Smartphone Xiaomi Black Shark 6/64GB and 8/128GB – advantages and disadvantages

If you are not asking the question “Which company is better to buy a smartphone?”, have clearly decided to choose from Xiaomi and, moreover, are interested in gaming models, this is news for you. In April 2018, a powerful gaming smartphone from Xiaomi was announced and launched for sale. Over time, the users who purchased it got an idea about the device and the features of its operation, so we will devote this review to it - so, the Xiaomi Black Shark 6 / 64GB and 8 / 128GB smartphone - advantages and disadvantages, specifications, owner reviews and impressions about the operation, the average price.

We will try to give a comprehensive description of the smartphone so that you can understand whether it is worth buying, which version is better to buy - 64 or 128 GB, where it is profitable to buy this device, and much more.

Smartphone Specifications

Memory and processor

As mentioned earlier, the device is positioned as a gaming device and is intended for active games, hence its unusual case design and powerful hardware.

The smartphone is equipped with an eight-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor with a frequency of 2.8 MHz.
Comes with Android 8.0 Oreo operating system.

The device is offered in two versions - 6/64 GB and 8/128 GB. Accordingly, RAM - 6 or 8 GB, built-in memory - 64 or 128 GB. When choosing, it is worth remembering that the smartphone does not support the installation of additional memory via micro-SD, which means that the selected volume will be final.

Note that according to the technical characteristics, there are no other differences between smartphones with 64 and 128 GB of memory.

The stereo speakers in the smartphone provide high quality sound as well as good volume.

Autonomy and display

Xiaomi Black Shark has a capacitive IPS screen with a resolution of 2160 * 1080, the diagonal of which is 5.99 inches. It should be noted that the colors are as close to natural as possible, which makes the picture pleasant to read, and allows you to edit photos at a professional level. it is possible to change screen modes and make the colors more saturated if you like this color rendition.

The battery capacity is not enough for such a large screen - only 4000 mAh. Charges via an outdated USB port, but fast enough.

The weight of the device is quite small - 190 grams, dimensions - 75.4 * 161.62 * 9.25 mm.

Camera

As for photos and videos, the phone has a main dual camera with 12 + 20 million pixels with f / 1.75 aperture, autofocus and macro mode.

If you are worried about how this gaming smartphone takes pictures, we can reassure you. It does a great job and takes great quality photos.

An example of a photo taken during the day:

How Xiaomi Black Shark takes pictures at night can be seen below:

The 20 megapixel selfie camera with f/2.2 aperture actually turns out to be 5 megapixel, and takes corresponding photos, according to reviews, of disgusting quality. Focusing is terrible, and it feels like there is no autofocus at all.

It is worth noting that due to the separately dedicated Adreno 630 video processor, the video plays very smoothly.

Additionally

The smartphone supports all modern communication standards - 3G and 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11ac, Bluetooth 5.0, GPS and GLONASS satellite tracking.

Liquid cooling is used, which allows the case not to overheat even under high loads.

For convenience, presenting all the main characteristics in the general table:

Appearance of the device

When examining the Xiaomi Black Shark, the eye, first of all, falls on its non-standard design, more precisely, on the back cover of the case. The device looks and feels very nice and expensive.
It is only available in black and grey.

Case materials - two types of metal. The smartphone is made almost entirely of brushed metal, with an insert on the rim of the back cover of painted lacquered.

The logo in the form of a letter on the rear panel glows, for example, with incoming calls and, in general, acts as an indicator of events.

Also on the rear panel are the rear camera (main and secondary), flash and microphone. Below is the Black Shark logo.

There are no complaints about the assembly of the smartphone - everything is done efficiently and accurately.

On the right side are the volume and lock buttons. On the left is a slot for two SIM cards, a micro-SD card is not supported.

Top and bottom are antenna inserts. At the bottom there is also a microphone speaker and a standard USB Type C 2.0 connector.

On the front panel there is a fingerprint scanner, which is not a button and does not perform other functions, except for recognition.

On both sides of the scanner are touch buttons - to call running applications and go back. They are not illuminated, but thanks to them, the smartphone is very convenient to manage.

Above, on the front side of the device, there is a front camera, an event indicator flashing in different colors, and a speaker.

By the way, the screen of this device is exactly the same as it should be for a smartphone in 2018, the margins are minimal, almost the entire space is occupied by the working surface, and even touch buttons are implemented on the bottom of the screen.

There is a frame around the screen, painted green.

