Xiaomi 12: The new flagship smartphone
The Xiaomi 12 is supposed to be the new flagship of the now second-largest smartphone manufacturer worldwide. Like the Mix 4 and Xiaomi Pad 5, not only the “Mi” in the name is dropped, but apparently everything will revolve around the 12 in the name. What can we expect from the flagship and what leaks are there already? We put the Xiaomi 12 through its paces!
When will the Xiaomi 12 be released?
It became known relatively early that the Xiaomi 12 will be released a bit earlier this year. While the launch was usually expected at the beginning of the year, the Xiaomi Mi 11 was already presented in China between Christmas and New Year 2020. The Xiaomi 12 is probably even earlier. Originally, there was talk of December 16, but December 12 is now also on the cards. Thus, the Xiaomi 12 would be launched on 12 December. That would definitely fit Xiaomi, but it is on a Sunday.
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December 28 is also still under discussion, which is the same release date as last year. A new product launch is already officially planned for that day, but it is not known whether it will be the Xiaomi 12.
Which versions will be available?
As is often the case, the Xiaomi 12 is not alone. Allegedly, there will even be four different Xiaomi 12 models, last year it was the Xiaomi Mi 11, Mi 11 Pro and Mi 11 Ultra. A successor is expected from these devices, and there will allegedly even be a Xiaomi 12 Mini or Xiaomi 12X! According to the leaks known so far, it is the same phone and it is not the first time that there is an X smartphone. For example, the Mi 5X was the model for the Xiaomi Mi A1.
The term “mini” is used because it is supposed to have a display diagonal of 6.28 inches and a resulting casing size of 145.4 mm. Thus, it is smaller than Xiaomi’s current lineup and similar to the Mi 9 SE, but still far away from an iPhone 13 Mini with a height of 131.5 mm. Nevertheless, you can allegedly look forward to a Full HD+ AMOLED display with 120 Hz and a Snapdragon 870 processor.
The Xiaomi 12 Ultra, which puts special emphasis on cameras, is likely to attract a lot of attention again. Allegedly, Xiaomi enters into a partnership with Leica, which ended its cooperation with Huawei. There is also a cooperation with Sharp, but perhaps they did not enter into an exclusive contract and help Xiaomi with the main camera of the 12 Ultra. This is probably combined with three telephoto cameras with different zoom levels with up to 10x zoom at 48 megapixel resolution.
What does the Xiaomi 12 look like?
Not much can be said about the design of the Xiaomi 12 yet, especially since there are different photos and leaked images. The Xiaomi 12 has allegedly already been spotted in a subway, but it is protected with a special case there, which is supposed to protect it from prying eyes. Even though it does exactly the opposite in my eyes. However, the front differs from the predecessor in one aspect in particular: The front-facing camera is in the center and no longer on the upper left. That was actually the unique selling point of Xiaomi’s top models.
There are two different interpretations for the back so far. One render is somewhat reminiscent of Vivo’s phones, such as the X70 Pro, since the camera module takes up a lot of space on the top left and is a bit more angular. The main camera is at the top by itself, with the secondary sensors following below. This would fit the design language of the Xiaomi CIVI smartphone a bit more.
Other renders are reminiscent of the first Pocophone because the camera is placed centrally and linearly. The three cameras are located below each other, and the main camera seems to be at the top. However, this render also shows a jack on the bottom, which Xiaomi abandoned for top models a few generations ago.
Xiaomi 12 with LTPO display?
In the preliminary information about the screen, you read one term in particular more often: hyberboloid. The Xiaomi 12 is said to come with a hyperboloid screen (don’t worry, I had to Google that too). That basically just means that it’s a heavily curved display, which might even reach the back, alternatively often referred to as a waterfall display. As in the previous year, it is probably a 120 Hz AMOLED screen with WQHD+ resolution of 1440p with a refresh rate of 120 Hz.
