Entertainment

Xiaomi Mi TV P1: Home cinema for the budget-conscious

A 4K HDR Android TV you can definitely afford

Published

October 6, 2021

Vincenz

I don’t want to sound like I’m an ultimate cheapskate, but I guess I kind of belong in that category as I always try and see things on-sale or those lower than their Suggested Retail Pricing.

Way back in May 2021, I was looking for an Android TV within my PhP 20,000 to 25,000 (US$ 400 – US$ 500) budget. Xiaomi’s Mi TV was one of them — the Mi LED TV 4S to be exact. But upon knowing that units bought from China with a global ROM still doesn’t support Netflix, I decided to find another (and might even be a better) alternative.

Several months later, Xiaomi announced the Mi TV P1 series — and finally a follow-up to the Mi TV 4A series almost three years ago.

Even though it’s been a while ever since I purchased that other Android TV with my hard-earned money, I still accepted this review unit to test and know the feats and defeats of the Mi TV P1 as a new Android TV in this vast TV market.

A design so tacky and lacks variety

Just a static long light indicator when it’s powered on

The problem with TV nowadays is that, most of them look similar with their plasticky build. If you’re looking for a premium-looking TV on a tight budget, sorry to break it to you, but the Mi TV P1 is entirely made out of plastic. From its side bezels, chin, and even the legs/stand, they’re all in the same material and a coating that’s oh-so-glossy.

It’s almost as glossy as the protective film it came with

The panel is glossy too. You shouldn’t place this directly parallel to your window or it might bother you when watching content that are less bright or dark.

Chaehyun is the definition of a human being with an angelic voice #김채현_데뷔하자

Even the large window covered with curtains at the left side of our living room wasn’t safe from such distraction.

Not the most unique stand design ever

Not gonna lie, it looked and felt cheap. There’s literally no excuse for it being a “budget” TV. Compared to the Android TV I own at the same price point, it’s still able to have a metallic bottom bezel and aluminum stands without reducing most of the features that the Mi TV P1 possesses.

Attaching these was truly a horrifying experience

Speaking of stand, it took me around ten minutes thinking how to attach both legs. The screw holes were kind of confusing and misleading as well as the form of each leg. Instructions in the user manual about attaching both TV leg stands was vague so I have to research further online. It’s honestly one of my worst experiences of attaching screws to a product.

Sufficient ports and connections

The Mi TV P1 has a Composite In (AV), two USB-A ports, and three HDMI ports — one with eARC support. The 32-inch version has lesser though. Other ports you might be curious to know are Ethernet Port, CI Slot, Optical Digital Audio Out, and a 3.5mm headphone jack.

For wireless connectivity, the Mi TV P1 has a reliable Wi-Fi connection as it not only supports the 2.4GHz band, but the faster 5GHz band as well. That’s something my other TV doesn’t have.

There’s even the faster and latency-less Bluetooth 5.0 support. And with the bundled 360 Bluetooth remote, I can still turn off the TV even when I’m sitting and eating from the kitchen area or when I need to go to the bathroom without ever pointing at the TV itself.

Not sure if it’s just my muscle memory but the remote of the Xiaomi Mi TV P1 confuses me — and might be the same to some future users.

If you’re a heavy Android user, the default back key of smartphones is placed at the left side rather than the middle. Xiaomi could’ve just switched the button placements. They could’ve even done the same to the “O” (home) button by placing it in the middle instead.

Some button controls would’ve made more sense too if “CC”, “EPG”, “INFO”, and that “dot” weren’t placed there. And if you’re right-handed like I am, pressing the power button requires some reach as it’s placed on the upper left part instead of right.

The power of Android TV

ICYMI, the Xiaomi Mi TV P1 runs Android TV. On paper, it runs a MediaTek 9611 chipset paired with 2GB of memory and 16GB of internal storage. Those are actually enough for running and storing TV-limited Android apps that can be downloaded through the Google Play Store.

While YouTube, Netflix, and Prime Video were already installed upon first use, there are also other streaming apps you can download such as iQiyi, WeTV, Viu, Crunchyroll, HBO Go, TED, and more.

