Is it hard to choose between Huawei and Xiaomi's small folding screen phones?

Ever since the Huawei nova Flip was released, it has been a subject of much debate.

On one hand, there are voices claiming that the configuration is too low. It's expensive, costing around five to six thousand yuan, yet it uses the same processor as the nova 12, which is seen as lacking sincerity!

On the other hand, there's news that it sold 45,000 units within just three days of hitting the market.

Ah, does this mean that small foldable phones are really all about "fashion" and not about specifications?

Recently, we've been testing the Huawei nova Flip for a while, along with the Xiaomi MIX Flip, which is similarly priced but boasts superior specifications. We've found that in the current category of small foldables, it might indeed be all about playing the "fashion" card.

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In fact, due to well-known reasons, Huawei is not really in a position to compete with its peers on performance.

Focusing on a fashionable and refined approach is almost a necessity, after all, they've even introduced a matching bag for this small foldable.

Xiaomi, on the other hand, remains true to itself, providing ample specifications. The external screen features a punch-hole full-screen design and is equipped with the Snapdragon 8 Gen3 processor.

In terms of appearance, it might be quite subjective to say which of these two phones looks better. However, when it comes to product details, it's evident that Huawei has the upper hand.

For instance, Huawei's square screen, external screen module, and the phone's frame all have the same radius of curvature for the R-edges, creating a harmonious visual effect. The transitions are seamless, giving the impression of reliability.The R-corner on one side of Xiaomi's middle still retains the traditional large ears.

When unfolded, the mid-frame of the upper and lower screens does not seem to be fully engaged. I wonder if our unit is an exception, as the screen has an excessive bending issue, causing the upper and lower screens not to be on the same plane, making the middle of the screen appear to bulge outward.

As for the inner screen crease, they are more or less on par. When the screen is on and viewed from the front, both look quite good, and the crease is essentially ignorable.

Of course, the appearance and workmanship are just one aspect. After all, it's a small folding phone, so we also need to look at their distinctive outer screens.

The experience of the outer screens on these two phones can be said to be completely different species.

Huawei's outer screen form is more traditional, like a smartwatch embedded next to the camera.

It can simply check messages and use built-in features like weather and payment codes.

However, be prepared, as it can really only handle very basic functions.

For example, you can control the music playing on the outer screen by swiping left on the desktop, and you can pause or skip songs, but you can't view lyrics or playlists.

Not even the volume percentage is displayed. Forget about the volume percentage, the volume key settings for the inner and outer screens are even reversed. The inner screen decreases the volume, but once you close the cover, it becomes the volume increase, which is very counterintuitive.At the beginning, there might be an embarrassing situation where you mistakenly use "Volume +" as "Volume -". We have reasons to suspect that this feature was designed by Huawei's little black child.

For example, when checking WeChat messages on the outer screen, you really can only view text messages, not images, and you can't reply. This can easily lead to the tedious operation of checking the message on the outer screen and then again on the inner screen, making you wonder if this feature wasn't designed by the little black child.

If you are already using Huawei's smartwatch, then this outer screen might become quite redundant.

Of course, the fashionable aspect of the quirky screen is a section that the official heavily promotes, such as the fun call display feature, which allows you to set an animation to play when you answer or make calls, which is definitely more stylish and personalized than displaying nothing.

There are also trendy outer screen pets, and Huawei's fluidity is quite good, at least the frame rate appears higher than Xiaomi's, making it much smoother.

However, compared to Huawei's "smart pocket watch," Xiaomi's outer screen is impressive, turning it into a real small-screen phone, the kind that even a Hobbit could operate with one hand.

The screen's camera area is separated to display small cards, while the main area retains the classic 16:9 aspect ratio, allowing many applications to be fully functional, and there is a full-size keyboard, making it quite convenient for replying to messages, viewing navigation, and making or receiving calls.

Additionally, the NetEase Cloud app has been specially adapted, and when opened, the outer screen switches to a permanent on mode, instantly turning the phone into a high-tech desk speaker, which is indeed quite good, although it's uncertain whether it's prone to screen burn-in.

Since the outer screen is more user-friendly, it will reduce the chances of using the inner screen. This is what you could call "the larger the screen, the smaller the screen."

