Xiaomi announces borderless smartphone and Mi Note 2 with ‘edge screen’
Xiaomi has announced a new high-end smartphone. The Mi Note 2 has a screen that is curved on both sides and features a Snapdragon 821. Furthermore, the company shows a VR headset and a concept of a phone with virtually no screen edges.
The Xiaomi Mi Note 2 has a 5.7″ screen that is curved on both sides, as is the case with several Galaxy models from Samsung. The screen has a resolution of 1920×1080 pixels and can handle 110% of the NTSC display color range.
The device will be available in a version that is suitable for worldwide use and that supports all LTE frequencies used in the Benelux. The global edition features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 821, 6GB ram and 128GB storage capacity. The phone has a suggested retail price of 3499 yuan, which is converted and including VAT about 575 euros. Within China, the company also releases a variant with 4GB ram and 64GB storage capacity for a lower price. It is unknown when the phone will be released.
The battery of the phone has a capacity of 4070mAh and can be charged with the Quick-Charge 3.0 technology. The camera has a 22.56-megapixel sensor and can film at 4k resolution. The camera supports digital image stabilization. The front camera has an 8-megapixel sensor and supports autofocus. The phone also has an NFC chip.
The second product that Xiaomi has announced is a VR headset. The Mi VR is a housing into which smartphones can be clicked. The headset also features its own motion sensors, which should deliver a latency under 16 milliseconds. A separate remote control is supplied with the headset. The Mi VR works in conjunction with the Mi Note 2, Mi 5s, Mi 5s Plus and Mi 5. It will cost 199 yuan, converted and with VAT that is about 33 euros.
Xiaomi also showed the Mi MIX, a device of which is now only a prototype, but which will actually be released in the long term. This phone has a 6.4″ screen with virtually no screen edges. The corners of the screen are rounded to follow the edges of the housing. The entire housing is made of ceramic, which according to Xiaomi gives it an 8 on Mohs’ hardness scale.
Xiaomi claims to be able to place the ear speaker and the motion sensor behind the screen by using undisclosed “new technology”. The screen has a 17:9 ratio, but with on-screen navigation keys, it’s 16:9.
The phone has a Snapdragon 821, 4GB ram, and 128GB storage capacity. There is a 4400mAh battery with Quick Charge 3.0 support, NFC, a fingerprint scanner and a 16-megapixel camera with PDAF. Like the Mi Note 2, the phone will be sold for 3499 yuan. There will also be a more expensive variant, the Mi MIX 18k. The phone has 6GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. It will cost 3999 yuan, converted and with VAT 656 euros. Xiaomi indicates that the phone will be on sale soon. However, no date is given.
Display manufacturer Sharp showed a concept of a phone with a rounded screen earlier this month. However, the company has not announced whether that phone would ever hit the market.