Xiaomi has been a pioneer in the realm of “book-style,” “large style,” and “horizontally folding” foldable phones that transform into tablets, and they’ve already reached their third generation with the recent release of the Mix Fold 3. Surprisingly, however, Xiaomi has refrained from entering the flip-style foldable market, while many of its Chinese competitors have embraced this trend.
However, it appears that Xiaomi is now ready to venture into the flip foldable space. The name “Xiaomi Mix Flip” has surfaced in a Chinese IMEI database today, confirming the imminent arrival of such a device, bearing the model number 2311BPN23C.
As per a prior rumor, it’s suggested that Xiaomi’s first foldable, the Mix Flip, will make its debut alongside the Mix Fold 4 next year. This implies that the wait may not be over just yet. Some sources are speculating, based on the model number starting with “23,” that the Mix Flip might actually hit the market before the close of this year.
Moreover, the purported design of the Mix Flip has also surfaced. When unfolded, the screen side resembles that of other flip-style phones, with a distinctive camera island that bears a resemblance to that of a Pixel device in the sketch, though its real-world appearance may differ.
This island houses three sensors, implying the inclusion of a telephoto lens, and it’s rumored to provide 3x optical zoom.
The phone is expected to be equipped with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 SoC, slated for its official debut next month. Given that the Mix Fold 3 is notably slim and lightweight for a foldable device, it’s possible that Xiaomi will aim to imbue the Mix Flip with similar characteristics to maintain a cohesive product family feel.
It’s worth noting that all the previous iterations of Mix Folds have been exclusively available in China, and regrettably, the same fate may befall the Mix Flip.