensors are (almost) identical on all three Xiaomis. You get 50 megapixels with f/1.9 aperture and OIS. However, the Xiaomi 12 Pro already relies on the Sony IMX707, while the other two use the well-known Sony IMX766. The ultra wide-angle camera and the telephoto camera on the Pro model also shine with 50 MP.

This is the moment when both the Xiaomi 12 and the 12X can no longer keep up in terms of quality: Instead, we see a combination of 13 MP ultra wide and 5 MP macro installed. At the front, the three devices each rely on 32 MP selfie shooters.

As always, the NextPit test first has to show what the cameras are actually good for. As soon as we are back from the Xiaomi event in Berlin for the launch, you will find first hands-on impressions of the devices on NextPit!

software

All three smartphones come with identical software. With the 12 series, we’ve known for a while that we can expect MIUI 13. It was initially disappointing that this was based on Android 11. Xiaomi has been rolling out MIUI 13 based on Android 12 for a few days now. So look forward not only to MIUI 13, but also to a current Android! By the way, we recently gave you some strong tips and tricks for MIUI – the Xiaomi overlay is not without reason the most popular Android versions on the market.

How is Xiaomi doing with updates? Compared to Samsung, you can probably deduct a year here. This means that you can expect three major Android updates and four years of security update support. This is not guaranteed with Xiaomi, but this is usually how the flagship support from the Chinese looks like.

Battery and quick charging

Xiaomi is a little bit the quick charge king and always at the forefront when it comes to high charging speeds. This also applies here: The Xiaomi 12 Pro comes with a 4,600 mAh battery that can be pressurized with 120 watts. The Pro is the only model in the Xiaomi 12 series that also supports reverse wireless charging. Both Xiaomi 12 Pro and Xiaomi 12 charge wirelessly with a very fast 50 watts!

Xiaomi 12 and 12X are significantly slower than the Pro with 67 watts – but they are still in the front range and easily outperform competitors like Samsung. Incidentally, the capacity of both cell phones at 4,500 mAh is only slightly smaller than that of the top model.

Again, we’ll have to wait for the tests to get an idea of ​​how efficiently the devices work. But we can already tell you one thing: the chargers are again included in the scope of delivery for all three models – this is no longer a matter of course, as you know.

price and availability

Now we also have the German prices for the three newcomers: If the Xiaomi 12X is enough for you, 699.90 euros will be due. It will be more expensive for the Xiaomi 12, which you can buy from 849.90 euros. Finally, with the Xiaomi 12 Pro, the fun starts at 1,049.90 euros.

As it is currently presented, only three color variants are offered in this country. You have to do without the green imitation leather version. Also, not all memory configurations exist either. These are the different models of the Xiaomi 12 series, and so are you from now on can pre-order:

The official start of sales is on March 29, 2022. You can also secure various bundles for the launch: If you pre-order a Xiaomi 12 or Xiaomi 12 Pro from mi.com/de* (as well as from participating official sales partners and mobile phone providers), you will receive a Xiaomi Watch S1 Active worth 179 for the device, 00 euros free of charge.

When you order the Xiaomi 12X from mi.com/de* and from participating official sales partners, you will receive a Redmi Watch 2 Lite worth EUR 69.99 for free with your cell phone.

Conclusion

Even if the heading says “Conclusion”: We haven’t tested the devices yet, so this is an initial assessment based on the spec sheets! And on this basis, you will also have realized that the Pro leaves the other models behind in terms of the camera, fast charging and the adaptive refresh rate of the display.

But the base model also comes with the best SoC, charges very quickly with 67 watts, just like the 12X, and we can also find the 120 Hz AMOLED display in both models. In general, the base model and the 12X are almost twins. The 12X only lags behind in terms of SoC and wireless charging. So you should keep that in mind if the Pro is too expensive for you and you have to choose one of the two cheaper alternatives.

You should also consider before making a purchase that Xiaomi might also add a Xiaomi 12 Ultra, which would then represent Xiaomi’s actual flagship spearhead.

What are you saying? Were you hoping for other devices? How satisfied are you with the technical data? Let’s discuss that in the comments.