With a budget of €400, you can get lost in the wide range of phone models in the wide phone market. Would giving the new Xiaomi 14T model a chance be a good idea? Or should we still go on a broader search to find the golden mean? Today we will try to find out if it is possible to get a solid smartphone for under €400 that not only performs everyday tasks, but can also be a strong tool for photography, gaming, and working?

Unboxing

Xiaomi presents its products to its customers in a rich package. After unpacking the package, we get a sturdy box, inside which we can find all the necessary accessories for using the phone. After opening the package, an information booklet with a user manual appears.

Next comes the Xiaomi 14T smartphone itself, wrapped in plastic film, with an additional protective case on the side. Digging a little deeper, at the bottom of the box we find a USB-C cable with a 67W fast charging unit.

First impressions

Since I'm a Samsung user, I even forgot that phones still come with chargers. I also never thought of getting a phone with a protective case and a screen protector already applied! Some might call Xiaomi old-fashioned, but these things are pleasantly surprising when you get a lot of accessories for an attractive price that allow you to use the phone safely and conveniently.

The Xiaomi 14T is made of quality components and when I held it in my hands, it felt like I was holding a premium smartphone. The aluminum base sides provide strength, and the glass covering the front and back adds elegance.

The camera placement and glossy design of this smartphone have a touch of luxury, and the angular body is reminiscent of Apple products. The Xiaomi 14T's size is not designed for comfortable one-handed use, but it felt neither too big nor too small to me.

Functionality

However, the appearance and design of the phone alone do not reflect its capabilities in coping with tasks. Xiaomi 14T attracts buyers with its advantages, which are inherent in the highest quality flagships. True, the advertised numbers do not always correspond to reality. During testing, I got to know the Xiaomi 14T a little better - I had to test its capabilities, the quality of the cameras and experience how this smartphone copes with various tasks.

Screen

A bright and smooth display is a huge advantage when using a smartphone every day. The Xiaomi 14T has an extremely bright (up to 4000nits) display with a refresh rate of 144Hz. This ensures a pleasant phone operation, high-quality video playback, and a smooth gaming experience. In daylight, the brightness of the Xiaomi 14T screen is particularly good, as there were no problems when using the phone in front of the sun and the image was clearly visible.

The Xiaomi 14T screen colors can be customized. In the settings, you can choose from three pre-calibrated color combinations - the original color PRO, as well as bright and rich color combinations. Each of them conveys the background colors in its own way, but if you can't find an option that suits you, you can adjust the colors to your needs in the advanced settings. For my eyes, the most attractive image is when the colors are set to rich, then the images on the screen become a little brighter.

Battery

This phone has a fairly capacious 5000 mAh battery. Whether playing games, taking photos / videos, or using the phone for everyday needs, the battery does its job really well. From the moment the 100% battery was charged, with intensive use of the phone (talking, using apps, watching videos, taking photos), the battery lasted more than 25 hours.

With a 67W fast charger included, you can charge the battery in less than an hour. And if you want to extend the already impressive battery life, you can do so by selecting one of four battery states in the settings. You can also extend the battery life by using the tips offered by the phone itself.

Performance

Xiaomi 14T is ready to handle a variety of tasks. This phone runs Android 14, which is surrounded by Xiaomi Hyper OS. Inside is the Mediatek Dimensity 8300 Ultra processor, which is also used in other Xiaomi models. This processor has no problems handling simple tasks such as browsing the Internet, writing, or watching videos, and using the phone is especially fun, as it works very quickly and smoothly.

I didn't encounter any problems using regular functions like calls or text messages. Perhaps it was difficult to get used to the phone's controls, which are quite different from the Samsung phone I use every day. The phone's speakers are loud and clear, the screen dimming sensor works flawlessly, and all messages reach their recipients without any problems.

This processor can also handle both simple and more resource-intensive games, such as "Call Of Duty" or "PUBG". Of course, if you enable the highest graphics, you will experience some lags, but with the "default" settings everything works super smoothly.

No matter how fast the Xiaomi 14T is, there were still some glitches. I had problems with pop-ups when using the Messenger app. When one of the Messenger windows freezes, I have to completely close the app to be able to use it. Maybe this is just a temporary software bug that will be fixed in the future, but it somewhat spoiled my experience using this phone.

Sound

This smartphone has two speakers that produce stereo sound. One of the speakers is located at the bottom of the phone, and the other is built in next to the selfie camera. The speakers of the Xiaomi 14T are loud enough. So, when watching movies or listening to music, you will hear really high-quality and clear sound reproduction. Compared to my personal Samsung Galaxy S22, this phone sounds twice as loud and clear.

I really liked the built-in speakers, but when I tested the sound the Xiaomi 14T transmits through external devices, I was a little disappointed. This phone does not have an AUX output, but sound can be transmitted via the USB-C connector. I tried it in my car and the sound transmitted via USB-C was poor quality with ear-splitting distortion. When I tried Bluetooth, it was exactly the same.

After searching for information on the Internet, various answers were found, but nothing concrete. After trying some of the tips, the problem did not disappear. After trying to play music through other devices, such as headphones and a portable speaker, the problem seemed to disappear. Maybe it's a manufacturing defect, or incompatibility with some audio systems, or maybe a bug in an operating system that is not yet fully developed, but the experience is not good.

