I recently met Xiaomi 12 pro and wrote a detailed review. In short, she noted that this is an ideal flagship for everyone, especially considering the current price point is adequate, as the 12-series models are no longer new. Well, it’s time to look at the oldest model in the range — Xiaomi 12 Pro. So let’s study everything in detail and determine if it’s worth paying more for a more expensive flagship version.

Line positioning and pricing

There are three models from the Chinese manufacturer’s line 12 — Xiaomi 12, Xiaomi 12 Pro I 12X. The first can be called the “golden mean”. The newest got a more straightforward screen, two main cameras (no wide-angle), and does not support wireless charging. The older model, which is also the hero of our review, is a smartphone with the highest quality screen (3K QHD+ resolution, better contrast, colour rendering, brightness), advanced cameras and an additional lens, a system with four high speakers and high-speed 120W charging.

Xiaomi 12 Pro set

In the box with the phone, you’ll find a thick USB-C cable, a rugged 120W charger, a small manual, and a silicone case. It is good that the Chinese company is not eager to deprive its flagships of a charger.

In the box with the phone, you’ll find a thick USB-C cable, a rugged 120W charger, a small manual, and a silicone case. It is good that the Chinese company is not eager to deprive its flagships of a charger.

The cover is an excellent addition. It protects the screen and the camera lens from the touch – you can’t look for another.

Project

And if Xiaomi 12 Pro I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that it is very compact, then Xiaomi 12 Pro is the usual flagship with a 6.73-inch screen. Big but still thin (8.2mm) and stylish. I favour large screens – they are more convenient for reading texts, writing, watching photos, videos, etc. Of course, controlling a big phone with one hand isn’t very convenient, but it’s all a matter of habit.

Well, otherwise, the appearance of all 12 series smartphones is identical. And I’ve already said it, but it’s not a sin to repeat it – a very successful design, one of the best of Xiaomi’s last years.

Screen

The window to the front panel in the middle also has a sophisticated look; the screen bezels are minimal, while the sides are completely invisible due to the rounded edges (once Samsung invented these screens and called them “endless”).

As for those very rounded sides of the screen, I know many users don’t like these screens. Disadvantages include the inability to choose a protective film successfully (it doesn’t matter, the screen is so well protected from scratches), false touches (I haven’t had them in all my years of using phones with such screens), image distortion on edges (I wouldn’t say it’s distorted).

I like these screens. I think it’s beautiful, first of all. And secondly, ergonomically. Bevelled edges make the screen and phone slimmer. Because of this, it fits better in the palm of your hand, feels thinner, and is easier to control with one hand.

Protection

The screen is protected by ultra-durable Gorilla Glass Victus, doesn’t pick up scratches (at least not very quickly), and fingerprints are invisible.

 Body Structure

• The body structure is metal (of course, this is the flagship) and matte, matching the color of the rear panel.
• The back panel looks very harmonious. The “tasteful” (but terrible!) camera island is slightly raised, with well-rounded edges.
• When I tested Xiaomi 12 pro, it squealed with joy, looking at the pink-lilac box. I have 12 Pro in a solid dark grey version. It’s also pretty and glows in the light, but still not that much.
• After all, lilac is not for everyone. But if you want variety, the blue Xiaomi O 12 Pro also looks excellent.
• The surface of the back panel itself is frosted glass (Gorilla Glass 5, which is essential), resembling dry ice. It is a little rough to the touch, enjoyable, and does not slip in the palm. Fingerprints are not collected.
• Here is nothing on the left side of the smartphone. On the right are a two-position volume control key and a power button. The buttons are thin but easy to use.
• At the top end is a speaker, an IR port window for equipment control (standard Xiaomi chip) and a microphone. At the bottom are slots for the speaker, a second microphone, a type-C connector, and a place for two SIM cards (no memory card support).

Xiaomi 12 Pro screen

• The review’s hero has a beautiful AMOLED display with a refresh rate of 120 Hz. Also, it is LTPO AMOLED which is more energy efficient. The screen is distinguished by high contrast, maximum viewing angles, excellent colour reproduction, excellent brightness (up to 1500 nits at peak, even on a sunny day, the image and text remain legible), and smooth animations. In addition, the screen displays a billion shades and supports Dolby Vision and HDR 10+ technologies.
• The resolution is 1440×3200, which is rare even for top models. Of course, one won’t notice the difference with the usual Full HD, but I can see the fonts and even the most minor elements are apparent.
• There are only two refresh rate modes, 120 Hz or 60 Hz. There is no middle option in the settings, and the first one is dynamic. Part of the programs, even in 120 Hz mode, will be displayed with 60 Hz. It could be some static state, for example, a photo in the gallery. But the load is saved.
• The settings have various colour rendering options, including a dark theme, reading mode (monochrome), the ability to change the colour temperature, text size, and much more. In addition, the Always On Display function can be configured separately – displaying the clock, date and messages on the off-screen.

