The electronics market is full of copies of popular smartphones, and the flagship Xiaomi Mi 9 is no exception. Despite the fact that the model was released a few years ago, demand for it persists, which provokes unscrupulous sellers to produce low-quality replicas, distinguishing counterfeits is becoming more difficult, as the technology of cloning interface and appearance has stepped forward.
Buying a counterfeit device not only threatens to lose money, but also a potential threat to the security of your personal data. Copies often contain malware at the system level that cannot be removed by standard methods. In this article, we will discuss in detail all the nuances that will help you detect fraud before you even pay.
You don't have to be an engineer or have specialized equipment to do your initial diagnostics, just look at the device carefully and run a few simple software tests, and being mindful during the buying phase will save you nerves and time in the future.
Visual analysis of the case and materials
The first thing that catches your eye when you look at the device is its appearance. The original Xiaomi Mi 9 is made using high-quality Gorilla Glass 5 or 6 (depending on the revision) and has a gradient color that smoothly changes shade when you move. Counterfeiting is often sinned by uneven paint application or using cheap plastic disguised as glass.
Pay special attention to the screen frames. In the original, they're minimal and perfectly symmetrical on all sides. Copies often have a thickened bottom bezel or noticeable gaps between the display and the body. The quality of the glue also plays a role: swipe your finger over the joints, there should be no protruding glue or sharp edges.
- 🔍 Check the Mi logo on the back: it should be laser engraving or well-built into glass, rather than glued on top.
- 🔍 Estimate the weight of the device: the original weighs 173 grams, copies are often lighter due to the use of cheap components or heavier due to poor balancing.
- 🔍 Look at the camera module: three lenses should be built into a single glass panel without distortion and dust inside.
⚠️ WARNING: If the company logo on the back cover is erased with a nail or looks like a cheap sticker, you are 100% fake.
The build quality of ports and buttons is another important marker: the USB Type-C connector in the original sits tightly, without backlashes; the volume and on buttons should have a clear, elastic stroke; in replicas, the buttons often dangle, drop or squeak unpleasantly when pressed; the tactile sensation of using the original gadget is always premium.
📊 Where do you most often buy equipment?
On AliExpress.
In local electronics stores
On Avito/OLX
Friends.
Official Xiaomi stores
Checking the display and matrix
The screen is one of the most expensive components of the smartphone, and that is where the manufacturers save the first. Xiaomi Mi 9 is equipped with a magnificent Super AMOLED matrix from Samsung with a resolution of 2340×1080 pixels, and counterfeits are often equipped with cheap IPS panels with low resolution, which are only software masked as AMOLED.
To check the matrix type, turn on the all-black image. AMOLED The black pixels are completely off, so the black color looks deep and indistinguishable from the frame of the phone that is off. IPS-The backlight works constantly on the screens of copies, so black will be rather dark gray and illuminated.
Settings → About Phone → All settings → Press 7 times on "Version MIUI"
Also worth paying attention to viewing angles and color reproduction: the original display retains color saturation even when tilted heavily; copies often fade or invert colors when viewed from an angle; the original has a brightness of 600 nits, which allows you to read comfortably in the sun, while copies in the sun often become unreadable.
A test for broken pixels
To check the screen, download the Screen Test app or run a video with pure colors (white, red, green, blue) on YouTube. Carefully examine the screen at maximum brightness for glowing or black dots.> Hardware stuffing and performance The heart of the original flagship is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor. This is a powerful chipset that provides high speed and energy efficiency. Chinese craftsmen have learned to change the information displayed in the system, so the About Phone menu on the copy can be labeled with the "Snapagon" in the real-based version of the Snapdagon series, although it is impossible to hide the old Sragon game from the high-based graphics. The original Mi 9 It's going to pull up modern games at high settings, while a fake will start friezing, slowing down, or even flying out on a minimally-priced set. Antututu (AnTuTu Benchmark) is a buyer's best friend. The original smartphone is dialing in about a few times. 400 000 – 450 000 Characteristics of the original Xiaomi Mi 9 Typical Fake Snapdragon Processor 855 (8 Cores) MediaTek Helio P60 / MT6580 RAM 6 GB / 8 GB LPDDR4X 1 GB / 2 GB (software bloated) Built-in memory UFS 2.1 (fast) eMMC 5.1 (Slow) AnTuTu account ~430 000 score ~50 000 - 80 000 Notice the speed of the interface. The original firmware. MIUI It's optimized for iron and it flies. Copies often have delays when opening menus, swiping, and launching apps. MIUI forgery stretched on a weak iron. Cameras: Quantity vs. Quality The triple camera on the back of the Xiaomi Mi 9 is not just a scenery. The 48MP core module (Sony IMX586), the ultra-wide-angle 16MP and the 12MP telephoto lens provide great shooting quality. Fakes often implement the principle of "one works, two decorative lenses." Even if all three lenses look real, only one can work, and the rest will be just blanks. You can check the camera performance by taking several shots in different modes. Try switching to a wide-angle mode - the image may not change to a copy, or you can get a digital image with a zoom, you can just get a zoom in the image with a digital image, you can get a zoom image with a zoom image. 