Xiaomi Mi 5s and Mi 5s Plus unveiled, redefine the affordable flagship smartphone segment
Move over OnePlus, Xiaomi has two new smartphones which will blow the OnePlus 3 out of the water. Xiaomi has been delivery smartphones will incredible value for years, but the newly-introduced Xiaomi Mi 5s and Mi 5s Plus are poised to redefine everyone’s expectations of what affordable smartphones should offer.
While the two phones share the Xiaomi Mi 5s name, their specifications are dramatically different. The Mi 5s comes equipped with a Snapdragon 821 processor, 5.15-inch 1080 display, 3200mAh battery, an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor and 12MP Sony IMX378 with an f/2.0 lens which can record 4K video at 30 fps and 1080p videos at 120 fps. The front-facing camera comes with a 4MP sensor and an 80-degree wide angle lens.
The Xiaomi Mi 5s is also the first smartphone to come with an Ultrasonic fingerprint sensor which sits below the glass on the front of the phone. Users will have the option to choose between the base model which comes with 3GB of RAM and 64GB of storage for ¥1,999 ($300 USD) or an upgraded model with 4GB of RAM and 128GB of storage for ¥2,299 ($345 USD).
The Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus is powered by a Snapdragon 821 processor as well, but its chip is clocked at 2.35GHz Snapdragon 821. The phone also comes with 4GB RAM/64GB storage and 6GB RAM/128GB storage options and comes with a 3,800 mAh battery. The main camera on the back of the device features two 13MP sensors with OIS and the 4MP front-facing camera has the same 2.0µm pixel as the UltraPixel sensor features on HTC’s devices. The 4GB model will sell for ¥2,299 ($345 USD) while the 6GB model will cost ¥2,599 ($390 USD).
As for design, both phones are wrapped in aluminum unibody frames with 2.5D glass around the front. While the Mi 5s has its fingerprint sensor positioned on the front, the Mi 5s Plus moves the fingerprint sensor to the back, aligning it in the middle with its two cameras. Pre-orders for both phones open up on September 29 in China, but Xiaomi isn’t disclosing when the two phones will be made available in other markets.
With devices like the Mi 5s and Mi 5s Plus, do you think Xiaomi could take on Samsung and Apple?
Xiaomi Mi 5s photo gallery
Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus photo gallery
