Full review of the Xiaomi Mi TV P1 55 "2021 (Android TV)

It is a mid-range 4K LED that comes with interesting features such as HDR 10 PLUS, Dolby Vision and Android TV at a very groundbreaking price compared to the competition.

It is a television that is well protected in its box, in which we find several bags with all the accessories. From the manuals or guide with the respective guarantee against any damage or inconvenience, to the power cable and two legs that act as a support if we want to place it on a table or flat surface.

Unboxing

We have the control that is elongated and similar to the renowned LG Magic remote. With the numbers at the top and the settings and inputs right there.

Below we have the Google Assistant button for voice command and on the sides the shortcuts to Netflix and Amazaon Prime Video.

In the middle of the command we have the crosshead to navigate through the interface and below this we find the reverse button and the accesses to Android TV and Pod bolt, the brand's own system.

So we have two interfaces on the same TV, something very interesting about which we will talk later.

Finally, we have the volume up and down, up and down, exit and mute buttons. In summary, it is a very comfortable and easy to handle remote control, with a lightweight being very stylish and elegant.

When taking the TV out of the box, the vinyl protected with a full cover against scratches and other inconveniences draws attention.

Design and connectivity

This television at first glance is very attractive with a design with very thin frames or bezels of approximately 1 cm, with a thickness that is more remarkable 9 cm and very contained dimensions for a 55-inch television.

If we see it from afar, it has a whole pint of a premium high-end TV, since its front is very attractive.

But if we already touch it, we realize that Xiaomi saved costs by using plastic as the main material. So we have a dark plastic with a gray tint, both on the frames and on the back and on the bracket.

However, it is not a poor quality plastic at all, and the important thing is that the design is great. It looks like a top of the range and feels very solid and well-built, in the end that is what we are left with, because nobody is going to touch our television, and we will always be in front of the screen taking advantage of that beauty from the front.

It should be noted that the speakers are at the bottom; As for cables and connectivity, in the back we find the power connector on the right side arranged so that the cable does not protrude backwards, in case we hang the TV on the wall.

On the left side we have all the posts, specifically three HDMI ports with automatic low latency, and they are all 2.0.

Continuing with the ports we also have two USB 2.0, a 3.5 headphone jack and pointing down, we have a 100 MB Ethernet, an RSA digital optical audio output and an antenna connector. It is worth mentioning that the Wi-Fi is dual-band, and the Bluetooth is 5.0.

It is a very complete connectivity in general, including a headphone jack, something unusual for a television.

Moving on to the interface, we find Android TV 10, a system that runs under a quad-core MediaTED processor and a Mali G52 GPU with 2 GB of RAM and 16 GB of internal storage.

A very good configuration to give us a great rescaling of the contents in SD and HD with a very fluid performance in general.

We have a world of possibilities in terms of applications of all categories, from the best known in streaming and entertainment to games and more.

Being able to even use the Google or Alexa assistant to search everything more easily if we wish. This is the main advantage of this system over the competition, being a complete entertainment center for the family.

Although we already talked about fluidity and stability, I must say that it moves with ease, but having tried the latest from Samsung and LG, it is a bit below in terms of speed and minimalism, since moving from one application to another application It is not so immediate it does not leave us where we were. But in the end it is about simple details if we want to get very demanding.

Something that differentiates this Android TV from the others is that we have Path world or webs. An interface developed by Xiaomi, which allows us to access applications and multiple multimedia content of the different services to which the brand is associated.

Being very minimalist and simple, even more than Android TV itself, so it is undoubtedly a great added value for those who want another alternative.

The best thing is that we can switch from one system to another with just one button on the remote, so there is no problem in this regard.

Image Features

It is a UEA type ET LED panel manufactured by TCL and has features such as 8-bit color depth, 60Hz native refresh rate, and very important technologies such as HDR 10 Plus and Dolby Vision.

Compared to other competitive models in the same price range, it takes a great advantage by including these two formats. Something unusual in this range and that gives great added value with dynamic metadata and the best color reproduction depending on the content we are watching.

Another point that is very differentiating is the issue of movement management or smoothing. In this model it outperforms most of the competition by delivering near high-end performance.

Fluency is very good and that impacts a lot on a day-to-day basis. So what you want is to know the possibilities that this television offers us to adjust the image, we go to the settings and select device preferences where we will find absolutely everything.

From the date, time, languages, inputs, energy saving and others, to what interests us, which is the image.

Entering here we can change each parameter manually or simply the preferred image mode, depending on the content we are watching, whether it is live, sport or standard.

We can also change the color temperature to cool or warm and the video smoothing to light or soft.

Finally, we have an advanced video option where we can select the color space, change the gamut, the color tone, manipulate the noise reduction and activate or deactivate the adaptive luma control and the local contrast control.

As for color calibration and others there are many possibilities to customize. So depending on the environment in which you find yourself, the type of content you see and the tastes you have, you can fiddle around until you reach the result that most visually impacts you.

