If you thought that the iPhone 6 and Galaxy S6 were the "it" powerhouse smartphones to have, then wait till you hear what Xiaomi has in store for consumers with its impending Mi 5.
The China-based OEM is brewing up a new smartphone that is set to push the iPhone 6 and Galaxy S6 to the backburner. The company is already a strong rival for Apple and Samsung in China, and with the Mi 5, the successor of the Xiaomi Mi 4, Xiaomi is looking to further cement its position in the smartphone space, albeit in China.
That's right, the Xiaomi Mi 5 is poised to release in China in early November this year, according to leaks. Per reports, noted Weibo leakster Leaksfly has revealed that the Xiaomi Mi 5 is eyeing a November release. The smartphone was slated for a summer release, but Xiaomi chose to wait for the release of the next-gen Qualcomm chip — Snapdragon 820.
However, the Mi 5 making its way to U.S. shores is unlikely, considering that previous Mi smartphones did not release in the country.
According to Leaksfly's sources, the Mi 5 will sport a 5.5-inch quad-HD display. The smartphone will also boast the latest Snapdragon 820 processor and 4 GB of RAM, which aces the 1 GB of RAM and 3 GB of RAM offered by the iPhone 6 and Galaxy S6, respectively.
If that wasn't enough to get smartphone enthusiasts excited, then the rumor that the Mi 5 will tout a 16 MP selfie camera surely will! The 5.1 mm-thick smartphone is also rumored to boast a 20 MP rear-facing camera.
The Xiaomi Mi 5 is also set to come with Android 5.1 Lollipop out of the box per Leaksfly's sources. The defining feature of the smartphone — and likely its USP — however, is set to be the fingerprint reader, which comes embedded in the new Qualcomm chipset the Xiaomi Mi 5 will deploy.
The Snapdragon 820 apparently offers support for Sense ID that deploys ultrasound technology vis-à-vis optics. Ultrasound is supposedly more resilient to water and dust on a user's finger when compared with optics. Moreover, the ultrasonic technology does not require the presence of a physical button or a capacitive sensor on the smartphone (like on the iPhone 6 or Galaxy S6) to be functional.
The Mi 5 will release in 16 GB and 64 GB storage capacities and is speculated to have a USB-Type C connector in tow.
With the Xiaomi Mi 5 poised for a November release in China, smartphone enthusiasts can only hope that the company decides to make its U.S. debut with the impending handset and not give the country a pass as it has done before.
