From Mi 1 to Xiaomi 12S: how Xiaomi flagships and their prices have changed

Xiaomi has come a long and thorny path, developing the Mi series of flagships for more than a decade. Ahead of the Xiaomi launch

13 We invite you to look back to rememberbasic models of predecessors and their pricing. It all started more than 11 years ago, when Xiaomi Mi 1 was released - the brand’s very first smartphone, announced on August 18, 2011. It was powered by a dual-core Snapdragon MSM8260 S3 chip with 1/4 GB of memory and offered 4″ LCD screen with 1930 mAh battery. Its starting price1999 yuanlasted for five generations, up to and including Mi 5.

A year later, Xiaomi Mi 2 was released, which already receivedQuad-core Snapdragon S4 chip, increased to 4.3″ IPS screen and a collection of branded interchangeable covers in different colors instead of the standard white one. By the way, the device broke the sales record: a batch of 50 thousand units sold out in 2 minutes and 51 seconds.

In September 2013, Xiaomi Mi 3 was presented, andalready in October, Xiaomi became the fifth most popular brand in China. The device broke the Mi 2 record 4 times, selling 200,000 units in 3 minutes. The device shone 5″ FHD screen and Snapdragon 800 chip.

In the summer of 2014, Mi 4 was released, which turned out to be quitea minor upgrade to the Snapdragon 801, but pleased with the reduced frames. This was followed by a year and a half lull, which resulted in the debut of the hit Mi 5. The device acquired a new 16-megapixel camera with OIS, a physical button with a fingerprint scanner on the bottom frame, as well as NFC and a Snapdragon 820 chip.



Mi 4 (left) and Mi 5 (right)

In the spring of 2017, the company released Mi 6, makingrelying on premium materials: glass, stainless steel frame, dual camera and abandonment of the 3.5 mm audio jack in the manner of the iPhone 7 Plus. At the same time, as mentioned above, the price has increased noticeably: up to2499 yuan.

Another year later, in May 2019, having missed oneThe figure was released by Xiaomi Mi 8, which completely copied the iPhone X, including the design of the camera unit and the “bangs.” It is based on the Snapdragon 845, 6.21″ screen and again increased price - this time up to2699 yuan. Just a year later, Xiaomi realized that bangs were not cool and replaced them in Mi 9 with a teardrop-shaped cutout. The device itself was in many ways a minor upgrade, although it did not hesitate to become even more expensive:2999 yuan. Perhaps due to the introduction of wireless charging and an under-screen fingerprint scanner.



Mi 8 (left) and Mi 9 (right)

In February 2020, when a pandemic was emerging in the world, Xiaomi decided to go all-in and raise the starting price tag of the new Mi 10 by a third - to3999 yuan. “Ten” fixed the diagonal6.67″ as a classic, it sharply increased the battery to 4780 mAh (after 3300 mAh for Mi 9) and was one of the first on the market to offer a 108-megapixel camera with a pair of 2-megapixel covers.

The next Xiaomi Mi 11, presented in March2021, retained the same price tag, increased the charging power to 55 W, but was remembered for the massive defects of Wi-Fi modules that “died” because of the hot Snapdragon 888. Already in December 2021, Xiaomi 12 was released, not only losing the “Mi” prefix, but becoming more compact and cheaper -3699 yuan. True, already in the summer the price tag drawdown was canceled by Xiaomi 12S, which returned the bar to3999 yuan.



Mi 11 (left) and Xiaomi 12 (right)

Now we are on the verge of launching Xiaomi 13,which will receive flat iPhone-style edges and, according to rumors, will once again increase the starting price tag. Share in the comments which models of Xiaomi licensed flagships you have used!

    © Vladimir Kovalev.