Cameras and photography

The Xiaomi 14T is a really good-looking and stylish phone, especially since the high-end Leica triple camera is eye-catching. The eye-catching design includes a 50MP main 23mm wide-angle camera, assisted by a 50MP 50mm 2x optical zoom camera with a 12MP Ultrawide camera next to it.

This trio of cameras promises to take great photos both day and night, and the wide-angle camera and 20x zoom will allow you to capture the desired image in any environment. Let's not forget about the front selfie camera. The black dot (i.e. the camera) at the top of the Xiaomi 14T screen, which is not too tiring for the eye, has 32MP and is capable of recording videos in 4K resolution.

When the technical parameters of the cameras are amazing, you also want good results and quality. I had to test the capabilities of this phone's camera both during the day and at night. The Xiaomi 14T's automatic shooting mode will be enough for everyone, and those who want to take various settings into their own hands can use a variety of PRO settings. The Leica Vibrant and Leica Authentic style effects will help you improve the tones of your photos.

Main camera

I wasn't particularly impressed with the main camera's daytime shots. The quality of the photos seems decent, but some colors look artificial. When you zoom in, finer details, like building finishes, look washed out and lack texture.

Night photography looked pretty good, but at the same time left a question mark over the quality of the photos. When photographing illuminated city infrastructure in the dark, all colors are revealed perfectly. They become really bright, and the image is very realistic. But I want to emphasize that the backlighting must be good enough. If the lighting is even slightly worse, the quality of the captured photos drops by almost half.

When taking photos in completely dark environments, the Xiaomi 14T camera comes to the rescue by automatically setting a shutter speed of a few seconds (depending on the level of darkness). After taking a photo of a dark place, the phone technologically processes it to obtain a bright and high-quality image in which you can see small details. However, in order to get the best result, you will have to hold the phone as steady as possible in any case, this will prevent blurring.

Telephoto camera

Probably the most impressive thing about this phone's camera is the 50mm lens, with 2x optical zoom. When taking pictures during the day, the most appealing image to my eye is obtained. It reflects the detail and brightness of the photographed object. Perhaps I missed a bit more vivid color contrast, which is why the photos come out a bit cold.

When shooting with this camera in the dark, the image loses its quality and becomes blurry, unless you are shooting illuminated city streets. Then, similarly to the main camera, the image with backlighting becomes much better, and the camera lens conveys fine details much more clearly.

Yes, the angle is really wide, fitting a lot of information into the frame. However, the quality of the photos during the day is not very good. In some areas of the photos, dark “pits” appear where nothing is visible and certain details become difficult to see. This camera is not intended for taking photos at night (without better lighting), because the shots come out pale and difficult to see.

Leica Authentic / Leica Vibrant

As I mentioned earlier, captured images can be adjusted with Leica camera effects. In my eyes, captured images should be as natural as possible, so I'm not a big fan of these effects. When shooting, I usually chose Leica Vibrant because of the more natural, more realistic colors it conveys.

Leica Authentic gives the shots a unique filter that darkens the photos, also highlighting the outlines and edges of buildings, for example, and a vignette that covers the background. This effect left me with mixed impressions, as some photos become a little more beautiful, while others are too dark and have exaggerated color contrast.

Front camera

The 32 MP selfie camera does its job really confidently and solidly. In good lighting, the camera focuses perfectly and conveys a lot of texture in photos. You won't need a selfie stick to fit several people into the frame, as the angle of view is quite wide, but like most smartphones, there is no zoom out function here.

You can also take high-quality portrait photos using Portrait mode. When you select it, you can manually adjust the background blur, apply a filter of your choice, or adjust your facial features.

Filming

"Director mode", "movie mode", "dual video", "shoot steady" and many other Xiaomi 14T camera modes will make everyone feel like a professional operator, and you can film in 4K 30fps resolution with all cameras.

All three Xiaomi 14T cameras shoot very solidly. When filming with the main camera, the image is detailed and high-quality, perhaps the colors are a bit dull. However, the footage looked quite natural and of good quality. The quality of the footage from the 2x camera also differs little from the main camera, perhaps even has a little more texture and detail.

My least favorite, but still functional, ultrawide camera does a decent job, but it's nothing to rave about. In daylight, the image is bright and smooth enough, but in the dark, there's a lot of noise and the quality isn't great.

A stable image is a must to capture the clearest possible image, but sometimes we find ourselves in situations where we can't hold the phone steady. The Xiaomi 14T's cameras have two image stabilization modes: "Stable Video" and "Video Stabilization PRO". Both modes keep the image without shaking really well, so you can shoot high-quality footage even while running.

Director mode provides a professional, cinematic look. Xiaomi 14T automatically selects the details to focus on, while blurring the background. Of course, you can focus by pressing on the desired object with your finger... The overall image really caught my attention, but when I reviewed the footage, I noticed some stutters and the image was not smooth.

Verdict

You won't spend a lot of money on the Xiaomi 14T, but in my opinion, you'll get a competitive smartphone that's on par with other mid-range phones. This new Xiaomi smartphone left a good impression on me, because for €400 you can get a capacious battery, a bright screen, and fast and smooth performance. 

The cameras may not have impressed us, but everything else has lived up to expectations. So for those looking for a golden mean in a sea of mid-range smartphones, the Xiaomi 14T could be a serious candidate to replace your old phone.