LG Optimus 3D MAX Review

As we noted the battery has been reduced by 200mAh, but Mi Mix 3 still supports Quick Charge and wireless charging (now with a 10W Qi charger and 18W wired charger in the box). You’ll easily get a day’s life from the phone, and potentially more depending on your usage. Mi Mix 3 Cameras & Photography We’ve already touched on the selfie camera, which has seen big changes in this model, but the primary camera has some enhancements too. As previously it’s a 12Mp + 12Mp dual-lens camera, but some software improvements mean the quality is higher than ever. Whereas Mi Mix 2S scored 97 points in the DxO Mark test (and the Mi 8, which uses the same camera, 99 points), this Mi Mix 3 nets 103 points. The setup comprises one Sony IMX363 wide-angle lens with f/1.8 aperture, 1.4um large pixels and Dual Pixel Autofocus, and one Samsung S5K3M3+ telephoto lens with f/2.4 aperture and 1.0um pixels. The combo boasts optical zoom and four-axis OIS, and is capable of 960fps slow-motion video. It’s an AI camera, which means it can intelligently select the correct preset scene for your photo, without you having to give it too much thought.

It can also use the second lens for Portrait mode in which it achieves bokeh-effect background blurring. You can see some of our test shots below. The first is a simple point-and-shoot from our seventh-floor office terrace, looking over the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel the other side of Euston Road. With no input from us the image is true to life with realistic colours and great detail, well exposed and sharp right to the edges. With HDR mode engaged the shadows and highlights are enriched, but some evidence of blurring goes to show how important it is to hold still the camera during such shots, especially on a windy roof terrace.

LG Optimus 3D MAX Review - Effortless Advice In mobile phones

Even so it’s still a very decent photograph that shows Mi Mix 3 is capable of great things. We were less enthused by its low-light shots, and also surprised since the Mi Mix 2S seemed to handle these much better. The camera struggled to light the scene without resorting to the flash, and much noise is present. Of course we have seen significantly worse. Mi Mix 3 Software The Mi Mix 3 runs MIUI 10, which is a customised version of Android 9.0 Pie. The major differences are found in the Settings menu, which is slightly reordered, in the drop-down notification bar and in the fact there is no app tray, so all app shortcuts are on the home screen. You an also change the theme, and you’ll notice the default app icons look a little different to in standard Android.

In China they don’t use Google services, so MIUI has its own apps for pretty much everything you’d ordinarily use Google’s apps. You can use these, or you can install the apps with which you’re familiar – but here is the catch. Because we’re testing the Chinese version of the phone it does not ship with Google Play. When the Mi Mix 3 is announced in the UK this version will come with Google services, as will the Global ROM variant when it becomes available. No matter, it’s easy enough to install them, as we outline here, if a bit daunting for novice users. A recent minor amendment to the procedure means you will need to have a SIM card in the phone before allowing it to install files from unknown sources, but we expect if you’re setting up the Mi Mix 3 for personal use you will have installed a SIM in any case.