Iron” and productivity

It is enough to say that the smartphone works based on the latest processor made according to the 4nm technological process – Snapdragon 8 Gen 1. So, of course, you should expect top performance from it, and these expectations are justified. The smartphone is fast in all tasks and pulls any game; I think it’s no use describing something in detail.

For those interested in numbers, I will say that in GeekBench 5 (multi-core), the smartphone scores 3 points, in GeekBench 672 (single-core) – 5 points, in AnTuTu 1 – 170 points, in 9DMark Wild Life Vulkan 985 – 229.

In the case of a powerful flagship, the most exciting thing is not that it “pulls” (because everything pulls) but how exactly it does it – whether it is stable or not overheating. I will tell you about it.

And here, too, everything is within the norm. Xiaomi O 12 Pro has a large panel that helps to dissipate heat. The cooling tube contains a steam chamber with an area of ​​2900 mm² and a graphite element. During regular operation, the device body is cold. At high loads, it can heat up, but not critically. We noticed intense heating only during the stress tests, but it should be understood that no game will create a long-term 100% load on the processor, which is why the tests are synthetic.

As for memory, there are commercially available Xiaomi 12 Pro versions with 8/256 and 12/256 GB (theoretically, there is 8/128, but in a few markets, it is available). That is, anyway, there’s a lot of memory, and that’s a good thing because there’s no memory card slot. I think it doesn’t make much sense to overpay for a mod with 12GB of RAM (if there was another 512GB of storage, you might think about it). 8GB of RAM is now enough for any task that can be put before the smartphone. However, if you plan on using the phone for several years, it might be worth investing in a more considerable amount of RAM.

I want to add that in the settings, there is an option to expand the RAM by 3GB due to the internal memory. But, again, I don’t see any point in this; therefore, everything works perfectly – with the extension, without it.

Xiaomi 12 Pro cameras

In the Xiaomi 12 version it did not have a TV, but here we have a complete set, and each module has enough megapixels:

• 50 MP main (Sony IMX707, 24mm, 1/1.28″, 1.22µm, Dual Pixel PDAF, OIS)
• 50 MP ultra-wide-angle f/2.2, 115˚
• 50 MP telephoto lens (48mm focal length equivalent, PDAF, 2x optical zoom)
• We have a flagship in front of us, so nothing is surprising: the primary camera’s shots look beautiful in any lighting condition. The colours are natural, accurate, clean, and straightforward. Autofocus is fast and sharp. There are no complaints about the dynamic range.
• As is usual with modern cameras, photos are not saved in their original resolution; pixels are combined for better quality. In the end, the image of Xiaomi 12 has a resolution of 12.5 MP. Of course, you can enable the “native” 50 MP, but it doesn’t make sense – when combining pixels, the quality is better.

As for photos in the dark and low light – again, I’m delighted. Here Xiaomi 12 Pro shoots better than its little brother. The images are sharp, without any digital noise, and perfectly detailed. The lens captures enough light; the post-processing is excellent. It is a pleasure to look at these photos and admire yourself:

And here’s how beautifully he can do it Xiaomi 12 Professional:

Night mode is automatically activated, and the phone recognizes the scene and determines its “strength” by itself. And it takes a moment to take a picture; you don’t have to hold your phone without breathing for a long time. So if you take a photo in normal mode and forced night mode (it takes a few moments because the telephone creates a series of pictures with different exposure and then combines them), the difference will not be noticeable, except that bright objects such as signs, will be clearer Here are some examples, night mode on the right:

The portrait mode is also excellent; while shooting, the face gets closer, it becomes clear, and the background is delicately blurre. Example:

The photo of the Xiaomi A 12 Pro wide-angle module is excellent, with no significant differences in colour, contrast and exposure compared to the primary camera. Here’s a comparison, a wide-angle shot on the right:

soft

The operating system in Xiaomi 12 Pro uses Android 12 with an updated version of the proprietary shell – MIUI 13.

Most of the time, all the significant changes in MIUI 13 are “under the hood” and are aime at optimization. The manufacturer himself highlights the following among them:

• Liquid Storage – an optimized file storage system increases read and write efficiency by up to 60%
• Atomized Memory – Optimized RAM operation, RAM efficiency increased to 40%
• Focused Algorithms – optimizing processor priorities, improving overall productivity and process execution speed
• Smart Balance – automatic determination of balance between performance and load usage, total battery life increased by 10%
• Among the most fundamental things for the user, the new version of the famous shell can be noticed, for example, notifications when the screen is off when the edges of the screen are slightly illuminated for a while. In addition, you can choose a colour.
• And there’s also a cool sidebar that you can customize and add up to 10 apps to – they can be called up quickly from this sidebar right at the top of the active window. Also, these apps fully retain their functionality – we get multi-window functionality.
• Programs can open in a split screen; however, not all support this mode.
• I also like the wallpaper rotation option on the lock screen – every time you activate the screen, you see something new and news by topic is also available (title link).

Unlocking methods

Xiaomi 12 Pro, as a flagship device, received a fingerprint sensor built into the screen. The sensor works quickly and clearly, with no complaints. And the location is ideal – not too low (this approach on smartphones, for some reason, is rare).

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