As you were already spoiled in the earlier section, the Mi TV P1 supports Google Assistant. This reduces the hassle and sore of typing each letter through the remote’s D-pad when searching content across all apps.

Google Assistant indicator

On the bottom part of that odd bar below the Mi TV P1’s chin, there’s a switch to turn on (or off) the far-field microphones of the TV.

Google Assistant prompt

This enables you to use Google Assistant even when you’re roaming another area in your house. So yeah, no to pointing your mouth to the remote. People with a loud speaking voice will benefit this feature the most.

More power with Chromecast

Too lazy to type? Or you just don’t want to bother your family members when you activate Google Assistant? Well, your other option is to share content from your phone to the TV — and that’s thanks to its built-in Chromecast feature.

Xiaomi Mi TV P1

Whether you’re using an iPhone or an Android, you shouldn’t worry at all as Chromecast supports both systems.

Other than sharing content from YouTube, you can also share and stream music on a bigger screen as long as Spotify is downloaded on both devices.

Spotify being sus by cutting both Heejin and Olivia Hye out of the screen 🙄

Purely immersive

Nowadays, most Netflix titles and YouTube content come with an ultra-wide 21:9 ratio (or even in a 2.39:1 anamorphic ratio). In layman’s term, those are simply the black bars you see when watching videos in your fullscreen smartphones or standard monitors. But thanks to its slim bezels, watching on the Xiaomi Mi TV P1 felt immersive — especially if you’re watching just several meters away from the TV.

Hong Banjang just being charismatic over Yoon Chigwa #HeadOverHeels

Watching series such as Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha honestly felt more immersive as if I’m sitting along with the characters.

Isa’s visuals pops even more with this vibrant TV

Even STAYC’s Stereotype music video, despite its black bars, still made me enjoy its stunning visuals and cinematography (as well as vocals, musical arrangement, and choreography).

Speaking of pure, the “Fate” performance from Girls Planet 999 made me cry with its pureness in beauty paired with superiority in choreography

What more if it’s a 16:9 content? Whether it’s in 4K UHD or just Full HD 1080p resolution, your eyes will still enjoy every frame of what you’re watching especially if its displayed in a large screen a la cinema.

My feels for Tzuyu are definitely not over when watching and listening to #TheFeels

A 4K 16:9 content is more pleasing to look at especially with its sharp and crisp details. TWICE’s The Feels is a testament to that.

If you’re curious about sound quality. It’s double 10W speakers are loud with enough bass and clarity. But don’t expect cinema-grade audio experience even with Dolby Audio and DTS-HD support. But if you’re really into that cinema-grade experience. you still need to get at least a soundbar or invest on a better surround sound system (in which I think budget-conscious users care less about).

Excellent display for a budget TV

aespa’s Karina is a living goddess. Periodt. Periodism.

Apart from having an almost edge-to-edge 4K display, the Mi TV P1 also boasts HDR10+ support for displaying picture-perfect content with an even wider range of colors in the spectrum.

This isn’t for everyone but just in case someone wants to know, you can choose between various Color Spaces ranging from Standard and Native, to Adobe RGB, DCI-P3, BenQ’s BT.2020, and ITU-R’s BT.709 color gamut.

If you go and specifically search for 4K HDR content on YouTube, the Xiaomi Mi TV P1 will be able to handle and display that content to you with no frills. That’s something other TVs, monitors, and even smartphones can’t display at all.

To make the display even better, it also has Dolby Vision apart from HDR10+. For this particular instance: Squid Game, which is Netflix’s hottest series right now, shows the Dolby Vision indicator right next to its parental rating info.

Xiaomi Mi TV P1

Not only does it show better color accuracy and output with HDR10+, this Dolby Vision feature is also able to display better dynamic range with the right amount of contrast, highlights, and shadows.

Loco might just be Yuna’s era

One noticeable aspect of this TV is the inclusion of Motion Smoothing feature out of the box that my other Android TV doesn’t have. It’s honestly a feast for the eyes but probably not everyone’s cup of tea. By default, it’s set to Standard but can be turned off.

