Xiaomi has today announced its brand new smartphone after releasing teasers on social media all week.
The Mi 9 was unveiled at a launch event in China, and will be available to buy in the UK and other European countries too.
It has a Snapdragon 855 chipset, 6GB of RAM, 128GB of expandable storage, a 3,300mAh battery and three rear cameras. While the smartphone has a similar design to the Mi 8 – which was unveiled last year – new display features include a smaller notch and an on-screen fingerprint reader.
Xiaomi say they’ll be one of the world’s first companies to have a Snapdragon 855 handset on the market. Although this is expected to be short-lived with Samsung launching new smartphones February 20.
The biggest selling point of the smartphone is definitely the triple camera setup. The main camera is 48MP, with a 16MP ultra wide lens and a 12MP telephoto snapper.
It’s a similar setup you can find on the Honor View20, which was unveiled in January. While the phone doesn’t have a depth sensor typically found on some of the latest smartphones being brought out this year, the rear set-up is incredibly impressive. Selfies will be taken by a 20MP camera which also has portrait mode.
It has a 6.39-inch AMOLED display with a 1080-pixel-wide resolution. There’s also NFC compatibility for contactless payments, as well as an infrared remote for using a TV and/or other smart home devices.
Another feature added to the Mi 9 is fast charging. The company says it only takes one hour and four minutes to charge the device from flat to full. Wireless charging has also been added and you can purchase separately a 20-watt charging pad. The pad will charge the flagship from flat to full in one hour and 40 minutes.
The Mi 9 will go on sale first in China before being unveiled in Europe very soon. The company are expected to reveal more information about its global launch at the Mobile World Congress in the coming days.
The model with 6GB Ram and 128GB storage will cost 2,999 yuan (around $450) with the 12GB RAM and 256GB storage version costing around 3,999 yuan (around $600). UK prices are expected to be released when the global launch takes place.
If you think this model is a little too pricey for your liking, Xiaomi has also announced a smaller, cheaper version of the flagship called the Mi 9 SE. It has a 5.97-inch screen and Snapdragon 712 processor, costing 1,999 yuan (around $300) for the 6GB RAM, 64GB storage version.
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Matt Weston is a lover of electric cars, artificial intelligence and space. From Cornwall, he’s a UCLan graduate that still dreams of being a Formula One driver in the very near future. Previously work includes reporting for regional newspapers and freelance video for the International Business Times.