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Xiaomi Mi Mix Alpha first impressions: Beautiful but completely pointless

Xiaomi has brought Mi Mix Alpha to India. It's a concept phone and it is gorgeous. But it is also pointless despite its curved screen.

  • The Mi Mix Alpha is a concept phone from Xiaomi showcasing a wraparound display design.
  • Xiaomi is offering 2019 flagship grade specs in the Mix Alpha, including a Snapdragon 855 chipset.
  • The Mix Alpha previews some of the technologies expected in upcoming Mi series phones.
Smartphones with foldable phones were part of science fiction until recently. But as 2020 begins, you can actually walk into a shop and buy one right now. There is Samsung's utterly exciting Galaxy Fold that opens up into a tablet when you want a big screen - yes, it becomes a tablet when you want it to. Motorola has used the folding display to make the mobile phone cool again -- thanks to the new Razr. Now, these are not the only two companies trying to create "foldable phones". There are other companies as well, such as Xiaomi, which has Mi Mix Alpha. But unlike the Galaxy Fold or the new Razr, the Alpha is little old-fashioned. It gives the impression that it is a futuristic, foldable phone. But it's not. Instead, it is a gorgeous phone made with a screen that is curved, and that wraps around the device.
        Instead of being more-futuristic -- and difficult to make -- folding phone, the Mi Mix Alpha is a concept device that uses the same flexible OLED display to reach closer to the dream of an all-screen smartphone.
          Xiaomi unveiled this phone last year and India Today Tech recently got a chance to experience the Mi Mix Alpha. This phone isn't going to sell in India but Xiaomi says that the Alpha previews some of the technologies you can expect from Xiaomi phones in 2020. Is that interesting? If it is, dive down for a preview of the Mix Alpha.

          Xiaomi Mi Mix Alpha: What is it?

The Xiaomi Mi Mix Alpha is Xiaomi's idea of an alternate future for smartphones a future that may -- or rather will not given what we found with the Alpha -- shape into reality. But it is a preview of the future that smartphone geeks have always dreamt of -- a phone that has a display on all the sides. The Xiaomi Mi Mix Alpha does that with the help of the same flexible OLED panel that other folding phones are using. However, instead of manual-folding, the display is permanently folded around the sides. Hence, you get a phone that has its display wrapped around the edges and the back.
        If you love technology even in the tiniest of ways, the Mi Mix Alpha will get your blood rushing through your veins. After all, it's a phone that has screens on all the sides -- ALL THE SIDES! Technically, the top and bottom don't have screens but rest of the surfaces are covered by the display. There's a slim strip at the back that holds the cameras as well as the antennas but that's it. All screen everywhere.
          The specifications are exciting too. A Snapdragon 855 Plus chip bundled with a 5G modem runs the show while a 4050mAh battery keeps the entire thing alive, with a 40W fast-charging system to fill it up quickly. You also get 12GB RAM and 512GB UFS 3.0 storage.

            Does it work like a phone?

Yes, it does. The Xiaomi Mi Mix Alpha is a functional smartphone that you can use every day to make calls, browse the web, listen to music and take photos. Though, you cannot buy it.
        Pick up the phone and you see the display light up all the way around the edges. The front display shows the usual app icons and widgets (there's MIUI running here). Both the edges are displays too, showing the time, app notifications and custom widgets. They also show virtual pressure-sensitive buttons that you can use to lock the phone or adjust the volume. That said, there's a small power button on the top to boot up the phone.

             Beautiful and pointless

        The Xiaomi Mi Mix Alpha is an exciting phone and for me as a smartphone geek, it makes me happy to finally see the dream of an all-screen smartphone turn into reality. But that doesn't mean I will want to use a device like the Mi Alpha. Mi Mix Alpha is a completely pointless device and I can only look at it as a culmination of all the upcoming technologies from future Xiaomi phones.
       The biggest negating factor to the Mi Mix Alpha is the folding smartphone that's already a reality nowadays. These phones are selling in the market, and they are better conceptually and practically than a phone like Mi Mix Alpha. As a smartphone user, I want to make use of a massive display in a way that I want and a folding smartphone helps me with that. The Mi Mix Alpha forces you to adapt to the way it wants.

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