Pretty decent for gaming, too

While the Mi TV P1 has only a 60Hz panel, playing on it still felt true-to-life. With the 55-incher that I have, details are still clear and sharp even if my PS4 Slim only supports a maximum display resolution of 1080p. With one port that supports HDMI 2.1 / eARC, people who spent their fortune on a PlayStation 5 (PS5) and are considering a less-expensive smart TV, I’m sure bumping it over 1080p will work.

One thing to keep in mind if you’re a sucker for ultra-smooth and seamless gameplay, the Mi TV P1 doesn’t do its Motion Smoothing magic — at least on the PS4 itself. It doesn’t even work on the console’s UI.

Not a biggie but some might consider that as a buying point. There are also two more limitations that I’ll talk more at the latter part of this review.

Xiaomi Mi TV P1

Overall, gaming on the Mi TV P1 is pretty decent for casual and gamers on a limited budget. You get to enjoy its big screen size — which still depends on the model you’ll buy and your distance from the TV.

Another thing, I tested playing games for hours starting with Watch Dogs: Legion, then Gran Turismo, Crash Team Racing, and even several Tekken 7 but my eyes haven’t strained at all.

Xiaomi Mi TV P1

The best part is that, I’ve successfully finished all those games thanks to the Mi TV P1’s display superiority.

Some good things have bad sides, too

Aside from rants about its design and remote control, there are other things I’ve encountered during my time with this smart Android TV.

1st: PatchWall isn’t ready for the country yet

While PatchWall was already introduced to Mi TV users in India, Indonesia, and other parts of the globe, it’s unfortunately not ready in the Philippines just yet.

Xiaomi Mi TV P1

For those who aren’t familiar, PatchWall is Xiaomi’s special launcher that has a better UI over the stock Android TV experience. But it not being ready for the Philippine market further proves my point that the “Mi” button on the remote control is pretty useless as that one opens up PatchWall.

2nd: HDR isn’t supported for all devices

As ironic as it gets, this 4K HDR TV has some HDR limitations.

Xiaomi Mi TV P1

It may not be a huge deal to most but for myself who got accustomed with my own Android TV being able to display HDR even when a PlayStation 4 is hooked up, it’s such a disappointment that the Mi TV P1 doesn’t offer that HDR compatibility to my gaming console. I even tried hooking up the HDMI cable to each HDMI port but to no avail.

3rd: Display settings cannot be accessed on other HDMI devices as well

Xiaomi Mi TV P1

As I was trying to shoot more photos of the TV while using the PS4, I was surprised that pressing the “Settings” button doesn’t reveal the Device Preferences sidebar. Not only can I not adjust the brightness and backlight level, I also can’t pick a certain picture mode that might suit the game better. What a total waste.

Is the Xiaomi Mi TV P1 your GadgetMatch?

If you’re all in for the Mi TV P1’s excellence in image quality and immersiveness without ever minding its lackluster aesthetic and limitations in HDR support and PatchWall, the Mi TV P1 is a TV I can recommend. This product goes well for those who just recently moved to a new home and wants a TV that’s just right for their budget.

Xiaomi Mi TV P1

The good stuff of this Android TV still weigh more than the compromises mentioned. If you can’t wait to have your new TV in this upcoming holiday season, the Xiaomi Mi TV P1 is still a wise buy. Other than this 55-inch model which is priced at PhP 24,990, there are also 32, 43, and 50-inch variants available that retail for PhP 10,990 / PhP 18,990 / PhP 22,990 respectively.

Related Topics:Mi TV P1 Xiaomi Xiaomi Mi TV P1

Entertainment

Marvel’s Wonder Man greenlit for a rare second season

The first season holds a 91% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Published

March 24, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

Is the Marvel Cinematic Universe back? After years of floundering through Phases Four and Five, Marvel Studios is poised to get its mojo back from a flurry of much-awaited Phase Six projects this year, including the second season of Daredevil: Born Again, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and Avengers: Doomsday. And it all started this year with the critically acclaimed Wonder Man. Now, after the success of that series, a second season is officially in the works.

When its first trailer came out, Wonder Man did not look like anything that Marvel Studios has worked on before. For one, it was incredibly grounded, perhaps overshadowed only by Daredevil: Born Again. Second, it was about the reboot of a fictional superhero movie, itself called Wonder Man.