📸 Take a photo in good lighting: the original will give a detailed shot with the correct dynamic range. 📸 Check the night mode: the real Night Mode works wonders, a copy will give just a brightened, but noisy "soap". 📸 Record the video in 4K: Fakes often do not have the physical ability to write high-resolution video, offering only the ability to create a video. 720p or 1080p The front camera in the original has a retractable mechanical mechanism, which is a unique feature of the model, and in copies this mechanism is often absent (the camera is cut into the screen as a bang or drop) or made so flimsy that it catches on the first use. The lifting mechanism should work silently and quickly. ⚠️ If the camera app opens for a long time, and switching between lenses is accompanied by a black screen for a few seconds - this is a sign of unoriginal software. Software and version MIUI The software part is the Achilles heel of most fakes. Hackers copy visual style. MIUI, They can't recreate the functionality of the Android, and they often have a custom Android build in them that looks just like Xiaomi. MIUI. The original Mi 9 supports the update "over the air" (OTA). If the system says updates are being checked but nothing happens, or if the update suggests installing a strange version of Android (like Android 13 for the old Mi 9, which is not officially updated to such versions), this is a reason to be wary. → The phone. → Version. MIUI (Click on the logo) It is also worth checking for standard Google apps. In the original global and Chinese (with flashing) versions, Google services work correctly. Forgeries often have an error "Google Play services are not supported on this device" or permanent crashes. ☑️ Check the version of Android in settings Launch Google Play Market Check the availability of system applications Mi View firmware build date: 0 / 4 Checking by IMEI The most reliable way to distinguish the original is to check the unique identifier of the device. IMEI-The code is stitched in every phone and must not match the codes of other devices, and you can find it on the box, on the sticker under the back cover (if it is removable), or by typing a universal code *#06# The code you get is going to be checked against the code on the box, and it's going to match the number to the number. Next, enter this number on the official Xiaomi website in the authentication section. The system will immediately tell you whether such a device exists in the database and when it was activated. If the site says that the IMEI was not found, or, worse, shows another model of the phone (for example, Redmi instead of Mi 9), you see a fake. Also pay attention to the date of the first activation: if the phone is “new”, and it was activated a year ago, it is a restored used device or rephab. The package of the original Xiaomi Mi 9 is made of dense cardboard with a clear, bright, bright colorless prints, and the text is often located on the font with a bad color. Complete with the original comes a transparent protective case, cable USB Type-C, paper clip for extraction SIM It's a 27W fast charger with Quick Charge 4.0, and it's a high-quality, heavy charger with clear labels, and it comes with lightweight, cheap chargers that often don't support fast charging and warm up. 📦 Check the presence of a protective film on the screen: in the original it is glued perfectly, without bubbles and dust. 📦 Appreciate the quality of the cable: the original cable is dense, with the logo "mi" or "Xiaomi" on the connector. 📦 Documentation: in the original it is neat booklets in several languages, in a forgery - often a photocopy or one leaf in broken English. ⚠️ Warning: The lack of fast charging in the kit with the claimed support of technology is a sure sign that the components have been replaced by cheaper ones. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Can you refashion the Xiaomi Mi 9 to the original MIUI? No, it's impossible. The hardware (processor, memory, screen) in the forgeries is radically different from the original. Firmware from the original Mi 9 just won't stand on a device with a different CPU architecture, or turn the phone into a "brick." Even if you can run the custom firmware, the functionality will be cut down, and the cameras and sensors may not work. Is it true that the fingerprint scanner works on the hardware? Often the fingerprint driver is formally on the hardware, but it will only be slow to register the phone with this error, but it will be associated with the fingerprinting of the fingerprint. How do you tell the Refurbished Mi 9 from the new? Refurbished phones are sold in a special package labeled "Refurbished" or "Certified Pre-Owned." They are factory-tested, but they can have micro-scratches. The main difference from the fake is that there's original hardware inside, and they're tested for IMEI as legitimate Xiaomi devices, just with a history of use. Does NFC work in copies of Xiaomi Mi 9? In 99% of cases, NFC is not working in counterfeits. The NFC module is an expensive component that Chinese antenna manufacturers don't even install copies of the device, even if you don't even check for this kind of the device.