Xiaomi Black Shark 2 Review

• Overview
• Design and Build Quality
• Display
• Performance
• Software and User Interface
• Camera
• Battery Life
• Connectivity and Networking
• Additional Features
• Comparison with Other Related Phones
• Pros and Cons
• Conclusion

Overview

The Xiaomi Black Shark 2 is a gaming phone that combines powerful specs and an attractive design at an affordable price. With its sleek and light-aided design, this phone is sure to catch the eye of any gamer. The Black Shark 2 features a large and vibrant display, perfect for an immersive gaming experience. Powered by a Snapdragon 855 chipset and equipped with up to 8GB of RAM, this phone offers smooth and lag-free gaming performance. The device also boasts a long-lasting battery and a dedicated gaming mode. With its competitive pricing and impressive features, the Xiaomi Black Shark 2 is a standout choice for gamers looking for a high-performance smartphone.

Design and Build Quality

The Xiaomi Black Shark 2 boasts a design that is specifically tailored for gamers. Its aesthetics and physical appearance exude a sleek and premium look, with a robust and sturdy construction. The phone features a combination of matte and mirrored finishes, which adds a touch of sophistication to its overall design. The device is slightly bigger and heavier compared to its predecessor, but it compensates with a slimmer form factor at 8.8mm. The back panel of the Black Shark 2 includes a customizable RGB lighting logo, which enhances its gaming-focused design. The ergonomics of the phone are well thought out, providing a comfortable grip during long gaming sessions. The placement of buttons and controls is intuitive, allowing for easy access and smooth gameplay. The bezels are minimal, maximizing the screen real estate for an immersive gaming experience. The build quality of the Black Shark 2 is commendable, with the device feeling solid and durable in hand. Overall, the Xiaomi Black Shark 2 excels in its design and build, offering gamers a phone that not only performs well but also looks and feels premium.

Display

The Xiaomi Black Shark 2 boasts a 6.39-inch AMOLED display with a 1,080 x 2,340 resolution. This screen size provides ample real estate for immersive gaming and multimedia experiences. The display offers vibrant colors and deep blacks, thanks to the OLED technology utilized. The color accuracy and vibrancy are impressive, making visuals pop on the screen.

With Gorilla Glass protection, the display is safeguarded against scratches and minor impacts. The pixel density is also decent, ensuring sharp and detailed visuals. The Black Shark 2 features a 90Hz refresh rate, which contributes to a smooth and fluid user experience, particularly during gaming sessions.

The display offers excellent brightness levels, making it easy to view content even in bright outdoor conditions. The viewing angles are wide, ensuring that the visuals remain vivid and clear when viewed from different angles.

To enhance usability, the Black Shark 2 features touch responsiveness, allowing for precise and accurate input during gaming or general usage. It also includes features like adaptive brightness and a blue light filter, which help reduce eye strain during extended usage.

Overall, the Xiaomi Black Shark 2 delivers an impressive display that is well-suited for gaming and multimedia consumption. The combination of a large AMOLED screen, high resolution, vibrant colors, and smooth refresh rate make for an enjoyable visual experience.

Performance

The Xiaomi Black Shark 2 delivers impressive performance thanks to its powerful chipset and GPU. Equipped with a Snapdragon 855 chipset and Adreno 640 GPU, this gaming phone is designed to handle demanding games and multitasking with ease. In CPU benchmarks, the Black Shark 2 consistently achieves top scores, showcasing its processor's efficiency and performance.

When it comes to gaming capabilities, the Black Shark 2 shines. Its GPU benchmarks demonstrate exceptional graphics scores, ensuring a smooth and immersive gaming experience. The device handles even the most demanding games, such as PUBG Mobile and Call of Duty: Mobile, with ease. Gamers can expect lag-free performance and a high frame rate, providing a competitive edge in intense gameplay sessions.

In addition to gaming performance, the Black Shark 2 excels in overall system optimization. App loading speeds are fast, ensuring quick access to games and applications. The device offers a smooth user experience with minimal lag or slowdown, even during multitasking.

Thermal management is a crucial aspect of gaming phones, and the Black Shark 2 does not disappoint. Its system is optimized to manage heat efficiently, keeping the device cool during extended gaming sessions. This ensures consistent performance without any thermal throttling.

To analyze the performance of the Black Shark 2, benchmark tests and scores can provide valuable insights. Synthetic benchmarks consistently showcase the device's capabilities and performance metrics. Gaming benchmarks further highlight the phone's gaming prowess, indicating its ability to handle demanding titles with high graphics settings.

Overall, the Xiaomi Black Shark 2 delivers exceptional performance for gaming and everyday usage. Its powerful chipset, efficient GPU, and optimized system ensure a smooth and lag-free experience. Whether you're a hardcore gamer or a multitasking enthusiast, the Black Shark 2 offers the performance you need to stay ahead.

Software and User Interface

The Xiaomi Black Shark 2 runs on the Android operating system, specifically Android 9.0 Pie. This ensures that users have access to the latest features and security updates. The software on the Black Shark 2 is highly customizable, allowing users to personalize their gaming experience. The device comes with a gaming center called Shark Space, which optimizes the phone's settings for gaming and provides a distraction-free gaming environment. Additionally, the phone has a user-friendly interface that is easy to navigate, making it convenient for users to access their favorite apps and settings. The Black Shark 2 also comes with a number of pre-installed apps, some of which are specifically designed for gaming. While these apps enhance the gaming experience, some users may find them to be bloatware if they don't use them frequently. Overall, the software on the Xiaomi Black Shark 2 offers a smooth and intuitive user experience, with a focus on gaming performance and customization options.