Actor Simon Williams (played by Yahya Abdul Mateen II) wants to energize his career by performing in the upcoming Wonder Man revival from acclaimed director Von Kovak (Zlatko Burić). Helping the former is the returning Trevor Slattery (Ben Kingsley), who you might remember as the fake Mandarin from Iron Man 3.

Despite how different it looks compared to previous Marvel Studios projects, the series is one of the most acclaimed, currently holding a 91 percent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Because of this, Wonder Man has received the green light for a second season, via Variety.

A second season is relatively rare for Marvel Studios with its history of one-and-done series. There are some exceptions, though. Loki, for example, ended its run with a second season. Daredevil: Born Again will air its second season very soon (with a third one potentially in the works already).

Entertainment

Now Playing: Hoppers

Spectacular fun ride with Daniel Chong at the helm

Published

March 22, 2026

Manila Connoisseur

Courtesy: Disney Pixar

There is a part of me that wants to say, if you want a feel-good, wholesome movie experience, go see Disney Pixar’s Hoppers.

But on the flip side, if you want an absurd, humorous, nonsensical-yet-totally-makes-sense dark comedy masked in an animated adventure, then you especially need to see it.

We can always argue that Pixar titles — and animated films in general — cater to adult audiences.

However, slotting in We Bare Bears creator Daniel Chong to helm this latest Disney Pixar masterpiece makes for a spectacularly unique ride.

It’s interestingly odd for a Pixar film, though not so far removed from the family-friendly, “happy ending” trope that feels unrecognizable.

I just personally loved Chong’s approach, driving the narrative with unpredictable humor, sharp twists, and a sci-fi premise that, come to think of it, isn’t actually theoretically impossible.

It’s so entertaining that you briefly forget you’re watching a Pixar movie. There are no dull moments and just a great ride from start to finish.

Nature vs. development

The premise is a familiar real-life dilemma we’ve seen for decades. In Hoppers, the suburban town of Beaverton where our protagonist Mabel lives, is under constant development.

Specifically, there’s the “Beltway Project”, an initiative by Mayor Jerry Generazzo, to connect residential areas to the town center via an elliptical highway.

As in reality, progress comes with collateral damage. In the film’s case, it’s the animals living in the local greenery.

Mabel isn’t going to let that happen. The movie quickly establishes her origin story in the first few minutes.

It shows how her relationship with her aging grandmother formed her special bond with “The Glade”. This lush forest was their favorite hangout as Mabel grew up. And that’s where she begun appreciating and caring for animals deeply.

Years have passed, and Mabel is now a fervent college student activist stopping at nothing to ensure the animals she grew up with can still live peacefully.

She has done a lot, from petitions to convincing people to support her cause. Without that many teammates by her side, she ultimately confronts the mayor herself. This is where she gets challenged to “make something happen” in 48 hours to convince the mayor to call the project off.

From ‘real’ to ‘sci-fi’

At this point, the movie dramatically switches from grounded reality to high-concept sci-fi. Mabel accidentally discovers her professor, Dr. Sam Fairfax, has developed an ambitious machine capable of transferring your consciousness into a robotic animal.

It was meant to observe animals harmlessly from a closer POV, and I guess you can give the professor the benefit of the doubt.

The entire scene reminded me of Jordan Peele’s Get Out briefly, but the tone shifts when Mabel ends up transported into a robot beaver body herself.

There’s an undeniable, hilarious callback to James Cameron’s Avatar here, from the disorienting “syncing” process to Mabel navigating the world in a body that isn’t hers. The only difference, obviously, is she isn’t a blue alien but rather a cute, child-visual-friendly beaver.

She finds new hope with this tech. But just as she thinks she can simply “communicate” with nature, she is slapped with the reality that in the wild, it’s survival of the fittest.

Logic takes a backseat

From then on, logic takes a backseat, yet it’s the kind of film where suspending your disbelief actually is helpful.

The “pond rules” were the only remaining glimmer of scientific accuracy but then, soon, you realize it would have been total chaos in the pond community just from a food chain standpoint.

Mabel gets introduced to King George and the inner workings of the community. There’s even a later chase when a flock of seagulls carry Diane, the gigantic shark referenced as the group’s “apex predator”, which is obviously impossible.