Great contrast and blacks

It has a VA type LED panel, offers a great contrast ratio and deep blacks. Certainly without reaching the purest level like OLEDs, but reaching a level good enough for a television in its range.

It is an ideal panel to locate a closed environment where not much sunlight enters, since it stands out at night, where its remarkable contrast ratio shines, and it is great to be able to see content in this type of scenario.

Although content with dark backgrounds like most LEDs is somewhat clubbing or blooming. Which the camera makes it look more remarkable, because in reality it does not bother practically anything, but it is there.

In some black areas we have white areas, something that of course can also vary between units, since this is like a lottery and there are some that are more noticeable than others.

Acceptable angles and reflections

One of the Achilles heels of VA panel televisions is the viewing angles, which tend to be simply smaller than IPS panel televisions.

However, in this field this television is very acceptable, since only after 40º we begin to notice how the colors degrade slightly.

Especially if we are in an open room, since in low light it is hardly noticeable. In addition to the above, the reflection management is not the best, so it does not combat glare greatly.

That is why it is a good television to place in a room and not in rooms with wide seats, since its main virtues shine through in the first stage.

Not with this I mean that it cannot be located in a room, since it is possible as long as they are with curtains or blinds to reduce sunlight.

Since added to the viewing angles and the reflex handling, the brightness without being bad, is not one of its main strengths.

Moderate brightness

Speaking of brightness, this Mi TV has a moderate and understandable brightness for its range. Xiaomi does not give the exact figure in this section, but what has been investigated in specialized sites we can reach up to a peak of approximately 350 nits.

Something totally reasonable for a television in its range and price range. In addition, in the experience both day and night watching all kinds of content from the front, everything could be seen perfectly.

In large part thanks to the fact that the brightness is distributed greatly. We have the ability to customize everything to our liking to improve the experience.

Added that the reproduction of HDR content improves the contrast by slightly raising the brightness and the color fidelity is somewhat higher than in non-HDR content.

Decent color gamut

Regarding the colors of this panel, say that according to the brand we have a color gamut of 94% s & p 3. So we are talking about a very outstanding performance in this section.

With very accurate, vivid colors and a gradient to view HDR content. As the details in the sky, skin tones and shadows stand out a lot and say what this display is capable of offering.

Video Game

We have HDMI 2.0 ports with low latency auto mode but no variable refresh rate. It has a response time of 15 milliseconds, a slightly high number.

But with which it is possible to play perfectly and have a good time. Although you are looking to play competitive games in shooting games and the like, this TV is not ideal.

Better to look for lower latency. The rest of the gaming experience is very balanced and enriching, since the performance control is good, the response time is also good, and we can take advantage of the consoles that support the Dolby Vision format.

Sound that could be improved

Finally, we must talk about the sound, and that is that we have two speakers of 10 watts each with something transcendental, the Dolby audio certification of both DTS HD.

We say transcendental, because many brands have stopped including the ability to decode DTS sound in their models. So this TV is very complete in that sense.

This is usually one of the weak points in most entry-level and mid-range televisions. In this case, it is not the exception, because on a daily basis the quality is from acceptable to outstanding.

Since with a moderate volume you can enjoy a great movie or song with a good level of low frequencies and acceptable medium and high frequencies.

Especially in a medium to small room. If we increase the volume and the distortion increases and damages the experience a bit, so it is not recommended.

Fortunately, the audio can always be improved with a good bar or home theater, so if you are very demanding, you can always solve it.

Conclusions.

A highly recommended panel is noted for a great value for money, an approximate price of $600 that may vary depending on the market and that can be obtained even cheaper with some discount.

For that price, it is a tough monster to beat, as it has very groundbreaking characteristics in general.

The design is very remarkable, the front has very tiny frames that give it a high-end look. It comes with HDR 10 plus and Dolby Vision, the two best HDR formats on the market.

So we can consume 4K content in a totally spectacular way on the different streaming platforms.

The contrast gives a great boost to the TV in general and makes it totally shine with all kinds of content, be it movies, series, sports and more. It just looks spectacular indoors in the evening and at night.

It has two operating systems that have good hardware capable of moving everything with great fluidity and others, and that gives us that variety of having Android TV 10 and Pod world, which is a brand's own system and that will surely be polishing more and more.

So we give this television a 10 out of 10 in this sense, since there are many applications that we can download and many, the variety of tasks that we can enhance with it, through its Android system.

Of its disadvantages we can say that it lacks some brightness, that makes it an ideal television to put in an open room so that the sun hits it directly.

Another disadvantage is the issue of viewing angles and reflex handling, and we already know that in wide seats we can already see content perfectly from an angle, due to which we will lose detail.

Added to the reflection issue that does not combat glare well, and therefore it is better to see content centered and that does not hit the sunlight directly.

The sound can be totally improved, which can be improved by buying a sound bar. But you cannot turn the volume up to the maximum, as it begins to have distortion.

It is enjoyable in medium or small environments, with medium-high volume where the experience becomes very decent.