- The Xiaomi 17 Pro and Xiaomi 17 Pro Max have been teased
- These phones have an iPhone-inspired name and camera block
- However, they also have standout features like a rear screen and a powerful new chipset
Xiaomi has just teased its next flagship phone series, and so far, there are three quite notable things about these handsets – two of which sound promising, and the other being more questionable.
That questionable aspect is the name, particularly of the top model, the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max. Yes, you read that right: Xiaomi's next flagship phone is called the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max. For reference, the current top model in the series is the Xiaomi 15 Ultra.
So, Xiaomi has skipped the number 16, in all likelihood, to coincide with the same number as the iPhone 17 series. On top of that, it's renamed the top model to match the naming of the iPhone 17 Pro Max.
What's more, the camera block on the new Xiaomi flagship – shown off in a teaser video (via Android Authority) – looks wider and more iPhone 17 Pro-like here than on previous models.
But, in fairness, Xiaomi looks to be making better use of the large camera block than Apple, because rather than much of it just being empty space, it houses a ‘Magic Back Screen’.
This is a secondary display on the back of the phone, one that you can use to view the clock, as a viewfinder for selfie photos (meaning you can use the main cameras for those), and to see information from apps.
This actually isn’t a new thing for Xiaomi, as the company tried a similar idea with the Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra years ago. To my mind, that made it one of the most interesting phones of that year, and while Xiaomi ditched the rear screen for subsequent models, I’m pleased to see it’s returning here – and in what looks to be a larger and more capable form.
This could be genuinely useful, and should certainly help the Xiaomi 17 Pro and Xiaomi 17 Pro Max stand out from rivals – including the iPhone 17 series.
Extreme power too
The other notable aspect of these phones is that they will be the first to use the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 Extreme Edition.
Breaking that down, the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 is the confusingly named successor to the Snapdragon 8 Elite – a chipset that powers many of this year’s best Android phones.
So, it’s very new and very powerful, and the Extreme Edition is even more powerful, with this having a slightly faster 4.7GHz prime CPU core.
These phones are set to launch before the end of September, so there’s not long to wait for them – though whether they will launch globally at that point or initially just in China remains to be seen.
But whenever they do land, thanks to that rear screen, they have a chance at being among the most interesting handsets available.