Camera

The Xiaomi Black Shark 2 is equipped with a dual-camera setup that offers versatile photography capabilities. The primary rear camera boasts a 48-megapixel sensor, which allows for capturing detailed and high-resolution images. It is complemented by a 12-megapixel secondary sensor. The camera's aperture and focal length are not specified, but the device is capable of capturing sharp and vibrant images with natural colors.

In terms of image quality, the Black Shark 2 performs well in daylight photography, producing images with good dynamic range and sharpness. The camera also features image stabilization, which helps to reduce blur and shake, resulting in clearer shots.

When it comes to low-light performance and night photography, the Black Shark 2 utilizes noise reduction techniques to improve image quality in challenging lighting conditions. The device also offers a dedicated night mode, which further enhances low-light sensitivity and reduces noise for better night-time shots.

The camera of the Black Shark 2 comes with various modes and features, including portrait mode, HDR, panorama mode, and pro mode. It also incorporates AI scene recognition, which automatically adjusts settings based on the subject being captured.

In terms of video recording capabilities, the Black Shark 2 can shoot 4K videos, delivering high-resolution footage. Video stabilization ensures smoother and shake-free videos, while slow-motion and time-lapse options allow for creative video capture. The device supports multiple video formats to suit different preferences.

Overall, the Xiaomi Black Shark 2 offers a capable camera system with high megapixels, good image quality in both daylight and low-light conditions, and a range of features and modes to enhance the photography and videography experience.

Battery Life

The Xiaomi Black Shark 2 comes with a 4000mAh battery, which offers good battery life for gaming sessions and everyday usage. The battery capacity is sufficient to handle extended gaming sessions without worrying about running out of power quickly. Additionally, the device supports 27W fast charging, allowing for quick refueling when the battery is low. The fast charging technology ensures that you can get back to gaming or using your phone in no time. Although the Black Shark 2 does not have wireless charging capabilities, the fast charging option makes up for it. The battery optimization features and power efficiency of the phone help in maximizing battery performance and ensuring longer battery endurance. Overall, the Xiaomi Black Shark 2 offers a reliable battery performance that can keep up with your gaming and usage needs.

Connectivity and Networking

The connectivity options on the Xiaomi Black Shark 2 are comprehensive, providing users with a range of features to stay connected. The phone supports 4G LTE network compatibility, ensuring fast data speeds for browsing and gaming. It also has dual SIM functionality, allowing users to use two SIM cards simultaneously.

In terms of wireless connectivity, the Black Shark 2 supports Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac standards, ensuring a fast and stable internet connection. It also has Bluetooth 5.0, which offers improved range and faster data transfer speeds compared to previous versions. NFC is also present, allowing users to conveniently make mobile payments or share files with other NFC-enabled devices.

For charging and data transfer, the Black Shark 2 features a USB-C port, which is becoming the standard for modern smartphones. This allows for fast charging and high-speed data transfer.

In terms of navigation, the phone has GPS, which provides accurate location services for mapping and navigation applications.

Overall, the Xiaomi Black Shark 2 offers a wide range of connectivity options including 4G LTE, dual SIM, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, USB-C, and GPS, ensuring that users can stay connected and enjoy fast data speeds and convenient features like mobile payments and file sharing.

Additional Features

Comparison with Other Related Phones

When comparing the Xiaomi Black Shark 2 with other related gadgets in the market, it becomes clear that it offers a strong competition at an affordable price. One of its main competitors is the ASUS ROG Phone 2, which also targets gamers with its powerful specifications and gaming-focused design. Both phones feature high-performance hardware, including Snapdragon 855 processors and large amounts of RAM, ensuring smooth gaming experiences. However, the Black Shark 2 stands out with its more affordable pricing, making it a more cost-effective option for gamers.

Another device to consider is the Razer Phone 2, which also caters to gamers with its high refresh rate display and powerful performance. While the Razer Phone 2 offers a sleek design and a vibrant display, the Black Shark 2 provides a more aggressive and unique design with its lighting effects and overall build. In terms of pricing, the Black Shark 2 once again offers a better value for money.

When compared to mainstream flagship phones like the Samsung Galaxy S10 or iPhone 11, the Black Shark 2 may not have the same level of brand recognition or extensive camera capabilities. However, it excels in gaming performance and offers a dedicated gaming mode, liquid cooling system, and additional gaming accessories.

Overall, the Xiaomi Black Shark 2 competes well in the market with its powerful specifications, gaming-focused design, and affordable pricing. It may not have the same level of recognition as some mainstream flagship phones, but it offers a more cost-effective option for gamers who prioritize performance over other features.

Pros and Cons

Conclusion

Conclusion: The Xiaomi Black Shark 2 is a compelling gaming phone that offers impressive performance and a sleek design. With its powerful Snapdragon 855 chipset, ample storage, and dedicated gaming features, it delivers a smooth gaming experience. The display is vibrant and the battery life is commendable, ensuring uninterrupted gameplay. However, the phone is on the heavier side and lacks some features like expandable storage and a headphone jack. Overall, the Black Shark 2 is a great option for gamers who prioritize performance and affordability. While it may not be the best choice for everyday users, it definitely offers excellent value for its price.