Xiaomi 14 Civi hands-on review

06 July 2024



CamoGeko-XDA, 11 Jul 2024Agreed, both have their pros and cons. I've owned ... moreI haven't had the chance to properly try Vivo nor Oppo for a few years now. Only quick demos on stands when visiting in Asia. Oppo hasn't been here since the X5 and Vivo sadly didn't really sell any flagships in my region as I can remember at all. Both of them offering both great camera HW and SW makes, which I really like.

Hopefully they will come with some flagships here in not too long. Both the X7 Ultra and the X100 Ultra looks wonderful. I really hope next gen. comes to northern Europe, and with a flat display, like Xiaomi finally did with the 14 Ultra.

    Marco M, 10 Jul 2024It seems you don't fully understand what subjectivity ... moreAgreed, both have their pros and cons.

    I've owned every Android phone brand out there and I can say that HyperOS is really good. So is OneUI, even though it's not as user friendly imo.

    My recent admiration goes to ColorOS and FuntouchOS.

      Anonymous, 09 Jul 2024But everyone is not a techie and may not bother to try remo... moreAnd in Hyper OS they are opt-in. . . It's just that likely most people complaing about them just select all during their first setup. Not my, nor HyperOS' fault. Essentially do not allow the the option during first setup. That is it.

      In One UI they are more opt-out. At least the bloatware, which there is so much more of as well. In the initial setup, you have some of the same options with regards to ads and personalization as in HyperOS, which are opt-in, but at no point was I asked about the bloat apps, nor did I allow for more bloat apps to be installed. I was not even connected to wifi, but only on mobile data, and yet it kept on going. No prompt.

      In fact, the "app" that kept installing new spam games, at first startup in one UI, wasn't one I could uninstall directly by it's name. Or rather, the name that showed as installing games wasn't the actual name of the app. This has to be intentional to make it more difficult to find the offender. Typically when handling a notification you long press and gets taken to the app in settings, or at least it has the correct name of the app. This had neither and it just kept installing bloatware, with no permission given by me. After uninstalling all Samsung bloat, which you get additional warnings about doing compared to other apps, then no more unwanted bloat being automatically installed.

      Then there's the usual android things like not enabling google discover, essentially by rejecting at first swiping in the left side on the home screen and also disabling it in google chrome - if using that browser.

        Anonymous, 09 Jul 2024Ah a HyperOS fan sorry MIUI fan.Who is trying hard not to a... moreIt seems you don't fully understand what subjectivity it. You may prefer One UI. That is your personal preference. It is not wrong in any way. Likewise I can prefer whichever UI suites me best, my personal subjective preference. Which aligns better with HyperOS.

        It's very simple.

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          • Anonymous
          • LfV
          • 09 Jul 2024

          Marco M, 08 Jul 2024What is your region? Why do you enable ads? They are opt... moreSamsung fans didn't read your posts fully, only partially.

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            • Anonymous
            • vGJ
            • 09 Jul 2024

            Marco M, 08 Jul 2024What is your region? Why do you enable ads? They are opt... moreAh a HyperOS fan sorry MIUI fan.Who is trying hard not to accept that OneUI is a better skin than HyperOS.

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              • Anonymous
              • vGJ
              • 09 Jul 2024

              Marco M, 08 Jul 2024Difficult to unlock the bootloader? No. It is in fact very ... moreBut everyone is not a techie and may not bother to try removing ads.Ads should be opt-in not opt-out.

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                • Anonymous
                • Sr6
                • 09 Jul 2024

                How to unlock bootloader on modern ciaomi devices? Is it the same method as older ciaomi phones? Wait 1 week?

                  Anon., 07 Jul 2024This comment is 100% true...the older xiaomis were really g... moreDifficult to unlock the bootloader? No. It is in fact very simple. Even I have done it and I'm computer wizard.

                  Ads are opt-in, so don't opt-in and then complain about the fact that it has ads after you enabled them. Instead just disable what you enabled. It's not complicated.

                    Gnusmag, 07 Jul 2024No its not, xiaomi used to be my favorite brand and ive own... moreWhat is your region?

