Xiaomi is giving all its fans in India and the world over a chance to see the launch of its next flagship model, the Mi5, live from the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain tomorrow.
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The highlight of the phone will be Snapdragon 820 processor, which is twice as powerful as last year’s Snapdragon 810. In fact, it is also more powerful than many laptop processors and would make a good PC processor too.
A possible disappointment with the Mi5 is the display, which is rumored to be just 1080p full-HD, while everyone else has moved on to Quad HD for their flagship phones.
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Xiaomi Mi5 Specifications leaked
The specifications of the Mi5 have been reportedly revealed by a retailer. There will be three variants, all with QHD displays that have twice the resolution of full-HD screens.
The cheapest model is Mi5 16 GB, priced at $500 or Rs 34,500. Of course, don’t be shocked by the price. The retailer who leaked the information could be based in a high-tax country, and the phone could be available in India for around Rs 30,000 also — assuming that this leak is genuine, of course.
There will be no separate MicroSD card slot apparently, and the phone is built on Snapdragon 820 platform. Primary camera is 16 MP and display size is 5.2 inch. The Mi5 also will have 2.5D curved glass (slightly curved glass.)
The second version is similar except for the internal memory, which is 64 GB, and for that you have to pay $100 (Rs 6,900) extra including taxes.
The third variant is a plus version, with a screen size of 6 inches. However, it will come with Snapdragon 810, which has substantially less power compared to the Snapdragon 820. RAM, like in case of the other two models, will be 4 GB. This version, like the 64-GB SD820 model, is priced at $599 (Rs 41,300).
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The rumored size of the display is 5.3 inch, bigger than the 5 inches that one typically finds on flagships, but smaller than the ‘Note’ size of 5.5 inch.
Other things to watch out for will be camera resolution — against rumored to be just 16 MP — and internal memory. Xiaomi may disappoint with absence of a MicroSD card slot — something that is a major irritant among newer models.
The slot is left out in an effort to keep the thickness of the phone under control. The presence of a separate card slot, however, is still under debate with some claiming that there will indeed be a separate slot and other saying the second SIM slot will function as the optional card slot.
There are expected to be two variants — with 16 GB plus 3 GB RAM and 64 GB plus 4 GB RAM. Battery is seen at 3 Ah. The phone may also come with an ultrasound fingerprint scanner that is much more secure than regular fingerprint sensors.
Part of the reason why the Mi5 may have humbler specifications compared to other flagships will be to keep prices affordable. Given the above specifications, the 3 GB model can be sold in India for Rs 20,000-22,000 — something unthinkable for flagships from other major brands.
There is no detail about the availability of the Mi5 in India or its release date in India.
Samsung, which introduced its Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge today, has promised that the models will be launched in India “soon” without giving any date.