So far, Xiaomi has been the only company to deploy a Qualcomm Snapdragon 780G-powered smartphone. The device arrived earlier this year in the form of Xiaomi Mi 11 Lite 5G. However, the continuous constraints in the global chipset supply in light of the global shortage have greatly affected the supply of Snapdragon 780G chips. Therefore, the company could not keep up the supply of the chip giving power to its Mi 11 Lite 5G. So the company needed a solution to not simply discontinue the handset, and the answer is coming through the Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE, or New Edition if you prefer.
Qualcomm, apparently, is having a much easier time in keeping the Snapdragon 778G supplies. That explains why there’s a myriad of smartphones coming with this chip instead of the more powerful SD780G. For that reason, Xiaomi’s newest Lite smartphone is coming with this chip, which is still an excellent chip for the premium mid-range market. The Snapdragon 778G uses TSMC’s 6 nm node instead of the Samsung’s 5 nm seen on the 780G. It still carries powerful Cortex-A78 cores and an amazing Adreno 642L.
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Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE specifications
Besides the new chipset, the Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE is nearly identical to the previously released variant. That means that the device has a 6.55-inch AMOLED screen with Full HD+ resolution and 90 Hz refresh rate found on its sibling. This panel boasts HDR10+ support and has a tiny cutout for the 20 MP selfie camera in the top left corner. Moving around to the back, there is a triple-camera setup featuring the Mi 11-esque design. The main camera is a 64 MP main camera, an 8 MP ultrawide snapper, and a 5 MP macro snapper. Interestingly, the phone is much sleeker than the other two Xiaomi 11 Lites from Xiaomi. It measures just 6.81 mm and weighs just 159 grams. Thankfully, battery life is not being sacrificed.
The phone is available in 6 GB or 8 GB RAM, and 128 GB or 256 GB of Storage configurations. Interestingly, this is one of the few Xiaomi 11-series smartphones to have a micro SD card slot. In terms of software, the phone runs MIUI 12 on top of Android 11. The battery life is ensured by a 4,250 mAh battery with 33W fast-charging and the charging brick is safe in the package. The device also has a side-mounted fingerprint scanner, NFC, and IP53 certification for dust and splash protection.
Pricing and Availability
The Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE is available starting today. The suggested price for the 6 GB / 128 GB tier is €369. The improved variant with 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage will set you back by €399. For now, the device is available across Europe. But we suspect it will be released in India soon.
The new handset comes in Truffle Black, Bubblegum Blue, Peach Pink, and Snowflake White.