There’s just so many dumb rules (or lack of) that the internal logic made up for an even funnier film. It’s like Zootopia logic, but cranked up to an even more non-sensical level.

Dilemma

Anyway, Mabel discovers that the cause of the animals’ exodus are fake noise trees blasting high-pitched sounds. These are all the work of Mayor Jerry, doing it on purpose so the Beltway Project gets finished.

Mabel’s audacity leads to an Animal Council meeting, which was unlikely to begin with. Here, the leaders who each represent major animal classes come together.

The Insect Queen and her eventual Insect King son Titus get presented as the real antagonists, with a thirst for domination.

Mabel merely suggested scaring the Mayor back, but the animals decide on a dark uprising. With this, Mabel soon realizes the mayor is in danger.

The conflict is triggered further by her own human instinct when she kills the Insect Queen who annoyingly got into her face. This moment sends Titus into a vengeful rage even more.

This deepens Mabel’s dilemma as she now ironically has to side with the humans — including Mayor Jerry — while navigating the animals’ survivalist and territorial tendencies.

Standstill, unlikely team-up

However, after a long chase, and attempts to communicate with the mayor funnily with her impromptu-formed rag-tag squad, Mabel’s robot beaver eventually gets caught.

The Animal Council eventually discovers the humans’ experimental tech and turns it against them. Under the tutelage of Titus, the animals hold the scientists hostage and forces them to create a robotic clone of Jerry.

Titus’ goal was to use the mayor’s own noise trees meant to scare the animals away from The Glade against the humans gathered for a rally.

Just when all seems lost, the real Mayor Jerry shows a sudden flash of compassion. And perhaps with some Messianic complex involved, he hero-balls his way into a robotic beaver himself for a last-ditch effort to stop Titus.

A lot happened in between, presented with a hefty dose of comedy that keeps you guessing the characters’ fates.

Ultimately, the other animals realize Titus’ purely selfish and evil goals, and his plan backfires when he gets eaten by the Amphibian King.

In the end, the animals team up to destroy their community dam to flood a wildfire inadvertently started by Titus moments earlier.

Then, it’s a classic happy ending: The Glade is restored as a protected area, Mabel and Mayor Jerry reconcile, and the protagonist graduates with a job offer from Dr. Sam herself.

Absurdity ’til the end

The absurdity does not even end when the credits roll. In the post-credits scene, we see the elderly man Mabel previously encountered, who mistook her petition form for a grocery list.

After she takes care of her business at The Glade, Mabel sweetly fulfills the elderly man’s simple errand.

And handing the eggs, milk, and bread back to the man? Ants.

It’s as if it was a delightful Ant-Man nod, especially with the parallels between the logic there and in the MCU wherein a neurotransmitter is needed to lead ants in performing such tasks.

Perhaps, a final wink from Daniel Chong, whose direction makes up for a spectacularly good laugh.

Entertainment

Dune: Part Three teaser trailer: First look at Robert Pattinson’s Scytale

In cinemas this December

Published

March 20, 2026

GadgetMatch

Courtesy: Warner Bros. Studios

The countdown is officially on as Warner Bros. Pictures has released the teaser trailer for Dune: Part Three.

The epic conclusion to Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune” trilogy opens in cinemas and IMAX this December.

In addition, character posters have also been released. Here are some, courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures:

The highly anticipated film stars Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Jason Momoa, Javier Bardem, Rebecca Ferguson, Florence Pugh, Robert Pattinson, Anya Taylor-Joy and Isaach De Bankolé.

The trailer, meanwhile, gives an excellent first look at Pattinson as the main antagonist of the final installment, Scytale.

In the final movie, the plot jumps ahead 17 years after Chalamet’s Paul Atreides ascended to the throne.

There will be a dramatic change in the tone from the first two films, focusing more on psychological thriller instead of a war epic, given the visuals of the previous two installments.

Atreides is now a battle-hardened Emperor, struggling with the “Holy War” that has claimed 61 million lives.

Worse, Scytale will lead a conspiracy from within that attempts to overthrow the protagonist’s empire.

Pattinson’s character will mess with Atreides’ head instead of pure brawns, in a bid to wear him down. This presents the central conflict of the upcoming film.