Launched alongside the flagship Xiaomi Mi 8 is the smaller Xiaomi Mi 8 SE. Even though it shares the same name as the former, the Mi 8 SE isn’t exactly just a carbon copy of the phone in a more compact form factor. In fact, it’s the very first phone to ship with Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 710 chipset.
This puts the Mi 8 SE right below the Mi 8 in terms of performance. Even though the Snapdragon 710 isn’t quite as powerful as the Snapdragon 845, it’s definitely more capable than Snapdragon 600 series chipsets. Much like the 845, the 710 is also built on a 10nm architecture, giving it better power efficiency than, say, the Snapdragon 660 SoC.
Design wise, the Mi 8 SE isn’t too different than the Mi 8, though it does lose the in-screen fingerprint sensor. Instead, it has a more conventional sensor on the back of the phone. It also comes with a smaller 5.88-inch Full HD+ AMOLED display, complete with a notch at the top.
Other specifications of the Mi 8 SE include 4GB or 6GB of RAM, 64GB of internal storage, a 12MP + 5MP dual-camera system, a 20MP front-facing shooter, and a 3,120mAh battery.
The Xiaomi Mi 8 SE is a respectable upper mid-range smartphone, and it offers plenty value for money: the base model with 4GB of RAM goes for only 1,799 Chinese yuan (about RM1,115), while the 6GB model retails at 1,999 yuan (approximately RM1,240). Hopefully, Xiaomi Malaysia will bring in the Mi 8 SE – as well as the flagship Mi 8 – to Malaysia in the near future.
