Much like Samsung, Xiaomi makes its own alternatives to various Google apps that are usually tied to its notoriously heavy MIUI Android skin. In the past couple of years, the Chinese company has moved apps like Mi Calculator and Mi FileExplorer to the Play Store for faster delivery of updates and to open them up even to non-Xiaomi phones. Joining that small list of apps is the redesigned Mi Browser that likely replaces Xiaomi’s Mint Browser, which debuted in late 2018.

Xiaomi essentially maintains two different mobile browsers — Mi Browser, which is a part of MIUI, and Mint Browser, which is a lightweight, modern-looking alternative that was released for everyone via the Play Store. The Chinese company is now taking the design of Mint Browser and bringing it to its primary Mi Browser with a few tweaks and additional features. The facelift mimics Mint’s bottom navigation bar, including the two tabs for suggested YouTube videos and games, and includes a brand-new app icon.

Left: Browser's homepage. Center: Facebook feed section. Right: WhatsApp status screen.

Xiaomi has also added a dedicated Facebook section that allows you to natively access your feed right on the browser’s home page with a convenient download button for saving videos. At the top, a WhatsApp icon sits right beside the search bar to let you save the ephemeral statuses your contacts have posted on the messaging app. For doing this, Mi Browser accesses the data saved by the WhatsApp app to extract these temporary files — while this may be convenient, it comes with its own privacy implications.

Xiaomi hasn’t updated its Mint Bowser and the older Mi Browser in over a month, leading us to believe that the redesigned app will eventually replace these two apps both on the Play Store and in MIUI. The new Mi Browser app is already live with a brand-new listing on the Play Store. If you don't see it yet, you can download it from APK Mirror instead.

Mi Browser Developer: Zhigu Corporation Limited
Price: Free
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