In general, Xiaomi encourages you to adapt to and explore the use of the outer screen, while Huawei encourages you to expand the use of the inner screen, with the outer screen serving more as a personalized fashion component.Here, one can observe that Xiaomi's external screen completely outperforms Huawei's in terms of functionality and practicality.

However, the issue with foldable screens is that the external screen is essentially a downgraded version of the internal screen, with the entire image and UI being quite small, which can be tiring on the eyes. This easily leads to a contradiction:

Ah, it's such a hassle to flip open the phone every time, it's more convenient to use the external screen!

But the problem is that at this point, just by performing a flip action, the displayed content can be several times larger, and the cost-performance ratio is really high, so it's a must to flip!

Therefore, after the honeymoon period of owning the phone, your usage of the external screen may gradually decrease, giving off a somewhat pseudo-demand vibe.

Moreover, have you noticed that this issue can be perfectly resolved by using a traditional candy bar phone, it's just that candy bar phones lack the fashionable charm of a small foldable.

From this perspective, the small display content of the external screen may make many users initially feel that it is a flashy but impractical thing, with rationality gradually overcoming impulse, and they decide not to buy!

Huawei's external screen promotion angle is itself about flashy but impractical things, actively filtering out non-target users, and directly targeting the group that pursues fashion and aesthetics. The product positioning is very precise, and it makes sense that it sells well.

At this point, some friends might say, the external screen experience is subjective, but we have to acknowledge the objective gap in processors, right?

Yes, the performance gap between the Kirin 8000 and the Snapdragon 8 Gen3 is indeed significant, but due to the additional mechanical structure of the small foldable, heat dissipation and performance release are relatively poor.Directly looking at the game performance tests, when spectating the same match in high-definition quality in "Honor of Kings," Huawei directly locks at 60 frames per second (fps), which is expected.

Xiaomi, although supporting 120 fps, experiences a slight frequency drop after 12 minutes, failing to maintain 120 fps, and the stability further decreases after 16 minutes, which is quite conservative and disappointing in terms of scheduling.

Looking at "Genshin Impact" in high quality, Huawei directly locks at 30 fps, and the frame rate is not very stable, making the gameplay somewhat torturous.

What we didn't expect was Xiaomi's performance; it initially reaches 50 fps, then gradually drops to 40 fps and 35 fps within a few minutes.

It eventually stabilizes just above 30 fps, which is a significant cut compared to the typical Snapdragon 8 Gen3.

Although both phones eventually stabilize around 30 fps, Xiaomi still feels noticeably more responsive, possibly because Huawei has the frame interpolation feature enabled by default, which increases latency.

The performance of the Snapdragon 8 Gen3, while not exactly a tiger fallen from grace, is at least a tiger chained, with its combat power greatly reduced, unable to exert its full strength.

Users who value performance should probably avoid these phones.

In terms of battery life, their capacities are reduced compared to traditional smartphones, with Huawei at 4400mAh and Xiaomi at 4780mAh.

Xiaomi has a slight advantage in light-load scenarios such as browsing Weibo, navigation, and watching videos, thanks to its larger battery and better processor efficiency.In the case of Honor of Kings, Xiaomi consumes about the same amount of power as Huawei while offering twice the frame rate, which indicates a significantly higher energy efficiency.

Overall, if you are a heavy mobile phone user for practical purposes, we do not recommend choosing small folding phones.

The flip design of the old feature phones could solve many issues, such as unlocking the phone, preventing accidental key presses, and protecting the screen from scratches, etc.

The flip cover of small folding phones serves more as a ceremonial function, and its effect on reducing the volume is actually quite limited, with quite a few side effects. As mentioned earlier, the outer screen is essentially a downgraded version of the inner screen.

Moreover, adding an outer screen also increases the risk of screen breakage.

Although the Huawei nova Flip and Xiaomi MIX Flip have significant differences in outer screen and performance configurations, they are both more suitable for light users who use their phones very little and just want a phone that is aesthetically pleasing, unique, and more portable. They are also quite suitable for those who simply want a secondary phone.

Of course, all of the above is from a rational perspective, but we can't always approach everything from a rational standpoint, can we?

For heavy users, if they are tired of traditional phones, switching to a completely different type of phone to play with and add a touch of freshness to a dull life is also a valid reason for choosing.

Many people call small folding phones "beautiful little trash," but we believe that referring to them as "beautiful little toys" might be more fitting.