In Xiaomi’s Black Shark mobile phone series, Black Shark 2 left us a very deep impression. Packing ultra-high-speed processors and plenty of memory, AMOLED displays and a range of high-tech gaming features, you might expect this smartphone to cost about $868.99. But with an affordable base price of $449.99, the Black Shark 2 is ready for the mobile gaming market.
Black Shark 2 is a game-centric smartphone made by Xiaomi and hopes to compete with Razer Phone 2 and ASUS ROG. With a Snapdragon 855 processor and up to 12GB of RAM, this is probably one of the most powerful smartphones of all time, and it should effortlessly pass mobile shooting games like PUGB Mobile. Black Shark 2 offers more than just benefits. There are many exciting gaming features, including a pressure-sensing screen for improved control, a direct-touch liquid cooling system that prevents temperature rise, and the world’s first X-antenna that helps maintain a stable connection to the Internet. The most important is the optional clip-on controller. Although you have to pay extra for them, they seem to be worth the extra cost because they turn the Black Shark 2 into a smartphone equivalent to Nintendo’s console.
So far, I have been very impressed with what I saw in the limited time of Black Shark 2, especially considering the very generous price. This smartphone is ahead of the times, especially Microsoft and Xbox recently talked about cloud streaming. For those who don’t know, Xiaomi has invested heavily in Black Shark, allowing Black Shark 2 manufacturers to take advantage of Xiaomi’s supply chain and technical expertise. The Black Shark 2 is currently available in China and will soon be launched in Europe.
Despite the terrible 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, the top-of-the-line configuration is also very low, and you can get the same super-powered Snapdragon 855 processor. Designed, game-centric smartphones have a bad habit that looks too gorgeous, but Black Shark 2 looks balanced. From the front, it looks like a generic Android smartphone, just no gaps. The bezel is still very thin and looks very similar to the Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus, but without curved sides.
When the light hits the black shark at an angle, you will also notice a reflective green band around the edge. This is a subtle but cute detail that brings a touch of personality to this smartphone, not on your face. The rear design of the Black Shark 2 is unique. The glass bends around the middle metal strip, presenting a sleek effect that draws attention to the centrally pulsating black shark logo. Two camera sensors are placed vertically on top of the glass to create a stylish and unique look. Black Shark 2 is a minimalist method for buttons. There is only one volume rocker on the left, and the sleep button and Shark Key switch on the right side, allowing you to activate the game-centric mode.
Unfortunately, without a headphone jack, I think this is an important issue, considering that the owner might want to use a 3.5mm connected gaming headset. You really have a USB-C to 3.5mm adapter in the box, which is very convenient, but it still means you can’t charge the Black Shark 2 and wear a wired headset at the same time. You will also notice that the fingerprint scanner has no space, but Black Shark has been able to build it into the display. So far, I found it to be super responsive, and it will also make a smooth animation when activated, I like it very much. Black Shark 2 also gives you the option to use two controllers that look and behave in much the same way as the Nintendo Switch’s Joy Cons. I personally think these may be important additions to the mobile gaming space, as they may affect those who were previously unwilling to try action games and shooters, otherwise they will force players to rely on clumsy touchscreen controls. You have to pay extra for these peripherals, but as long as the price is not too extravagant, I think they are worth investing.
The Black Shark 2 features a fairly large 6.39-inch AMOLED display that is similar in size to the Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus. 19.5:9 body proportion, this is a very high display, considering that you may play games with this thing regularly, this is welcome. Some fans may be disappointed that Black Shark 2 can only achieve Full HD + (1080 x 2340) resolution. The representative of Black Shark said that the reason for slowing down Quad HD+ is simply because they want to minimize costs, which is a good reason. They also revealed that there may be an additional Black Shark model in the future, equipped with a four-dimensional HD resolution display, which is good news if the current screen settings are a transaction breaker for you.
When the Black Shark representative was asked why this smartphone could not provide a more competitive refresh rate, they cited the fact that few mobile games support a refresh rate of more than 60 Hz, while also specifying in AMOLED It is difficult to add a refresh rate of more than 60 Hz to the display. There is no significant increase in costs. Again, this is a reasonable explanation because the Razer Phone 2 has an LCD display. Personally, I would rather have an AMOLED panel instead of a faster refresh rate, but it really depends on what kind of game you might play.
The Black Shark 2 has a maximum brightness of 430 nits and the display is bright enough to be seen outside in a bright environment, so you can’t blame your PlayerUnknown Battlegrounds for screen glare. When you sit in the dark, DC Light Dimmer provides a more comfortable viewing experience and reduces the risk of eye damage. Unlike the iPhone, the Black Shark 2 can use this “Master Touch” feature on both sides of the screen, so you can map the second input to the left and right sides of the display. When playing PUBG, I map the jump command to the left and the trigger to the right. To my surprise, I quickly adapted to this new control mechanism, which immediately felt more intuitive than traditional on-screen buttons. Master Touch is also fully customizable, so you can set the optimal control layout to suit your game style.
Of course, you need a powerful battery to keep this smartphone as you play all day. Fortunately, Black Shark has installed a battery of up to 4000mAh in this smartphone. It is said to provide up to 5 hours of intensive gaming. This may not sound like a lot, but if you often play PUBG on the go, few mobile phones can do better. In contrast, the Razer Phone 2 has an average battery life of about 4 hours, making it suitable for intensive games. Of course, I need to test Black Shark 2 myself to see if it reports the exact number. Equally impressive, Black Shark 2 also supports Qualcomm fast charging, you guessed it, super fast charging. The Black Sharks claim that they can get an amazing 30 minute game in just 5 minutes of juice time.
If the black shark cuts corners anywhere, you will definitely think of it as a camera. During the press conference, Black Shark barely mentioned its camera, which is not a surprise, because it is a game-based smartphone. In other words, the Black Shark 2’s camera is still very respectable and surprising. At the rear, there is a two-lens camera, and the two lenses claim to have a 12-megapixel sensor each. The auxiliary camera also features a 2x optical zoom to help prevent the magnified lens from appearing distorted and blurred.
Sufficient specifications, how does the rear camera behave? To be honest, quite good. This will never compete with AAA smartphones that focus on photography, but it is about the same quality as my Samsung Galaxy S9. The color is pleasing to the eye, and although the details are not precise, it should be satisfactory enough. The photos taken by Black Shark 2 look much brighter than my Galaxy S9. The camera’s software seems to artificially illuminate the image, and unless you are really keen on natural tones, this is not necessarily negative.
In terms of self-timer, Black Shark 2 exceeded my expectations again. There is a 200 megapixel sensor that can take very detailed and expressive photos. It is much better than the Galaxy S9. The optional portrait mode also blurs the background so your face can occupy a central position. Again, the image here looks very bright, but it doesn’t look too saturated.
Black Magic 2 is also capable of shooting full HD and 4K video at 30fps. The video seems to look good, but there is nothing particularly honest. It is undeniable that Black Shark 2, despite a master’s smartphone designed for games, is not inferior in other aspects. In the current game mobile phones, Black Shark 2 definitely has a reason to become a new generation of mobile phones. The leader.
