“Xiaomi is all set to launch the Mi 9 on February 20th, the same day as Samsung’s Unpacked Event for the Galaxy S10 series”
The Xiaomi Mi 8 never made its way into India, but let’s hope its successor, the Xiaomi Mi 9, will arrive in the country. Well, that’s because the device is expected to be an affordable flagship with top-of-the-line features. The smartphone has been scheduled to be unveiled on February 20th, the same day on which Samsung will be showcasing its all-new Galaxy S10 range. This signifies that the Chinese brand wants to compete with the best, and judging by the leaks and rumours surrounding the upcoming Mi 9, it does have quite a lot to boast about. We’ve gathered all the rumours and speculations around the Xiaomi Mi 9 at one place, to help you paint a clearer picture of what the handset might bring to the table.
A big display with an unconventional notch
By the looks of it, the Mi 9 might just start a new trend with its unconventional notch. This cut-out is as small as a waterdrop notch, but is shaped like a traditional notch. This will definitely make it stand out amidst the crowd. This notch apparently sits on a 6.4-inch AMOLED display that bears a full HD+ resolution. So here’s yet another flagship that won’t be taking the Quad HD leap this year. As you can see in the leaked images, the panel is surrounded by minimal bezels, which enhances the looks further.
Triple rear cameras with a high-res 48MP sensor
Almost all the leaked images of this phone have revealed that a triple camera setup will be present on its back. And it’s being said that the main sensor among the three will offer a whopping 48MP resolution. It’s expected to be the Sony IMX586 sensor, which will be equipped with the pixel binning technology to click sharper pictures in low-light situations. The resolutions of the other two cameras aren’t clear yet, but one of them is being touted to be a TOF sensor as well. Recently, Xiaomi co-founder Chuan Wang posted three photographs taken by the forthcoming handset, showing a high level of details, and good dynamic range.
Where’s the fingerprint scanner?
Unlike the Mi 8, the rear surface of the Mi 9 doesn’t feature a fingerprint scanner. And since the fascia is a full-screen surface, there’s only one place where the fingerprint scanner can reside – underneath the display. If that’s true, it’ll be the first Xiaomi smartphone to come with an in-display fingerprint scanner.
Faster charging
Rumour has it that the Xiaomi Mi 9 will ship with a 3,500mAh battery inside it. That’s not a large battery size by today’s standards, especially considering that the soon-to-be-launched Redmi Note 7 (review) comes with a 4,000mAh cell under the hood. But Xiaomi wants you to never realise the small nature of the Mi 9’s battery, as it has apparently equipped the device with 32W fast charging support. This feature will be made possible by Qualcomm’s Quick Charge 5.0 technology. However, what’s disappointing is that no wireless charging support has been mentioned in any of the leaks.
Powerful internals
The Snapdragon 855 is the absolute best SoC available out there right now, and will hence be powering almost all Android flagships this year. It hence comes as no surprise when CEO Lei Jun confirmed that the Mi 9 will come with Qualcomm’s latest and greatest. Moreover, Xiaomi will supposedly be pairing the chipset with 10GB RAM in the high-end model. Variants with 6GB and 8GB of RAM are also expected to be released by the company.
Support for 5G networks
Some countries in the world will see 5G networks deployed later this year, which is why a number of smartphone makers are jumping the 5G bandwagon early on. And rumours suggest that Xiaomi will also do the same with the Mi 9. The presence of the Snapdragon 855 is the further proof of this possibility since it can be paired with Qualcomm’s X50 modem that has been built to support the next-gen cellular networks.
Other details
The front camera that will be sitting inside the phone’s notch could be a 24MP unit. This could mean that the same camera that’s present on the Mi Mix 3 (first impressions) will also make its way onto the new Mi 9. Don’t keep your hopes high for a 3.5mm jack, now that Xiaomi has already unveiled its AirPod-clone wireless earphones. As for the software, there’s a high chance that the new MIUI 11 version will debut on the handset with fresh features, which we’re quite excited to see.
Those are all the details known about the upcoming Xiaomi Mi 9 we have right now. Like we said, February 20th is when they will be confirmed as the phone is likely to be announced on that date. We will also get to see the flagship on February 24th, at the pre-MWC event by the brand.