Xiaomi TV S Mini LED 65-inch Review: A Bold New Era For Xiaomi, A Must-Consider For All Consumers

Xiaomi is done with making the most affordable products on the market. Over the last few years, there has been a quiet shift in Xiaomi’s R&D, marketing, and the number of products it releases each year. They aren’t chasing the bottom dollar. Instead, they want to make products that are still affordable for the average consumer and stand the test of time in terms of quality. In short, Xiaomi is no longer the budget brand you thought it was. It’s grown up, more mature, while not abandoning its core consumer base.

I’ve spent a few weeks with the brand-new Xiaomi TV S Mini LED, and for the most part, I’ve come away impressed. While OLED TVs have dominated for quite some time, QLED TVs have quietly seen an uptick in sales over the last few years. A relatively new entrant, though, is the Mini LED TVs. They are best known for two things: better contrast and higher brightness. There are also greater dimming zones.

Using QD-Mini LED tech, interlaced with a Mini LED backlight, is a good decision by Xiaomi. Theoretically, you’re supposed to get better and more accurate colours, higher levels of brightness, and crisp details. I got the 65-inch TV for review, and within the first week of binge-watching sports (mostly the Indian Premier League and the Premier League) and TV shows (Taskmaster and Britain’s Got Talent), I was impressed. I haven’t used a Xiaomi TV in many months, but the clarity blew me away.

I also have an LG G5 (2025) OLED TV in my living room, and while it doesn’t match the quality, it does a fairly good job and is a fair bit cheaper.

The Good

Xiaomi has shrunk the bezels around the TV, with only the bottom bezel slightly larger to accommodate the Mini LED branding. The 65-inch variant was lighter than I thought it’d be. There are three HDMI ports (one supports eARC), two USB ports, an Ethernet port, a 3.5mm audio jack, and an optical out port. The bundled stands (or legs, as some call them) are very sturdy. Xiaomi allows users to decide if they want these “feet” closer together or further apart.

The setup is fairly easy, though the TV did glitch on me once. The Xiaomi TV S Mini LED runs on Google TV, which makes everything that much easier. It’s one of the best UIs for a television and works seamlessly.

While testing the television, I put on The Dark Knight Rises, for those dark scenes, and Up for the lighter, more colourful scenes. Genuinely, the highlights and details were a delight. The depth of character that the TV has is unmatched in this price range. Xiaomi has worked tirelessly on its products, streamlining them, and it's beginning to show. With a peak brightness of 1200 nits, the TV shines brightest with HDR content. Add Dolby Vision to the mix, and you get punchy, vibrant colours with the reflections dialled in.

The Bad, The Ugly

As much as I was impressed with this TV, it is far from perfect. Viewing angles are far from good. Just move to the sides, and you’ll notice that the image quality (especially the contrast) drops off. 

While the setup and functionality of the TV are a breeze, it suffers from lag a lot of the time. While fiddling around with the UI is a breeze and quite intuitive, opening apps and loading content takes a fair bit more time than it should. Maybe Xiaomi should consider doubling the RAM when they release their 2027 model.

The remote is unnecessarily large, with many buttons you just don’t end up using. It has hotkeys for OTT apps and even a Google Voice assistant toggle, but otherwise, it could have been streamlined. It’s also plasticy, and not in a good way.

While brightness levels are good, it takes a lot of tweaking to get them just right, especially when you’re watching sports. The out-of-the-box default settings are way off. The extremes - too bright or too dim - just don’t cut it. Skin tones take a hit when you slide the brightness slider up. That’s something to keep in mind.

The Xiaomi TV S Mini LED is not a true native 120Hz 4K panel. While not a dealbreaker. It is most felt when playing video games. 

Casting also was seamless (I tried it with YouTube, Fancode, and Google Chrome) and worked like a charm.

One Thing that Surprised Me

The 34-watt built-in speaker system is what surprised me the most. With Dolby Audio added into the mix, there were many times I didn’t even need to connect a soundbar. For casual viewing, like sports, YouTube videos, or the run-of-the-mill movie, the speakers held up well, with clear dialogue and decent depth. The Xiaomi Sound tuning is neutral and sounds fantastic. They can also get quite loud.

Still, I’d recommend investing in a soundbar if you’re going to be watching a lot of movies on this television.

Verdict: Worth the price?

The Xiaomi TV S Mini LED knows its target audiences and focuses on those particular areas. It’s a TV that feels more premium than its price suggests. The 65-inch version comes in at Rs 71,999. There are excellent contrast levels and good HDR performance. The built-in speakers are surprisingly good. I’m glad to see Mini LED TVs becoming more mainstream.

Yes, the remote could have been sleeker, the software needs to be more optimised, and the RAM needs to be upgraded, but beyond that, there’s hardly anything one can complain about.

The Xiaomi TV S Mini LED is an all-around entertainer. And that’s the best compliment one can give it. If you’ve got a bright room and love watching in the daytime, then this TV will be just the right purchase for you. Just make sure you do tweak the settings before you set upon a binge-watching session. With three sizes on offer - 55-inch, 65-inch, and 75-inch - it's prudent to get just the right size for your room. Overdoing it can completely ruin the experience. If you’re a hardcore gamer, then think twice before taking a bite of this Mini LED TV.

This is Xiaomi’s first-ever Mini LED TV in India, and it’s a good start. Straight off the bat, this is a very good value proposition.