Xiaomi were always going to launch something of interest at this years’ MWC. They certainly didn’t disappoint announcing a sleek device, with killer specifications and a price point that takes a disruptive swipe at the competition, in the form of the Xiaomi Mi5.
The Xiaomi Mi5 is a phone that has had almost as many leaks as the LG G5. These leaks were directly from the company (publicly, rather than the clandestine way others attempt to covert column inches) however with their Global Vice President, Hugo Barra, releasing teaser shots from the camera of the Mi5 in the lead up to the launch today at MWC.
Let’s start at the beginning. The Xiaomi Mi5 looks to deliver cutting edge specifications at a wallet friendly price. Something that many predominantly Asian-based manufacturers have attempted to do to play catchup with the big players. This is nothing new – Xiaomi have been delivering quality products for some time, and tinkering with various aspects of their devices, seemingly leading to this point.
On their MWC debut, Hugo Barra launched the Xiaomi Mi5 in front of the worlds’ technology press, and it might just be a game changer. There are 3 SKUs – 2 standard models and one “Pro” model, with a number of colour options to choose from. And yes, addressing the elephant in the room, it does look a bit like a Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge – we’re okay with that!.
Take a look at these specs:
Oh, there was one more little specification that I missed off – the price.
- Mi5 32GB – approx £220 (converted)
- Mi5 64GB – approx £250 (converted)
- Mi5 Pro (128GB) – appox £300 (converted)
Yeah, so that just happened! Amazing prices for those specifications, which frankly rival anything else on show. You can check out the full stream over at this channel:
https://youtu.be/nbGnMOiVKTo
The Xiaomi Mi5 will be available for release in China on the 1st of March with pre-orders already open. There is no global pricing or release date scheduled at this time however we’re hope to get our hands on one of these and see just how close it runs the established players, and whether a refined software offering is enough to convince the doubters.
