Xiaomi’s flagship 15 series won’t launch in most parts of the world until early 2025. Meanwhile, the 14 series is getting a mid-year update in the form of the 14T and 14T Pro, neither of which have much to do with the Xiaomi 14 or 14 Ultra. The Chinese manufacturer overtook Apple in August to become the world’s second-largest smartphone brand by sales, and its broad, if slightly confusing, product line is no doubt one of the reasons why.
The T-series packs some high-end features from Xiaomi’s flagship phones, but typically omits a few to keep the price down. The 14T and 14T Pro are practically twins, so it might be hard to spot the differences, but there are some subtle improvements that justify the higher price of the 14T Pro. Both phones come with Google services and are available in the UK and across Europe, but not officially in the US.
Good but boring
At first glance, it’d be hard to tell the 14T from the 14T Pro. They’re super-large phones with 6.67-inch screens, relatively thick and flat frames, a textured power button below the volume rockers, and four camera lenses (one is a flash) in a stepped, boxy module on the back. In your hand, you immediately feel the heft of the Pro, which is heavier and more metallic with a slightly curved back (the 14T has a flat back).
The only other noticeable design difference is the color. Both come in blue, black, and gray, but the 14T comes in lemon green. Why are fun colors always reserved for cheap phones? The 14T Pro feels better and reminds me of older HTC phones (in a good way), but there’s not enough difference to distinguish the two.
Photo: Simon Hill
The 6.67-inch display is the highlight of the 14T and 14T Pro and is the same on both. It’s crisp at 2,712 x 1,220 pixels, easy to view outdoors, bright enough to show HDR details at up to 4,000 nits, and supports a variable refresh rate of up to 144Hz for smooth navigation. It also has a responsive fingerprint sensor at the bottom.
Loud enough stereo speakers round out the design, and both phones are IP68 rated, meaning they can survive being submerged in water. I like the feel of the 14T Pro, but these are big, chunky phones, so they might not be for everyone. The design is a bit boring, though the look is classy.
Classy camera
Photo: Simon Hill
One of the main reasons to choose a Xiaomi phone is its camera hardware, and this is where the 14T Pro excels. The Pro has a 50MP main camera with the same 1-inch image sensor and large aperture (f/1.6) as the excellent 14 Ultra. It’s paired with a 50MP telephoto camera, allowing up to 5x optical zoom, and there’s also a 12MP ultra-wide-angle camera.