Equipment

Xiaomi provides a fairly large number of accessories for its top-end smartphones. So, along with Black Shark 6/64 GB and 8/128 GB, the kit comes with:

• power adapter;
• USB cable, cord length - standard, medium;
• adapter from USB to AUX;
• screen protector;
• a clip to remove the tray with SIM cards;
• rear bumper.

The case and screen protector are the simplest, but they will protect your phone the first time you unbox it. Or not only the first, if they suit you and you don’t want to replace the film with a protective glass, and the bumper with a full-fledged case in the entire plane of the phone.

It is possible to additionally purchase a game joystick, the cost of which is about $30 (about 2,500 rubles).

The joystick charge lasts for 7-10 days if you spend a moderate amount of time on games.

Smartphone cost

Recall that two versions are on sale - Xiaomi Black Shark 6/64 GB and extended by 8/128 GB. How much does each of them cost?

Xiaomi Black Shark 6/64 GB will cost 35,750 rubles.

Xiaomi Black Shark 8/128 GB is a little more expensive, 40,750 rubles.

I must say that the difference in price is small, given the fact that in the second case, the memory is offered twice as much.

How to choose one or the other option? Think about how you use your smartphone.If, in addition to the classic operation, you plan to take a lot of photos and shoot videos, as well as install heavy games, it’s better to take the extended version right away so that later you don’t regularly dump information on other media and don’t end up without memory at the most inopportune moment.

And you can find out the best price for Xiaomi Black Shark 6/64 GB and 8/128 GB in your region by using the Yandex.Market service, which contains all the current offers from stores. There we recommend paying attention to the rating of the store that sells the device.

Choosing a trusted seller - whether it's an online store or a brick-and-mortar store that sells appliances - will help save you from the problems that usually arise when returning an item due to a malfunction or needing repairs.

User reviews about the smartphone

The smartphone is really good, and the user experience is mostly positive. Only one thing can be noted - it will not be suitable for selfie lovers who want to get a universal smartphone - for games, and for creating selfies and everyday use.

Advantages

• Stylish appearance that attracts attention;
• Everything is stylish and thought out for the convenience of the user;
• Top "iron";
• Event indicators on both sides of the smartphone;
• The presence of dual sim;
• Powerful and efficient processor;
• High performance, especially after the release of new firmware;
• The interface is smart and cool, there are no complaints or disadvantages;
• Firmware and shell for games continue to be processed and improved by Xiaomi;
• The games run great, nothing slows down and does not freeze;
• Instant screen unlock;
• Rich functionality;
• Very pleasant sound and sufficient speaker volume;
• Despite being over 9mm thick, it doesn't feel like a shovel and fits comfortably in the hand;
• Pleasant and ergonomic device;
• The screen does not glare in the sun and has a sufficient margin of brightness to ensure that the image is well read;
• Not flagship, but decent main cameras with fast autofocus, allowing you to get excellent quality pictures and Full-HD video;
• A reliable device that does not start to work worse over time.

Flaws

• A rather high cost of a smartphone, you can find more budget options with similar characteristics;
• Headphones are not included;
• Small play in the area of ​​​​the volume button;
• Cannot install an additional memory card;
• Fast charging is not so fast - in an hour, the battery only reaches 80%;
• There are no traditional Xiaomi gestures that make it easier to control the device;
• Very poor photo quality on the front camera, the declared characteristics of 20 million pixels do not correspond to reality and, in fact, only 5 million pixels;
• There are flaws when shooting portraits on the main camera and HDR does not work;
• Glass is not scratch resistant;
• Insufficient autonomy - battery capacity could be done more;
• The top of the screen heats up because the processor is there;
• It can slip out of your hands if you do not wear a bumper.

In general, as a productive gaming smartphone and a stylish Android mobile console, Xiaomi Black Shark fully copes with its main tasks. The brand's engineers have exceeded the expectations of users and made something new and impressive. This year, many high-profile releases in the world of games are expected, and the smartphone is initially sharpened for them.

True, a number of different parameters, such as a screen or cameras, will not surprise you, and should not surprise you, since this is, after all, not a flagship model.

The smartphone is well suited for playing games, watching videos, surfing the Internet. In China, he caused a stir, perhaps this is the reason for his not the lowest price.

If for some reason you didn’t like this device, for example, if you can’t live without beautiful selfies, we recommend that you look at the rating of high-quality smartphones from Xiaomi. Today, the line of devices of this manufacturer is so large that any person, whatever his selection criteria, will be able to choose the right option for himself. There are both more inexpensive models and flagships equipped with the latest.

Moreover, the best manufacturers, such as Lenovo, Samsung, Sony, and their popular models, quite compete with devices from Xiaomi, which are a combination of optimal price and quality.