Is the Xiaomi 13 worth buying for gaming in 2023?
The Xiaomi 13 was launched as the base model in the new flagship lineup by the Chinese tech giant. It packs the latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip and a revamped design to facilitate higher performance as compared to the last-gen Xiaomi 12.
Although the flagships from the company are generally coveted as all-rounders and not hardcore gaming devices, the sheer horsepower of the high-end Snapdragon chips they bundle lets them run the latest and most intense titles without hiccups.
However, the chief question is: should gamers spend over a thousand dollars (€999) on the latest Xiaomi device or should they take their business to some other smartphone manufacturer? In this article, we will analyze the performance of the phone and try to answer the question.
The Xiaomi 13 is a potent gaming device but the competition is not taking it lightly
It is worth noting that modern flagships are designed with all the workload users can throw at their smartphones. Thus, it is no wonder that the Xiaomi 13 can hit playable framerates in games like PUBG: Mobile, Call of Duty Mobile, and Genshin Impact.
A quick look at the spec sheet of the new device reveals that it is built as a high-performance device from the ground up. Although it does not pack the fastest memory and storage on the planet, the hardware is more than capable of running well-optimized games like those listed above.
| Xiaomi 12T Pro | Xiaomi 13 | |
| SoC | Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 (4nm); CPU: Octa-core (1x3.19 GHz Cortex-X2 & 3x2.75 GHz Cortex-A710 & 4x2.0 GHz Cortex-A510); GPU: Adreno 730 | Snapdragon 8 Gen 2; CPU: Octa-core (3.2 GHz, Single core, Cortex X3 + 2.8 GHz, Quad core, Cortex A715 + 2 GHz, Tri core, Cortex A510); GPU: Adreno 740 |
| Display | 6.73" 120 Hz AMOLED with LTPO; 1220 x 2712 pixels; 446 PPI | 6.36" 120 Hz AMOLED; 1080 x 2400 pixels; 414 PPI |
| Rear cameras | 200 MP + 8 MP + 2 MP | 50 MP + 10 MP + 12 MP |
| Front camera | 32 MP | 32 MP |
| Video recording support | Rear cameras: 8k 24 fps, 4k 60 fps, 1080p 240 fps; Front camera: up to 1080p 60 fps | Rear cameras: 8k 24 fps, 4k 60 fps, 1080p 120 fps Front camera: up to 1080p 30 fps |
| Battery capacity | 5000 mAh | 4500 mAh |
| Storage | up to 256 GB UFS 3.1 | 128 GB UFS 3.1, 256/512 GB UFS 4.0 |
| System memory | up to 12 GB LPDDR5 | up to 12 GB LPDDR5X |
| Screen protection | Corning Gorilla Glass 5 | Corning Gorilla Glass 5 |
| Peak brightness | 900 nits | 1200 nits |
| Dimensions and weight | 163.1 mm x 75.9 mm x 8.6 mm; 205 grams | 152.8 mm x 71.5 mm x 8.0 mm; 229 grams |
| Charging | 120W wired fast charging (0-100% in 18 minutes) | 60W wired fast charging (0-100% in 38 minutes); 50W wireless charging; 10W reverse wireless charging |
| Price | €700 (8GB+128GB) | €999 (8GB+128GB) |
Performance of the Xiaomi 13
The performance of the device in various benchmarks showcases the sheer power of the Xioami 13 device. The new 8 Gen 2 chip beats the last-gen Xiaomi 12 Pro and the 12T Pro by a solid margin in both AnTuTu and GeekBench.
| Xiaomi 12 Pro | Xiaomi 12T Pro | Xiaomi 13 | |
| AnTuTu v9 | 985,226 | 1,032,185 | 1,248,260 |
| GeekBench v5.1 | 3682 | 4081 | 5,129 |
| GFXBench | 46 fps | 65fps | 109fps |
This makes it a solid option for emulation as well. Users who buy the device can easily run some graphically intense titles like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 via a Nintendo Wii emulator. Even the last-gen Xiaomi 12 Pro can hit playable framerates above 30 FPS in the title.
Pricing
Whether users should buy the Xiaomi 13, boils down to the pricing of the smartphone. Although the phone is not yet available in the US, it is much costlier than the base model Galaxy S23, according to today's dollar conversion rates.
The S23 packs an optimized 8 Gen 2 for the Galaxy chip that performs almost the same as the costlier phone from Xiaomi. In other words, users will be saving over $250 with the Samsung flagship while getting a similar experience.
The same applies to the newly launched OnePlus 11. The device is priced at a relatively more affordable $699. This makes it over $350 cheaper than the Xiaomi 13. Although the former's flagship is slower than the Xiaomi phone, it can deliver a similar experience in most video games with the same Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip and a competent thermal design.
Thus, the competition has many more lucrative options to consider over what Xiaomi offers as its base-version flagship. Users looking to use their next high-end smartphone as a pure gaming device should keep their options open and buy a device according to their budget.
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Sohan Dasgupta