There is now a new powerful alternative to Qualcomm and MediaTek chipsets. The Chinese mobile vendor Xiaomi in partnership with Pinecone has built its first in-house chipset called Surge S1. To have a taste of its powerful chipset, the company has launched Xiaomi Mi 5c android smartphone. On a quick glance, the mobile features Surge S1 processor, FHD display, 3GB RAM, 64GB of internal storage and 4G LTE with VoLTE support.
Surge S1 octa-core high-performance processor
Before talking about the Mi 5c smartphone, we need to go deep into details of the first chipset from Xiaomi. The Surge S1 is an octa-core processor with four high-performance ARM Cortex A53 cores clocked at 2.2GHz and the next four power-efficient ARM Cortex A53 cores clocked at 1.4GHz. It’s build using TSMC’s 28nm HPc process technology offering balanced performance and power efficiency. The chipset packs Mali-T860 quad-core GPU which offers almost 40 percent GPU efficiency improvement compared to the older Mali-T760.
The chipset is equipped with a 32-bit high-performance DSP for voice processing and supports VoLTE for HD voice and video calls. It also carries a 14-bit dual ISP for enhanced image processing capabilities. With Surge ISP algorithm the camera light sensitivity is improved by more than 150 percent.
Measuring through benchmarks, the Surge S1 fairs well when compared with the 14nm Snapdragon 625 and MediaTek Helio P10 on Geekbench 4.0 CPU multi-core benchmark test. In GFXBench Manhattan off-screen benchmark the chipset scores almost double compared to other chipsets. The chipset fairs further with an Antutu score of 64,817.
Design and Power
Coming back to the Xiaomi Mi 5c, the mobile got a metal unibody design with just 7.09mm thin and weighing 135g. For a stylish look, the mobile comes in three colour options – Rose gold, Gold and Black. The mobile flaunts a 5.15-inch LED 1920×1080 JDI display with a pixel density of 428 ppi. Under the hood, the mobile is powered by Xiaomi’s in-house Surge S1 octa-core processor coupled with 3GB of RAM. For storing your media contents the mobile comes packed with 64GB of EMMC5.0 internal storage.
Photography and Connectivity
The Xiaomi Mi 5c comes with a 12-megapixel camera on the back. It features f/2.2 aperture, single-frame HDR, PDAF phase focusing and 27 mm wide angle lens. The 14-bit dual-core ISP processor packed in the Surge S1 brings chip-level enhancement to your photos. The processor also reduces the nose level on pictures using its noise reduction algorithm.
On the front for selfie addicts, the mobile carries an 8-megapixel camera. It features f/2.2 aperture and 27mm wide-angle lens. The camera app built-in comes with second-generation 36 intelligent beauty modes, allowing you to take the perfect selfie.
For connectivity, the Xiaomi Mi 5c comes with dual-SIM capability. The mobile has 4G LTE network option that supports all 4G bands in India. The mobile also supports VoLTE for HD voice and video calls. Other connectivity options include 3G, 2G, dual-band WiFi, and Bluetooth 4.1. For extra security, the mobile carries a fingerprint sensor which is embedded on to the front home button. The mobile runs on Android 7.1.1 Nougat with MIUI 8 skin over the top. Finally, the whole phone is fuelled with a 2,860mAh battery that also supports fast charging.
Xiaomi has not yet announced when the Mi 5c will come to India. The mobile is retailing for 1499 Chinese Yua or approximately Rs 14,600.