Just as we were starting to think we’d seen the last premium-tier smartphone this year, an invite to the local launch for the Xiaomi 14T appeared in our inbox. It seems that Xiaomi decided it was as good a time as any to bring one of our favourite smartphone series back to SA.
The last time we got our hands on a Xiaomi T-series device was the 11T back in 2021. It impressed us with its balance of affordability and performance, costing R14,000 at the time while sporting flagship-level specs like its Snapdragon 888 chipset, 120W charging, and respectable camera performance. We’re expecting more of the same from the 14T.
The Xiaomi 14T arrives in SA soon
It was only last week that Xiaomi debuted the 14T series at a global launch event in Berlin where it showed off two devices – the Xiaomi 14T and 14T Pro. While bringing both devices to SA would be nice, we’re only expecting to see the base 14T at the local launch event next week – if Xiaomi sticks to the same strategy as previous T-series launches, that is.
In the past, Xiaomi has tended to focus on photography, and since it partnered with Leica a few years ago, that trend should continue. The Xiaomi 14T features a trio of camera sensors ’round back which have all been “co-engineered” with Leica. These include a 50MP main sensor with OIS (optical image stabilisation), a 50MP telephoto lens, and a 12MP ultra-wide lens. There is also a 32MP front-facing camera for all your selfie needs.
A MediaTek Dimensity 8300-Ultra SoC is sandwiched inside with 12GB of LPDDR5X system memory and 256GB or 512GB of snappy UFS 4.0 storage. South Africa is more likely to receive the smaller of the two storage configs, although we’ll have to wait for the official launch to confirm that.
Up front, the 14T features an impressively specced 6.67in AMOLED display with a 1,220 x 2,712px resolution, a claimed 144Hz refresh rate, support for Dolby Vision, HDR10, and HDR10+ formats, and a peak brightness of 4,000 nits.
Other notable features include 67W wired charging for the 5,000mAh battery, a big step down from the 11T’s 120W charging three years ago. There’s still no wireless charging in the base 14T.
And how can you have a smartphone launch in 2024 without mentioning AI? The Xiaomi 14T will support plenty of AI-enhanced features like Google’s Circle to Search, and a host of others including AI Interpreter, AI Notes, AI Recorder, AI Captions, AI Film, AI image editing, and AI Portrait. We’ll need to spend some time with these before we’ll know if they’re any good.
As for the local price and availability dates, those details will come later. The device should launch on Tuesday, 8 October so it might well be available from then but we wouldn’t bet on it. You’ll need to wait until then anyway to find out what it will cost.
