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Ben Sin

Xiaomi’s newest release, the Mix Fold 4, signals an end to the days of thick and bulky feeling foldable phones.
Measuring a jaw-droppingly slim 4.6mm in its default tablet form, and only 9.5mm when closed, the Mix Fold 4 is barely thicker than an iPhone 15 Pro Max or conventional flagship Android phone in its closed state.
It would be easy to mistake the Mix Fold 4 for a standard slab phone because the device is that thin and light.
But despite the sleekness, the Mix Fold 4 is not lacking in power or components.

Hardware and design
The Mix Fold 4 is by default an 8-inch tablet that can fold in half like a book. When closed, a secondary 6.5-inch screen on the outside is used.
The outer screen’s conventional aspect ratio, along with the phone’s sleek build and light weight (228g), give it the in-hand feel and functionality of a normal phone.
This slim-down is impressive when you consider that the Mix Fold 4 does not skimp on components.
It has a much larger battery – 5,100mAh – than Samsung’s newest foldable, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6, which only packs a 4,400mAh cell despite being over 20 per cent thicker. It also has 16GB of RAM, the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, and six Leica-branded cameras.
Xiaomi says it managed to slim down so much by switching to proprietary carbon fibre materials for several internal components, most notably the hinge.

I find the hinge a bit looser than Samsung’s rock-solid one, but Xiaomi’s can still stay in place at most angles.
The phone also has IPX8 water resistance rating, meaning it can withstand being splashed with water.
Software and features
The Mix Fold 4 runs Android 14 with Xiaomi’s HyperOS software on top. But because the phone is only sold in China for now, the software does not come with Google apps out of the box.
They can be installed, but the phone lacks native support for Google Assistant and Android Auto. Google Pay also does not work. Other Google apps and services work fine.
There is not much specific software for the Mix Fold 4, as HyperOS mostly behaves the same here as on a conventional phone. This is not a bad thing, as HyperOS is fast and fluid, but Samsung and Oppo give the software for their foldable phones additional features to take advantage of the larger screen.
Performance and battery life
The Mix Fold 4’s quad camera system is good for a foldable phone. The main camera produces shots with excellent dynamic range and details, while the two zoom lenses, covering the 75mm and 115mm focal lengths, offer more versatility.

I find the zoom lenses are clearly superior to those on the cameras of Samsung’s foldables and even the iPhone’s “Prism” zoom lens. But they fall quite short of the sky-high standards set by Xiaomi itself and Vivo in the two companies’ latest “Ultra” slab phones, which feature the two best cameras in phones right now.
I also find Xiaomi’s colour science to be inconsistent between the lenses, but this is nitpicking that will only concern mobile photography experts. For most, the cameras are more than good enough.
The rest of the phone performs at a high level thanks to the latest silicon and copious amount of RAM. Battery life is also satisfactory – the phone will almost certainly last all day even for heavy users.
Conclusion
The Mix Fold 4’s biggest flex is its thin and light build, which makes the barely one-month-old Galaxy Z Fold 6 look clunky and bulky. Besides that, the display, performance and cameras are all good, but are nothing we have not seen before from other foldable phones.
The Mix Fold 4 is only selling in China for now, priced at 8,999 yuan (US$1,260).


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The Xiaomi Mix Fold 4. Photo: Ben Sin

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The Xiaomi Mix Fold 4 in its closed state. Photo: Ben Sin

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An image captured by the Mix Fold 4. Photo: Ben Sin

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A sample image (right) created by the new “Sketch to Image” software feature on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 - one of two new foldable phones from the South Korean tech giant, together with the Z Flip 6 - which created a real-looking hat and sunglasses from Ben Sin’s sketch (left). Photo: Ben Sin

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 (bottom), at 12.1mm, is slimmer than both the Fold 5 (middle) and Fold 4 (top). Photo: Ben Sin

The Z Fold 6’s main screen (right) is wider compared with the Fold 5 (left). Photo: Ben Sin

The front of the Galaxy Z Flip 6. Photo: Ben Sin

The Z Flip 6 in semi-folded form. Photo: Ben Sin

The inside screen of the Z Fold 6. Photo: Ben Sin

The back of the Z Fold 6 (right) and Z Fold 5. Photo: Ben Sin

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Set at 30X Zoom, images taken by the Vivo X100 Ultra (above, left) and the Apple iPhone Pro Max (above, right). Photo: Ben Sin

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The display on the Huawei Pura 70 Ultra (left) looks gorgeous, with bezels noticeably thinner than on the latest iPhone, and subtle curves on all four sides. Photo: Ben Sin 

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A photograph taken with the Huawei Pura 70 Ultra’s tele-macro camera. Photo: Ben Sin

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The back of the iPad Pro 2024. Photo: Ben Sin

Lifestyle

Gadgets

Six Leica-branded cameras, a 5,100mAh battery and the latest Qualcomm chip round out a package that feels more like a standard slab phone


With an 8,999 yuan price tag, the Xiaomi Mix Fold 4 is the new thinnest foldable phone, but our review finds it still packs impressive specs, including six Leica-branded cameras and a large battery.


Xiaomi

Technology

China technology

An assessment or critique of a service, product or creative endeavour.  Film reviews, restaurant reviews, reviews of art exhibitions. (Eg. Crazy Rich Asians: an important film, yes, but a good one?)


Review

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;}Six Leica-branded cameras, a 5,100mAh battery and the latest Qualcomm chip round out a package that feels more like a standard slab phone

Six Leica-branded cameras, a 5,100mAh battery and the latest Qualcomm chip round out a package that feels more like a standard slab phone