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When Xiaomi announced the Mi 4i as a flagship device, more than a few eyebrows were raised. While it offers plenty value for money, the Snapdragon 615 processor puts it more comfortably as an upper mid-range device.

Enter the Xiaomi Mi 4c. While it shares the same design as the Mi 4i, it is powered by a superior Snapdragon 808 processor. The Mi 4c also has several new tricks up its sleeves. We managed to spend some time with it to see just how different it is from the Mi 4i.

In terms of appearance, there are very little differences between the Mi 4c and Mi 4i; only when you look really closely you’d notice several subtle changes. For example, the Mi 4c has a USB Type-C port along with an IR blaster on top of the device. Beyond these two exterior differences, however, it’s basically a Mi 4i with slight changes here and there.

However, that’s only on the outside. Xiaomi also introduced a new feature called Edge Tap with the Mi 4c. Basically, I just need to tap on either sides of the phone (Edge Tap works on both the left and right sides of the device) to snap a picture or to go back. The whole feature feels pretty surreal, seeing how I’m just tapping on the side of the phone – instead of a physical button or a capacitive key – and it just works.

Other than that, the Mi 4c also has a new rear camera sensor: either a Sony IMX258 or a Samsung S5K3M2 sensor. While I can’t be sure which of the two sensors the Mi 4c I had was equipped with, the low-light performance of the 13MP camera is pretty good. The time it takes to focus is decent, there doesn’t seem to be much pause in between shots, and the images are pretty detailed as well.

One of the main highlights of the Mi 4c is definitely its processor. Thanks to the Snapdragon 808 hexa-core chipset, the Mi 4c feels much smoother than the Mi 4i, but that’s a given. After all, the Snapdragon 615 processor of the Mi 4i is an upper mid-range chipset, while the Snapdragon 808 SoC can be found on flagship devices such as the LG G4.

As for the Mi 4c’s other aspects, it should be similar to the Mi 4i. The 5-inch 1920 x 1080 resolution JDI display has accurate colours as well as excellent viewing angles, the polycarbonate body is comfortable to hold, and the overall build quality is especially impressive for such an affordable device.

For now, Xiaomi has no plan to sell the Mi 4c anywhere outside of China. If it does make it out of the country, we’re pretty sure it will be one of Xiaomi’s most well-received smartphones. With a starting price of 1,299 Chinese yuan (about RM895), the Mi 4c offers a very hard to beat package.