Xiaomi, the company that is known as the Apple of China, is at it again, this time with another copycat of Apple’s game plan (s).
In a new turn of events, the Chinese tech giant has unveiled two new smartphones dubbed Xiaomi Mi 5s and Mi 5s Plus. These two, as the names suggest, have come in to succeed the Mi 5, which was unveiled at the MWC 2016. However, the company has had a go at Apple’s strategies, this time going after the names as well as a few other technologies to be highlighted later in the article.
For starters, we must admit that the Xiaomi Mi 5s and Mi 5s Plus are two phones with some impressive specs. However, considering the bad blood between Apple and Xiaomi, those in the U.S. shouldn’t expect to get their hands on these phones, at least via an official channel. The two will be up for grabs in China later this week, but only through preorders.
Xiaomi went for metallic builds for the two phones and even though Android Nougat is already out, there is Android Marshmallow on the phones out of the box. Like Apple, the standard Xiaomi Mi 5s has a smaller screen size of 5.2 inches as compared to the larger Mi 5s Plus, which has 5.7 inches of display. However, where Apple has HD resolution on the smaller iPhone 7 and Full HD on the larger iPhone 7 Plus, you get Full HD resolutions on the two Xiaomi Mi 5s models.
Another difference between the Xiaomi Mi 5s and Mi 5s Plus is that the former has 3GB RAM and 64GB as well as 4GB RAM and 128GB storage options whereas the latter comes in with a 4GB RAM, 64GB storage as well as 6GB RAM, 128GB storage options. Despite the differences in the memory configurations, the two phones are equipped with the same Snapdragon 821 SoC, the faster sibling of the Snapdragon 820 that appears in most 2016 Android flagships.
Another major notable addition to the Xiaomi Mi 5s and Mi 5s Plus is the ultrasonic fingerprint scanner that replaces the capacitive one. What this means is that the two phones have their fingerprint scanner hidden under the display screens, a feature that Apple is also rumored to be readying for the 2017 iPhone 8.
Apple introduced huge improvements on the cameras of the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus. These are the same developments you will notice on the Xiaomi Mi 5s and Mi 5s Plus. Where there is a single-lens 12MP snapper on the back of the Mi 5s and a 4MP selfie sensor, you get a 13MP dual-lens setup on the back of the Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus alongside the same 4MP selfie camera. Both handsets can record up to 4K videos.
As usual, phones with such differences in terms of hardware and other specs have similar differences when it comes to pricing. To get the entry model of the Xiaomi Mi 5s, you need 1,999 Yuan whereas the high-end variant of the Mi 5s costs 2,299 Yuan. As for the phablet Mi 5s Plus, you need 2,299 Yuan for the 4GB/64GB variant while the 6GB/128GB model will attract a fee of 2,599 Yuan.
There is still no word on the global availability of the Xiaomi Mi 5s and Mi 5s Plus, but it shouldn’t be long before these details come out.