Xiaomi MI A1 vs Billion Capture Plus : Which one should you buy?

Xiaomis MI A1(Android One) and Flipkart Billion Capture Plus both are mid range dual camera smartphones with aggressive price tag. The MI A1 is one of the most popular dual camera smartphones under INR 15,000 price range whereas the recently launched Billion Capture plus is also becoming popular for its Monochrome + RGB dual camera setup. There are many similarities as well as differences between Mi A1 and Billion Capture Plus. In this article I will discuss all the differences in details so that you can get an idea an judge which smartphone is better for you.

Advantages of Billion Capture Plus over Xiaomi MI A1:

• Longer battery backup with a larger battery. 
• Fast charging with Qualcomm Quick Charge.
• Lower price, includes a bunch of launch offers.

Advantages of Xiaomi MI A1 over Billion Capture Plus:

• Better design and build quality.
• Better rear cameras and Optical Zoom up to 2x.
• All necessary sensors are available.
• Fingerprint sensor is slightly faster.

 

Let's have a look at the in-depth specifications and their comparisons between Mi A1 and Billion Capture Plus.

Xiaomi MI A1 and Flipkart Billion Capture Plus in-depth Specs Comparison:

DEVICE	Xiaomi MI A1(Android One)	Flipkart Billion Capture Plus
Dimensions	75.8 x 155.4 x 7.3 mm.	153 x 76.5 x 8.5 mm.
Weight	165g, Metal unibody.	176g, Combination of Plastic and Metal body.
SIM Type	Dual Sim, Hybrid Slot.	Dual Sim, Hybrid Slot.
Network 2G	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 /1900.	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900.
Network 3G	HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100.	HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1900/ 2100.
Network 4G	LTE band 1(2100), 3(1800), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 19(800), 20(800), 28(700), 38(2600), 40(2300).	LTE band 3(1800), 5(850), 40(2300).
Connectivity	Bluetooth 4.2, IR blaster, FM Radio, Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, Wi-Fi Hotspot, Wi-Fi Direct, Wi-Fi display, 3.5 mm audio jack, Notification LED, USB 2.0 Type~C, USB OTG, GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS.	Bluetooth 4.2, FM Radio, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Wi-Fi Hotspot, Wi-Fi Direct, 3.5 mm audio jack, USB 2.0 Type~C , USB OTG, GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS.
Display	5.5 inch LTPS IPS LCD, 1080 x 1920(Full HD), PPI 401.	5.5 inch IPS LCD, 1080 x 1920(Full HD), PPI 401.
Display Features	Covered by 2.5D Curved Glass, Contrast ratio 1000:1, maximum bcenterness 450 cd/m².	Covered by 2.5D Curved Glass, Contrast ratio 1000:1, protected by Asahi Dragontrail Glass.
Available Sensors	Proximity, light, accelerometer, IR blaster, compass, gyroscope, hall & rear mounted fingerprint sensor.	Proximity, light, accelerometer, gyroscope & rear mounted-fingerprint sensor. Compass sensor & IR sensor are not available.
Operating System	Stock Android UI based on Android Nougat 7.1 upgradable to Android Oreo 8.0 and above.	Stock Android UI based on Android Nougat 7.1.2 upgradable to Android Oreo 8.0 and above.
CPU	2.0 GHz 64-bit Octa Core Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 chipset based on 14 nm architecture.	2.0 GHz 64-bit Octa Core Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 chipset based on 14 nm architecture.
GPU	Qualcomm Adreno 506, frequency 650 MHz.	Qualcomm Adreno 506, frequency 650 MHz.
RAM	4 GB LPDDR3 Single Channel.	3/4 GB LPDDR3 Single Channel.
RAM Frequency	933 MHz.	933 MHz.
Storage	64 GB expandable up to 128 GB via 2nd SIM slot.	32/64 GB expandable up to 128 GB via dedicated microSD card slot.
Primary Camera	12.19 MP PDAF OmniVision OV12A10 Sensor(Pixel Size 1.25 µm) with f/2.2 aperture along with 12 MP OmniVision OV13880 Sensor(Pixel size 1.0 μm) with f/2.6 aperture. Optical Zoom is available up to 2x.	13MP Monochrome + 13MP RGB PDAF Samsung Sensor with f/2.0 aperture. Pixel Size 1.12 µm, Optical Zoom is not available.
Flash	Dual tone dual LED flash for rear cameras only.	Dual Tone Dual LED 1A true flash for rear cameras only.
Video Recording	2160p 4K video recording @ 30 fps, slow motion video 720P @ 120 fps.	1080p(Full HD) video recording @ 30 fps, slow motion video 720P @ 120 fps.
Secondary Camera	5.04 MP camera with f/2.0 aperture.	7.99 MP camera with f/2.0 aperture. Pixel Size 1.12 µm.
Video Recording	1080p(Full HD) video recording @ 30 fps.	1080p(Full HD) video recording @ 30 fps.
Battery	3080 mAh, Li-Polymer, non-removable.	3500 mAh, Li-Ion, non-removable.
Fast Charging	5v~2A.	Quick Charge 3.0.

