Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge review: 120W charging on the cheap

Last year’s Mi 10i debuted a 108MP camera in the mid-range category, but this year Xiaomi is focusing on bringing fast 120W charging speeds to a wider audience with the Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge. However, is the phone just a one-trick pony or is there more to discover here? Find out in the Android Authority Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge review.

What you need to know about the Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge

• Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge (6GB RAM/128GB Storage): Rs. 26,999 (~$362)
• Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge (8GB RAM/128GB Storage): Rs. 28,999 (~$389)

The Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge is a retooled version of the Redmi Note 11 Pro Plus that launched in China. A follow-up to last year’s Mi 10i, the HyperCharge is the company’s answer to mid-range flagships like the OnePlus Nord series. In a rather confusing move, this is also a totally different phone to the Xiaomi Mi 11i (itself a POCO F3 clone) which launched in Europe in mid-2021.

The phone is available in two different configurations: a standard Xiaomi 11i and the Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge that we tested. The latter trades a bit of battery capacity for double the charging speed. The regular Xiaomi 11i ships with a 5,160mAh cell but the HyperCharge settles for a 4,500mAh battery. The HyperCharge makes up for the smaller battery capacity with 120W charging support that is a marked step up over the 66W charging supported by the regular model.

Check out: The best Xiaomi phones you can buy

Elsewhere, this year, the phone is switching out the Snapdragon 750 chipset for an all-new MediaTek Dimensity 920 processor. Buyers get a choice of 6GB or 8GB of RAM depending on the variant. The phone ships with MIUI 12.5 based on Android 11 out of the box. We’ve reached out to Xiaomi about future software updates and support plans but are yet to hear from the company. The company has a good track record of offering two years of updates for its devices and has recently promised to support newer devices for three years. However, buyers should tread with caution for lack of any official word on support for the Xiaomi 11i. We’ll update this space once we hear from the company.

The most obvious alternatives to the Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge are the OnePlus Nord 2 and Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G. The OnePlus Nord 2 brings a much more powerful Dimensity 1200 chipset to the table. Meanwhile, the Galaxy A52s packs in a refined camera setup and dependable performance with long-term software support.

The Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge is available in four colors — Camo Green, Stealth Black, Purple Mist, and Pacific Pearl. The phone goes on sale starting at Rs. 26,999 and will be available on Mi.com as well as Flipkart. The Xiaomi 11i and Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge currently appear to be India-exclusive and Xiaomi has not announced plans to bring the duo to other regions.

What’s good?

The Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge represents a significant growth in design sense compared to the model it replaces. Gone is the bright colorful gradient, and instead you get a choice of four subdued tones that give the phone a more upmarket look. Similarly, the edges of the mid-frame are flattened out for a better in-hand feel. The 6.67-inch Full HD+ AMOLED display is crisp and the 120Hz refresh rate makes the interface feel fluid. Elsewhere, the 1,200nits of peak brightness helps the phone get impressively bright even under direct sunlight.

Xiaomi has taken the kitchen sink approach with the Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge and you get a bevy of ports and additions, like a headphone jack for wired headphones as well as an infrared blaster to control other electronics. The onboard stereo speakers are perfectly loud, with decent mid-range that makes vocals sound clear — and I had no trouble listening to podcasts out loud.

The Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge doesn’t have the largest battery in the segment but this didn’t make much of a difference in everyday use and I could still get a full day of extended use. Range anxiety is further allayed by the blazing-fast charging speeds. With the included 120W charger, I clocked zero to 100 charge times close to 18 minutes. This isn’t quite as speedy as Xiaomi’s claimed 15 minutes, but still pretty fast.

Getting full unthrottled 120W charging requires toggling on a boost charging mode in the settings. Xiaomi claims that the setting allows for better thermal control. In our testing, charging was still speedy at about 18 minutes for a full charge, even without boost mode enabled.

What’s not so good?

Performance-wise, the Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge is strictly mid-range. I found MIUI 12.5 to be well optimized for the Dimensity 920 chipset, and there were no lag issues while navigating the interface or using apps for social media and browsing. However, the MediaTek chipset isn’t optimal if gaming is a priority for you. Expect to see some frame drops with heavy titles like Genshin Impact if you have the settings cranked to the max. With alternatives like the OnePlus Nord 2 equipped with the much more powerful Dimensity 1200 chipset, we’d have liked to see a bit more power on tap here.

Additionally, while Xiaomi has done a decent job at reducing app bloat, you’ll still find things like lock-screen ads that take away from the premium experience. It is also disheartening to see the phone ship without Android 12 out of the box. Moreover, the company hasn’t committed to a firm update promise just yet.

Read more: Android 12 update — When is it coming to your phone?

The Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge carries forward the 108MP camera from the Mi 10i alongside the 8MP ultrawide sensor and the 2MP macro camera. The camera software hasn’t evolved much either and most of the issues we had with the Mi 10i continue to be a concern. HDR performance is rather hit or miss, with shadows that are often lifted too high resulting in noise in darker areas. The ultrawide camera too has noticeable distortion around the edges.

You can take a look at full resolution Mi 11i HyperCharge camera samples in our Google Drive folder.

Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge camera samples

Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge specs

Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge review: Should I buy it?

The Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge is a classic example of Xiaomi pushing the gauntlet with one feature to create a splash while the rest of the package shows restraint. That said, while the phone might be focused on lightning-fast charging, there’s more to like here. The design is modern and premium, and the performance is satisfactory. While the cameras might not live up to alternatives like the Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G (Rs. 35,990/~$483), the primary sensor still manages moments of brilliance and is a marked step above the middling cameras on the OnePlus Nord 2 (Rs. 24,999/~$335).

Priced starting at Rs. 26,999, the Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge is a safe bet if you want a new mid-range smartphone with all the essential bells and whistles. However, for value-conscious buyers, the surprise winner here might be the standard Xiaomi 11i (Rs. 24,999/~$335) that delivers much of the same experience, longer battery life on paper, and still fast 66W charging, while saving you a pretty penny.