The LTPO technology could and should be new for Xiaomi. We have already seen LTPO displays in the OnePlus 9 Pro, iPhone 13 Pro, Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra or Google Pixel 6 Pro this year. Here, the refresh rate can be adjusted downwards so variably that the screen only offers a 1 or 10 Hz refresh rate in extreme cases. This makes the panel much more energy-efficient and should ensure an improved battery runtime.
In terms of design, however, they will probably stick to the punch hole. Xiaomi has already launched its first smartphone with a front-facing camera under the display in China with the Mix 4. However, the camera quality is still not good enough for such a flagship smartphone, which is why we expect a Xiaomi Mix 5 with an improved camera under the screen.
Which processor is in the Xiaomi 12?
It is relatively clear why Xiaomi is in such a hurry to present the latest flagship. One reason is that it is the first manufacturer with the new processor for the coming year. As in the past generations, Qualcomm’s top processor is chosen, which will probably be Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 in 2022. The name is not 100% certain yet; a picture with the name Snapdragoon 8Gx Gen 1 appeared recently, but Snapdragon 898 is also still under discussion.
The new chip has not been unveiled yet, which is why we lack official information. According to a leaked AnTuTu benchmark, the system-on-a-chip breaks through the value of one million points and thus also easily outperforms the MediaTek Dimensity 9000. According to AnTuTu, the clock rate is 2.99 GHz and the graphics unit is the Adreno 730 GPU. After to a leak from Evan Blass from September, the chip is manufactured in a 4 nm process and is equipped with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X65 5G modem.
No details are known about the memory, but we can expect at least 8 GB of LPDDR5 working memory and 128 GB of UFS 3.1 mass storage.
Xiaomi 12 with Leica cooperation
The partnership with Leica should not only benefit the 12 Ultra, but also the Xiaomi 12. There have been leaks for quite some time that Xiaomi has snatched up a 200-megapixel sensor that is supposed to provide ultra-sharp photos. The Xiaomi 12 might be equipped with the Samsung ISOCELL HP1, while the new 50 MP sensor is the GN5. In our opinion, it would make more sense if only the Ultra gets the large 200 MP sensor.
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The sensor measures 1/1.22 inches and offers 0.64 micrometer pixels, which is impressive. As with previously released large sensors, pixel binning is again used, whereby an algorithm can probably choose between three different pixel binning structures. With twice as many autofocus pixels as in the 108 MP sensor, the Super PD autofocus is said to have been improved as well, and 8K videos with 30 fps are also available.
However, there is hardly any information about the other camera sensors. Of course, we expect another ultra-wide-angle camera, hopefully with an improved sensor like in the OnePlus 9 Pro. Since the Xiaomi 12 Ultra seems to put a lot of emphasis on zoom capabilities, we hope for a return to the good triple camera setup with three focal lengths. We would not like to see the 5 MP telephoto macro camera from the Mi 11 in a smartphone like this again.
Xiaomi 12 with 120W charging
In terms of battery and charging, there shouldn’t be much of a surprise. The runtime of the predecessor was suboptimal, but that was mainly due to the Snapdragon 888. Nevertheless, Xiaomi wants to counter this with a 5,000 mAh battery, which provides energy in various Xiaomi phones. The manufacturer has already launched a smartphone with 120W charging in Europe with the Xiaomi 11T Pro, and we could also see that in the Xiaomi 12. In addition, there should be fast wireless charging again. Probably even up to 100W, but at least 80W – a corresponding charger is already available.
Assessment
There is still little concrete information about the Xiaomi 12, but we assume that it will be released in December, that there are several versions, that the Xiaomi 12 offers very fast charging and a large battery, that it is equipped with the latest Qualcomm top processor, and that a new camera system is installed. Apart from that, the leaks of the other versions are still somewhat questionable. I will only believe a Xiaomi 12 Mini when I see it.
To catch up with Google, Samsung and Apple, an LTPO display is mandatory, ideally with up to 1 Hz. However, we have to work on the camera in particular, which might finally be possible thanks to the cooperation with Leica. But which feature do you want the most?
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