24 hours with Xiaomi 14 Civi: Here are our first impressions

Xiaomi’s latest entry among its upper-mid-range smartphones in India is the Xiaomi 14 Civi, a device that brings the fan-favourite Civi series to India for the first time. However, unlike the China market, where the Civi series is a separate lineup, the phone is part of the Xiaomi 14 series in India.  

Confusing as it (usually) is with Xiaomi devices, the new Xiaomi 14 Civi packs some interesting features and great specifications for its price. We had the chance to check the phone out and here’s what we think about it so far.  

Xiaomi 14 Civi design

One of the highlights of the Xiaomi 14 Civi is the premium design, and this is evident from the moment you pick the device up. The Civi is beyond just a thin phone. It is equally balanced in weight, has just enough curves around the edges, and metallic sides. All this makes the phone look great, but it also feels great in the hand.  

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The Xiaomi 14 Civi also has a display that curves not just on the sides, but also on the top and bottom. This allows those seamless gestures to now be made on swipes from the bottom and top also. Although the flat pre-applied screen protector here doesn’t do the display justice.   

While the Matcha Green colour variant of the phone is hogging the limelight, the subtle Cruise Blue isn’t too bad either. The phone also comes in a third Shadow Black for those who like a stealthier look on their phones.  

The phone also looks strikingly similar to the iPhone 15 series from the front thanks to a pill-shaped notch that now houses two front cameras – something very few phones have managed to pull off. Remember the original OnePlus Nord and the Poco X2? 

Xiaomi 14 Civi display

Speaking of the display, the Xiaomi 14 Civi tosses in a super bright 1.5K AMOLED panel. This display is promising and comes with multiple certifications including HDR10+ and Dolby Vision Atmos, in addition to 120Hz refresh rate and 3,000 nits of peak brightness. 

The screen also feels super tall, even for a phone this size, and may require some getting used to, especially if you’re coming from a smaller device. The colours however, look very vibrant, and we assume the device should be great for media consumption, some Netflix or even gaming.  

Xiaomi 14 Civi performance

While we haven’t had enough time to completely put the Xiaomi 14 Civi through its paces, the phone unsurprisingly, feels very snappy to use. Apart from transitioning between menus and apps, even other, often overlooked elements of the phone added to its premium feel.  

The haptic motor, was quite strong and made typing on the phone very enjoyable, also triggering a small and subtle vibration when you long pressed on apps and options throughout the user interface. 

The stereo speakers were well balanced, and were quite loud, although the sound didn’t feel as full and bassy as we’d like it to be. Lastly, the under-display fingerprint sensor was also quick to set up and accurate while unlocking the phone.  

Xiaomi 14 Civi cameras

The Leica partnership on the phone’s cameras is a big part of the Xiaomi 14 Civi, and is actually where the Civi moniker comes from, standing for ‘Cinematic Vision’. The phone also comes with five cameras in total – three on the back and two on the front. 

On paper, this is a great setup. There’s a 25mm 50MP Leica Summilux main camera, a 15mm 12MP ultrawide camera, and a third 50mm 50MP 2x telephoto lens for portraits. There are also two 32MP front cameras offering wide and ultrawide frames for when you need to cram more people into the group selfie.  

Other features to look forward to include 4K recording on all rear cameras, as well as multiple Leica filters for aesthetically composed photos, all of which we will be trying out in the coming days.  

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Those are our immediate thoughts on the Xiaomi 14 Civi. We will be testing out the phone’s general and camera performance, gaming ability and battery life among other aspects over the coming days, so stay tuned to Unboxed by Croma for a detailed review.  

Update: After using the Xiaomi 14 Civi for longer, we have a lot more to say about the device. Check it out in our full Xiaomi 14 Civi review.