                    Why do you enable ads? They are optional, at least in most regions.
                    Don't enable them, or if you already have, then disable them.

                    Notifications being delayed? Sounds like a battery saving feature. Just disable battery saving for the specific app it relates to, or send a report about it to the developer of the app through the app store. I never have notifications missing or delayed. I have several apps where battery saving is disabled. It would even come as a prompt during first use for certain apps, as they notice they battery saving feature and advise to disable for this app and it's use case. Instead of ignoring the prompt, follow it and disable. Very simple.

                    As for Samsung. Yikes! I set up a brand new Samsung this Saturday for a family member. Talk about spam and ads out of the box. It was like swimming up streams with more and more junk games being installed as I kept uninstalling. An aweful experience. Though after a while I did get rid of the bloat and junk in OneUI. Compared to HyperOS though, it was a lot more bloat apps and games to get rid of in OneUI. And just the fact that as I was uninstalling junk games, more kept on being installed is the worst I've ever encountered in a smart phone.

                    This in Norway, btw. I assume our ROM is very similar to EU.

                    As for the endless customization options in OneUI. Sammy came late to that game. MIUI was one of the first offering as much customization and one otherwise would have had to use a 3rd party launcher to get. Not strange considering that is what MIUI started out as. HyperOS is now a more optimized UI, but still offers "endless" customization.

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                      • SM TECH
                      • CbG
                      • 08 Jul 2024

                      As a camera oriented phone, image stabilization during video recording is jittery which is the main problem with these so called mid range camera phones.

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                        • Anonymous
                        • Sr6
                        • 08 Jul 2024

                        xslvrxslwt, 06 Jul 2024PRO TIP: Just get the Realme GT 6, it's way better for... moreRemember kids, realme can never be better than Xiaomi because Xiaomi allows all their phones to be rooted while realme does not allow root by default.

                        Xiaomi 1
                        Realme zero!!!!

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                          • Samy
                          • Xy%
                          • 08 Jul 2024

                          Why no night images to test low light performance? This is where many phones fail at.

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                            • Anon.
                            • YMp
                            • 07 Jul 2024

                            Gnusmag, 07 Jul 2024No its not, xiaomi used to be my favorite brand and ive own... moreThis comment is 100% true...the older xiaomis were really good vfms which you could tinker with after their software update cycles are over..and they ruined both with plenty of ads and bloatware and difficult to unlock bootloader. Interesting how the guy with XDA name feels about and supports mi in these days

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                              • Anonymous
                              • X5u
                              • 07 Jul 2024

                              CamoGeko-XDA, 07 Jul 2024It's as good as Samsung's OneUI, if not better. ... moreLol.. nah it isn't

                                Anonymous, 06 Jul 2024Why no throttle test?Throttle test results have now been added to the Performance section.

                                  xslvrxslwt, 07 Jul 2024You're in every comment section writing stupid shi yet... moreI have a camera as my avatar simply because I'm a photographer. And based on my experience with realme and Xiaomi smartphones, I would confidently say that Xiaomi's phones take the win regarding the cameras. And what, just because you don't agree with my point or vice versa, does that mean that I say stupid shit? If you believe so, then the stupidity is saved for you dude 😂

                                    David 040882, 06 Jul 2024Better overall cameras? 😂 Yeah, I wouldn't say soYou're in every comment section writing stupid shi yet you dare have a 📸 as your avatar..dude.

                                    Realme's color science (which is the same as on Find X7 series) is WAY better than the Civi's processing (@encoword on Twitter for comparisons between GT6 and the Civi)

                                    Of course that UW is useless but main/tele/selfie aren't.

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                                      • Anonymous
                                      • LfV
                                      • 07 Jul 2024

                                      CamoGeko-XDA, 07 Jul 2024It's as good as Samsung's OneUI, if not better. ... moreDon't listen to them, it has gotten much better on my xiaomi 12t pro.

                                        Anonymous, 06 Jul 2024The most overpriced, delusional phone of the year. It s... moreI am talking about as a camera phone. It may have better processor and main cam(margin is not much) but GT6's Ultra wide and selfie are not a match for TECNO Premier!! Also it has better build.

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