The huge Xiaomi Mi Max made its formal debut last week, and it's already available for preorder globally, including for U.S. fans.
The massive 6.44-inch phablet is set to go on sale in China on May 17, while third-party retailer Gearbest kicked off preorders for international customers. Gearbest is also taking preorders for the new Xiaomi Yi 4K Action Camera 2, and it's among the most popular retailers for Xiaomi products.
The Xiaomi Mi Max is now available in two color options for Gearbest: Light Grey and Champagne Gold. The Silver variant is yet to go on sale. When it comes to available configurations, interested customers can choose between three models.
The Mi Max version with 3 GB of RAM, 32 GB of internal storage and a Snapdragon 650 processor costs $325.89, the model with 3 GB of RAM, 64 GB of internal storage and Snapdragon 652 costs $359.89, while the top variant with 4 GB of RAM, 128 GB of built-in storage and Snapdragon 652 goes up to $499.89.
Based on current conversion rates, the price of these variants in China translates to roughly $230, $261 and $307, respectively, so the prices for international sales are considerably higher. At the same time, it's worth pointing out that the prices include shipping and it may be tough to get a Xiaomi device in a global market otherwise.
These three variants available now for global preorder will start shipping next month, on June 21, in nearly any corner of the world, with free shipping. Still, although Gearbest starts shipping the product on June 21, it still takes quite a while for the products to actually reach their destination. With free shipping, it may take up to 25 business days to get the package. Customers looking to get their hands on the Mi Max faster can choose expedite shipping, paying nominal charges that promise to speed up the shipping process to 3-7 business days.
As a reminder, the Xiaomi Mi Max features a huge 6.44-inch full HD IPS display, Snapdragon 650/ 652 processing options, 3 GB/ 4 GB of RAM, 32 GB/ 64 GB/ 128 GB of internal storage, microSD support for additional memory, a 16-megapixel rear camera with dual-tone LED flash, a 5-megapixel front camera, and hybrid dual SIM support (micro SIM + nano SIM/ microSD card slot) with dual standby mode.
Other highlights include a sleek full-metal unibody, an infrared sensor, a fingerprint scanner, a large 4,850 mAh battery to fire up that massive screen, and Android Marshmallow with MIUI 8 on the software side.
