Xiaomi’s 15 flagships The Xiaomi Mi 14 range won’t be arriving in most of the world until early 2025. In the meantime, we’ll get a mid-year refresh of the Xiaomi Mi 14 range with the 14T and 14T Pro models, though neither of these bear much relation to the Xiaomi 14 or 14 Ultra. The Chinese manufacturer overtook Apple in August to become the world’s second-biggest smartphone brand by sales, and its extensive (if slightly confusing) range is no doubt part of the reason why.
The T range includes some of the high-end features of Xiaomi’s flagships, but there are usually a few omissions that bring the price down. You might struggle to tell the difference between the 14T and 14T Pro because these phones are practically twins, but there are some subtle refinements that justify the 14T Pro’s higher price. Both come with Google services and are available in the UK and across Europe, but they won’t officially go on sale in the US.
Nice but boring
At first glance, you’ll be hard-pressed to tell the 14T apart from the 14T Pro. They’re both ultra-large phones with 6.67-inch displays. They have relatively thick, flat bezels, textured power buttons below the volume rocker, and four camera lenses (one is actually the flash) in stepped, square modules on the back. Pick them up and you’ll immediately feel the heft of the heavier, more metallic Pro, with its subtly curved back (the 14T is flat on the back).
The only other design difference that jumps out at me is the colors. Both come in blue, black, or gray, but only the 14T comes in lime green. Why are fun colors always reserved for cheaper phones? The 14T Pro feels nicer and reminds me of an older HTC phone (in a good way), but there’s not much that separates the two.
Photography: Simon Hill
The 6.67-inch screen is he The core strengths of both the 14T and 14T Pro are the same. It has a sharp 2712 x 1220 pixels, is bright enough to view outdoors and display HDR detail at up to 4000 nits, and supports a variable refresh rate of up to 144Hz for smooth action. It also houses a responsive fingerprint sensor at the bottom.
Loud stereo speakers complete the design, and both phones have an IP68 rating, meaning they can survive a dunk. I prefer the feel of the 14T Pro, but these are big, chunky phones, so they might not be right for everyone. While they look sleek, the designs are a little boring.
Classy camera
Photography: Simon Hill
One of the main reasons to go for a Xiaomi phone is the camera hardware, and this is also where the 14T Pro shows its superiority. The Pro has a 50MP main camera with the same 1-inch image sensor as the excellent 14 Ultra and a large aperture (f/1.6). It’s paired with a 50MP telephoto shooter, which offers up to 5x optical zoom. There’s a decent 12MP ultra-wide camera, too.