What’s wrong with Xiaomi: 10 real problems that are silent sellers

Introduction: Myths and Reality of Xiaomi Brand

Xiaomi has become a symbol of the “Chinese economic miracle” of smartphones, smart appliances and gadgets for 30-50% below competitors in the past 10 years. The marketing slogan “Just for fans” and aggressive pricing policy have made the brand a cult among young people and thrifty buyers. But behind the bright presentations and million-dollar sales hide systemic problems that manifest themselves after 6-12 months of use.

This article is not about hats for hats, but about specific technical and operational shortcomings, confirmed by laboratory tests, service center reviews and data from independent experts (like DXOMark or AnandTech), we will examine why even the flagship models of Xiaomi 13 Ultra or Redmi Note 12 Pro+ are inferior to competitors in reliability, why their MIUI firmware slows down over time, and what “chips” are actually marketing tricks. If you are planning a purchase, this material will help avoid disappointment.

1.Software: MIUI as a major headache

MIUI is Xiaomi’s business card, but it’s also its weakest. According to Counterpoint Research (2023), 68 percent of users complain of slowing down after a year of use, and it’s because of aggressive resource optimization: the system forces the background processes to close, causing applications (such as messengers or navigators) to reboot when switching.

Another problem is advertising in the system menus. Even in the expensive Xiaomi 13 Pro, banner ads are found in Settings → Themes or Security. You can only turn them off manually through hidden settings (for example, by disabling the Recommendations option in Settings → About Phone → Additional).

• 🔄 Lags and Frises: After Updating to MIUI 14 users massively complain about hanging up when scrolling Instagram or TikTok.
• 📵 Notification problems: Apps (like WhatsApp or Telegram) don’t show push notifications without manually configuring auto-runs.
• 🔒 Block bootloader: Xiaomi locks bootloader for 720 hours (30 days) when trying to unlock, which complicates the installation of custom firmware.

⚠️ Note: If you use Xiaomi with global firmware (MIUI Global, be prepared for delaying updates to 2-3 month compared to the Chinese version (MIUI China) Critical security fixes come last.

2 Cameras: Marketing vs. Reality

Xiaomi likes to brag about megapixels and collaboration with Leica, but in fact, most models’ cameras lose to competitors in real conditions. For example, the Xiaomi 12S Ultra with Sony IMX989 (1 inch) sensor in DXOMark tests lost to the iPhone 14 Pro in HDR processing and night shooting.

• 🌃 Night shooting: Noise reduction algorithms aggressively blur details, especially in Night Mode 2.0 mode.
• 🎥 Video 8K: Entry in authorization 7680×4320 available only on flagships, but overheats the processor already through 5 minute.
• 🔍 Telephoto: Optical zoom 5× Xiaomi 13 Ultra is inferior in detail to Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (10×).

3. Batteries: fast charging vs. rapid degradation

Xiaomi prides itself on fast charging technologies (like the 210W HyperCharge in the Redmi Note 12 Discovery Edition), but there’s a downside: these batteries wear out 2-3 times faster. According to GSMArena’s tests, after 500 charging cycles, battery capacity drops by 25-30% (versus 15-20% for competitors).

Another problem is overheating when charging, for example, the Xiaomi 12T Pro from 120W heats up to 45°C, which forces the system to trattle performance, resulting in a full charge time increased from the declared 19 to 25-30 minutes.

⚠️ Note: If you are using ultra-fast charging (100W+), Avoid charging your phone during games or videos, which accelerates battery degradation.

Use a charge of no more than 30W for everyday needs |

Turn off "Fast Charging" in Settings → Battery |

Avoid discharge below 20%|

Do not leave your phone on charge overnight-->

4.Screen: AMOLED with a catch

Xiaomi is actively moving to AMOLED-displays even in budget models (e.g. Redmi Note 11 Pro), but saves on key components:

• 🔦 In the cheap models used in the lighting PWN-brightness adjustment (not DC), What causes flickering at low brightness and tires the eyes.
• 🎨 Color Transfer: By default, Live Colors mode is enabled, which overstates saturation (ΔE > 5), distorting the real shades.
• 🛡️ Only flagships (like Xiaomi 13) have Gorilla Glass Victus, the rest – cheap Gorilla Glass 3 or analogues.

The critical disadvantage is pixel burnout. 1.5-2 yearly AMOLED-Xiaomi displays the ghosts of static elements (such as navigation panels or icons) due to aggressive brightness calibration and lack of hardware burnout compensation in budget models.

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To reduce the risk of burnout, turn on the Hiding Cut option in Settings → Display → Additionally, and use dark themes.

5.Performance: Why Xiaomi is slowing down in a year

Qualcomm Snapdragon processors in Xiaomi often run at underpower due to trottling. 12X Snapdragon-chip 870 test-driven 3DMark Wild Life shows up 15-20% worse than OnePlus 9R It's a very aggressive restriction. TDP (heat pack) in firmware MIUI.

Another problem is UFS memory. Budget models (like the POCO M5) are equipped with UFS 2.1 drives instead of UFS 3.1, which leads to “swimming” when multitasking, for example, switching between Chrome (with 10+ tabs) and Genshin Impact takes up to 2-3 seconds.

6 Updates and Support: Why Xiaomi is Dropping Old Models

Xiaomi promises 3-4 years of updates for flagships, but in practice, even top models (like Xiaomi Mi 11) stop receiving security patches after 2 years. For comparison: Google Pixel 6 is supported for 5+ years, and Samsung Galaxy S21 – 4 years.

Even worse, the budget Redmi and POCO series receive only 1-2 major MIUI updates, after which they remain on an outdated version of Android. For example, the Redmi Note 10 Pro (2021) never received Android 13, stuck on MIUI 13 with bugs.

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If you want long-term support, choose models marked “Flagship” (such as the Xiaomi 13T) or look for alternatives like the Samsung Galaxy A-series.

7.Service and warranty: why Xiaomi repairs are expensive

Xiaomi’s official service centers in Russia and the CIS often refuse to repair the devices under warranty, citing “mechanical damage” or “moisture” (even if the phone did not sink), for example, replacing the screen with the Xiaomi 12T costs 20-25 thousand rubles – a third of the cost of a new device.

Another problem is the shortage of parts: on models older than 2 years (for example, Xiaomi Mi 10T) you have to wait for displays or batteries for 3-4 weeks, while Samsung or Apple keep spare parts for 5+ years.

⚠️ Note: Before buying, check the availability of authorized service centers in your city through the official Xiaomi website. In regions, repairs are often only possible through partner workshops with a markup. 30-50%.

8 Smart Tech: Why Xiaomi's Ecosystem Isn't So Smart

Xiaomi gadgets (such as Mi Band, Mi Robot Vacuum or Mi Smart Home) are advertised as part of a single ecosystem, but in fact their integration is lame:

• 🔌 Compatibility: Yeelight smart bulbs (owned by Xiaomi) don't always sync with Mi Home without manual tuning.
• 📡 Cloud addiction: Without the internet, many devices (such as Mi Air Purifier) lose some of their features.
• 🛠️ Updates: Firmware for gadgets is rare, and critical bugs (like Mi Band 7 connection error to iOS) are fixed for months.

A key flaw is the link to Chinese servers, where even in global versions of devices, some data (such as Mi Band sleep statistics) is transmitted to servers in China, raising questions about privacy.

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If you use Xiaomi gadgets in Russia, set up alternative servers via the Mi Home app: go to Profile → Settings → Region and select “Russia” (if available).

FAQ: Frequent questions about Xiaomi's flaws