Xiaomi 13 Flagship Smartphones Launched, Priced From $573

Chinese consumer tech giant Xiaomi held a product launch conference on December 11, officially releasing the high-end flagship Xiaomi 13 smartphone series, a new MIUI 14 operating system and various AIoT products such as the Xiaomi Sound Pro, Xiaomi mini console, Xiaomi Watch S2 and Xiaomi Buds 4 earphones.

Xiaomi 13/13 Pro

These Xiaomi 13 smartphones are regarded as the result of the firm’s strategy to achieve a high-end positioning for the past three years. Lei Jun, founder, chairman and CEO of the firm, expressed hope that everyone would recognize a brand-new Xiaomi has been started.

These smartphones are also the second group of flagship models with strategic cooperation between Xiaomi and Leica, a leading German camera manufacturer. The series adopts Xiaomi‘s self-developed battery management system, creating the longest battery life among its high-end models.

Configurations	Xiaomi 13
Dimensions and weight	Length: 152.8 mm Width: 71.5 mm Thickness: 7.98 mm (glass cover version) or 8.1 mm (leather cover version) Weight: 189 g (glass cover version) or 185 g (leather cover version)
Display	6.36 inches, OLED, 1900 nits (peak), HDR 10+, 120Hz refresh rate, 240Hz sampling rate            Resolution: 1080 x 2400 pixels
Processor	Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
Memory	RAM: 8GB / 12GB LPDDR5X Memory: 128GB / 256GB / 512GB UFS 4.0
Software	MIUI 14 based on Android 13
Connectivity	Wi-Fi 6/ Wi-Fi 5/ Wi-Fi 4, 802.11 a/b/g/, Bluetooth 5.3, Dual-Bluetooth, GPS, NFC
Camera	Rear cameras: 54MP / 50MP (f/1.8) + 10MP (f/2.0) + 12MP (f/2.2) A front camera (f/2.4)
Color	Black, White, Green, and Blue, with limited custom color editions: Bright Blue, Yellow, Red and Green, Gray
Prices	3,999 – 4,999 yuan ($573 – $716)
Battery	4500 mAh, 67W wired fast charging, 65W wireless fast charging, 10W reverse charging
Additional features	Dual SIM slot, 5G

Configurations	Xiaomi 13 Pro
Dimensions and weight	Length: 169.2 mm Width: 74.6 mm Thickness: 8.38 mm (glass cover version) or 8.7 mm (leather cover version) Weight: 229 g (glass cover version) or 210 g (leather cover version)
Display	6.73 inches, OLED, 1900 nits (peak), HDR 10+, 120Hz refresh rate, 240Hz sampling rate            Resolution: 3200 x 1440 pixels
Processor	Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
Memory	RAM: 8GB / 12GB LPDDR5X Memory: 128GB / 256GB / 512GB UFS 4.0
Software	MIUI 14 based on Android 13
Connectivity	Wi-Fi 6/ Wi-Fi 5/ Wi-Fi 4, 802.11 a/b/g/, Bluetooth 5.3, Dual-Bluetooth, GPS, NFC
Camera	Rear cameras: 50MP (f/1.9) + 50MP (f/2.0) + 50MP (f/2.2) Front camera: 32MP
Color	Black, White, Green, Blue
Prices	4,999 – 6,299 yuan ($716 – $902)
Battery	4820 mAh, 120W wired fast charging, 50W wireless fast charging, 10W reverse charging
Additional features	Dual SIM slot, 5G

SEE ALSO: Xiaomi Invests in Automobile Chip Firm “Rhino”

MIUI 14

Lei Jun said that in 2022, Xiaomi adjusted and merged the MIUI team into the mobile phone department, then merged the AIoT system department and the interconnection software department to form a system software platform team. The new structure aims to address hardware vertically and, in the meantime, cover all Xiaomi businesses horizontally. MIUI 14 is the first project since the integration of the system software team.

Data show that after 12 years of MIUI’s development, global monthly active users reached 564 million. At a press conference, Jin Fan, the head of Xiaomi MIUI, said that the MIUI 14 system will launch a “Razor Plan,” including system streamlining, application cleaning and notification management, “making the system as light as possible.” System simplification refers to ultra-small firmware and memory occupation, and ultra-few non-uninstallable applications. Application cleaning is to save only one duplicate file and compress the volume of low-frequently used applications. Notification management means that often-used notifications support turning off by swipping. Finally, new application notifications need user authorization.

In terms of privacy, MIUI 14 further strengthens the user-end privacy capability. All data is processed by the phone itself while no data is uploaded to the cloud. This has covered over 30 system scenarios. Optical character recognition is processed by the phone, which is fast in extraction and accurate in recognition. For video conferences, it supports real-time bilingual subtitles, and translation records can be stored in a more confidential manner.

In terms of design, MIUI 14 brings a richer customizable visual experience, including icons and widgets. Among them, the icons support four sizes, making smartphone homepages more interesting.

Xiaomi Watch S2

The Xiaomi Watch S2 is available in two versions, namely the 42mm and 46mm, with sapphire glass and stainless-steel frames, as well as silicone, leather and brand-new staple straps. The 42mm version is priced at 999 yuan, and 1,199 yuan with a leather strap. Meanwhile, the 46mm version is priced at 1,099 yuan, and 1,299 yuan with a leather strap.

The Xiaomi Watch S2 supports measurement of eight types of human body data in real time. It also supports 600nit brightness gearless adjustment and an NFC function, as well as a professional running mode and over 100 exercise modes.

Xiaomi Buds 4

The firm also released a rare semi-in-ear noise reduction headset, the Xiaomi Buds 4, for the price of 699 yuan. The Xiaomi Buds 4 is equipped with graphene dual magnetic sound unit and dynamic adaptive EQ compensation. It adopts LHDC 5.0 transmission protocol, and has Hi-Res Audio Wireless certification.

As a semi-in-ear headset, it supports real-time adjustment of active noise reduction, three-microphone AI call noise reduction, spatial audio and a built-in six-axis sensor.

In terms of battery life, Xiaomi Buds 4 supports a single six-hour battery life, with a total life of 30 hours. In addition, the headset supports dual-device connection and IP54 anti-sweat.

Xiaomi Sound Pro smart speaker

The Xiaomi Sound Pro smart speaker was officially released at a price of 999 yuan. This is a seven-unit high-fidelity smart speaker, which has four times the acoustic space of Xiaomi Sound. It is equipped with a super-large bass which can deliver a shocking 91dB of sound pressure. It has been jointly adjusted by the Xiaomi team and Harman Kardon, a leading speaker company.

Xiaomi has been accelerating its layout in the robotics industry. A subsidiary of the company called Beijing Changshu Technology Co., Ltd. declared registered capital of 200 million yuan on December 5. The company’s business scope also added manufacturing and sales of industrial robots.

Regarding the matter, the firm responded to domestic media that Beijing Changshu Technology is intended to serve as the main body of Xiaomi‘s Changping Intelligent Factory, and its main business will cover mobile phones and robotic dogs.