MI A1 vs Billion Capture Plus Display, Design, Connectivity, Sensors Comparison:

The Xiaomi MI A1 has a metal unibody where as the Billion Capture Plus has a combination of plastic and aluminum alloy. In terms of real life usage the MI A1 looks much more premium and sexier than the Billion Caption Plus. Don't get me wrong, the Capture Plus also has a beautiful design with decent build quality. Both the MI A1 and Billion Capture Plus have a full HD 5.5 inch IPS LCD with 16:9 aspect ratio unlike Honor 7X. The display on MI A1 has some unspecified Corning Gorilla Glass protection whereas the display on Billion Capture Plus is protected by Dragontrail Glass. In terms of display protections both are decent and almost similar. The display panels on the devices are also similar with good viewing angles, good contrast ratio for producing rich colours and above average sunlight legibility.



Relevant Article: Flipkart Billion Capture Plus on Sale: Launch Offers, features and details explained.


Both Xiaomi MI A1 and Billion Capture Plus have 2G/3G/4G and VoLTE connectivity on both the SIM slots but the MI A1 supports more 4G bands than Billion Capture Plus. See the table.

Xiaomi is always known for providing almost all the necessary sensors which many flagship smartphones lack. Mi A1 has a bunch of sensors including light, proximity, gyroscope, compass, hall, infrared and fingerprint sensor. The Billion Capture Plus does not have hall and compass sensor on it. The fingerprint sensor on the MI A1 is definitely faster than the same found on Billion Capture Plus.

MI A1 vs Billion Capture Plus Software, UI, Performance and Battery Comparison:

Both MI A1 and Billion Capture Plus are powered by the same Snapdragon 625 Chipset and optional 3/4 GB RAM. The RAM type in the devices is also same. Both devices are running on similar Stock Android UI based on Android Nougat 7.1 which is surely upgradable up to Android Oreo 8.0 or above. Due to similar CPU, GPU, RAM and User Interface there is hardly any difference in terms of performance. Both the smartphones handle day to day tasks very well. Graphics intensive games can also be played smoothly on both devices. None of the MI A1 or Billion Capture has overhearing issues.

The MI A1 is fueled by 3000 mAh non-removable battery which comes with normal 10W bundled charger whereas Billion Capture Plus is fueled by a larger 3500 mAh non-removable battery with Qualcomm Quick Charge support. The back up on billion capture plus is definitely more than that on MI A1. You can expect to get 40 minutes to 1 hour more Screen On Time on Flipkart's Billion Capture Plus. The charging time of MI A1 is longer than Billion Capture Plus. The Billion Caption Plus is charged at almost same speed of Moto G5S Plus.



Relevant Article: Redmi Note 5 with 5.99 inch 18:9 display, dual rear camera listed on JD.com.

MI A1 vs Billion Capture Plus Camera Comparison:

Mi A1 and Billion Capture plus are known for their dual rear camera set-up. I will not discuss the in-depth camera specifications here as I have already mentioned that in the above table. Xiaomi is using 12MP + 12MP OmniVision sensors whereas Billion Capture Plus is using 13 MP monochrome and 13 MP RGB(Colour) sensor made by Samsung. In daylight both take good images with plenty of details but the colours on the images taken with Billion Capture plus looks unnatural whereas MI A1 produces images with better colours. Most of the pictures taken with the Billion Capture Plus have a pink tone and the white balance is inaccurate. Sometimes the Billion Capture Plus also suffers from focusing issues. The bokeh shots in portrait mode are also not that great from the Capture Plus. The dual camera setup on Billion Capture Plus often fails to detect and separate the background and the object in the foreground. The Xiaomi MI A1 captures better and sharper images with more accurate colours in regular mode as well as in the portrait mode. Moreover the Xiaomi MI A1 also supports Optical Zoom up to 2x which is really great to experience at this price range which Capture Plus doesn't provide. The low light shots on the Billion Capture Plus are just average. Xiaomi MI A1 does a better job in low light conditions. Both capture good selfies in daylight but in low light selfies from the Billion Capture Plus are not that great. MI A1 takes better selfies in low light conditions. Though Flipkart has named their first smartphone as 'Capture Plus' and implemented Samsung made dual camera setup on it but the real life experience does not justify its name. At the time of writing this article the Billion Capture Plus simply can not mach the camera performance of Xiaomi MI A1.

Mi A1 can record 4K videos at 30 frames per second with its rear cameras whereas Billion Capture Plus can record only up to 1080p full HD at 30 frames per second. Both smartphone provide manual camera controls within their respective camera apps. None of them provides any kind of  digital or optical stabilization while taking photos or recording videos.

MI A1 vs Billion Capture Plus After Sale Service and Price:

The MI A1 is currently available on Flipkart at INR 14,999. It is available in 4GB RAM and 64GB Storage variant only whereas 3GB RAM and 32GB Storage variant of Billion Capture Plus is priced at INR 10,999 ans the 4GB RAM and 64GB Storage variant of Billion Capture Plus is available at INR 12,999. However both have expandable storage using hybrid slot.

Relevant Article: Honor 7X an Amazon Exclusive Dual Camera smartphone with 18:9 display will be launched in India soon.


Xiaomi is notorious for its poor after sale service in India. The situation has been slightly improved though. The Billion brand is a new brand by Flipkart and Billion Capture Plus is the first smartphone of this brand. Flipkart claims they have 130 service centres in India. I have no experience of after sale service from this Billion brand but the after sale service of the Flipkart SmartBuy brand is not that good. Now you be the judge and decide wisely which smartphone will suit you palm. Let me know your thoughts in the comment section below this article.