Xiaomi on Tuesday launched a new smartphone in China, the Xiaomi Mi Play, clearly targeted at the budget segment. Right when the brands are vying with one another to launch phones with above 6-inches display, here’s Xiaomi launching a 5.84inch full HD+ display smartphone. The screen resolution is 1080x2280pixels and the bezels can be seen on the edges while the aspect ratio has been kept at a decent 19:9. There is the waterdrop notch on the display to house the front camera.
The processor is identified as an octa-core MediaTek Helio P35 SoC, coupled with the IMG GE8320 GPU for graphics. But there is very little information on this chipset since this is the first phone out with it. The RAM is 4GB and internal storage 64GB. This appears to be the only variant of the Xiaomi Mi Play if one went by the launch event today. The Android Oreo version 8.1 is the OS with the inevitable MIUI 10 over it as the skin.
The camera section features a dual camera setup in the rear, with a 12MP primary shooter and a 2MP secondary sensor. The front camera for selfies is an 8MP one. There is an LED flash in the rear panel.
The new Xiaomi Mi Play comes with a microSD slot to carry the onboard storage to 256GB. In terms of the communication options, 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11ac, Bluetooth v4.2, GPS/ A-GPS are all feasible and accelerometer, ambient light, geomagnetic, and gyroscope are the sensors on board.
The physical fingerprint sensor is in the rear panel and a 3000mAh battery to power the phone rounds up the major specifications and features.
Xiaomi has gone in for some attractive colour options for this new phone trying to make it appealing to the youth. Team Blue and Twilight Gold are the special colours with the gradient glass-like shading plus a regulation black colour option is also available for those who don’t believe in such jazzy colours.
Now the pricing of this Xiaomi Mi Play in China will be CNY1099 which is roughly Rs 11,000 or about $160. There is as yet no information on when and if the phone will be launched in markets other than China, but there is a strong possibility Xiaomi may choose to sell the device in India, one of its key markets.