Xiaomi Announces Foldable iPhone Rival

[MacRumors]

Xiaomi today officially announced the 18 Fold, its first wide-format foldable, at a product event in China, two days before Apple is expected to unveil its own first foldable iPhone.

The Xiaomi 18 Fold uses a similar wide-folding design to the Samsung Z Fold8 and Apple's upcoming foldable iPhone. It features a 5.38-inch outer display and a 7.58-inch inner display, both with 120Hz LTPO technology and 4000 nits of peak brightness. The display is protected by a new double-layer ultra-thin glass structure.

The phone folds around a redesigned hinge Xiaomi calls the "Dragon Bone" hinge, which the company says underwent 492 structural optimizations, facilitating a noticeably more rounded design than Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold8. It launches in four finishes, including a Nishino Red colorway and a limited Ceramic Special Edition capped at 1,500 units.

The 18 Fold is the first flagship to contain Xiaomi's in-house Xring O3 chip, built using a 3nm process with a 10-core CPU clocked to 4.35GHz and a 16-core GPU. Xiaomi says the chip delivers a 60% multi-core CPU gain and an 85% GPU performance gain over its predecessor, with power draw down 25% and 64% respectively, alongside a dedicated NPU rated at 200 TOPS.

The rear camera system was developed with Leica and is led by a 200-megapixel main sensor, alongside a 50-megapixel ultrawide and a 50-megapixel periscope telephoto lens with 3.5x optical zoom. Apple's first foldable iPhone is expected to feature two rear cameras only, with no dedicated telephoto camera.

The device ships with Xiaomi's HyperOS 4 software and a 6,000mAh battery supporting 67W wired and 50W wireless charging. Pricing starts at 10,999 yuan (approximately $1,638), for the base 12GB RAM and 256GB storage configuration, rising to 14,999 yuan (approximately $2,235) for the top 16GB/1TB model, with a limited Ceramic Special Edition at 15,999 yuan (approximately $2,384). Apple's foldable is widely expected to be priced above $2,000.

Xiaomi also introduced the Xiaomi Pad 9 Pro Max tablet at the event, which shares the Xring O3 chip, along with three electric vehicles under its Pengcheng brand. The company has not announced global availability for the 18 Fold; its earlier Mix Fold foldables have stayed exclusive to China.

Apple is set to hold its own event on September 9 at Apple Park, where the company is expected to unveil its first foldable iPhone alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.

Article Link: Xiaomi Announces Foldable iPhone Rival

 

[jz0309]

A rival to a product that doesn't exist, yet ...

But as they say: competition is a good thing

 

[Kylo83]

So original

 

[gusping]

No shame at all. The Chinese way!

 

[vegetassj4]

If Xiaomi can charge $2,384, I wonder what we can charge?



Ohh wait, he's not CEO anymore...

 

[Kirkster]

lol. Soooo busy trying to ride apple’s coattails on a product in search of a need. A 2K plus phone with a crease in the screen.

 

[ilikewhey]

but how did they shove a telephoto lens in there?

 

[klasma]

but how did they shove a telephoto lens in there?

Presumably the same way the Pixel Fold did, already more than three years ago. A triple-lens foldable isn’t anything new.

The camera plateau is also less obtrusive (though the body seems to be a bit thicker than the iPhone Ultra):

 

[digimc]

What is the point of this though. Xiaomi products are not available to purchase here in the US and those that have tried to import them have had egregious nightmares in doing so. Yes I know Macrumors is not just a US site, but I couldn't care any less about a product that I have very little ability to own or purchase.

 

[CharlesShaw]

I'm sure I'm not the only one who wishes Apple could gaslight the competition into making products that Apple has no intention of making.

 

[turbineseaplane]

Rather than focus on "they copied Apple!"

Let's just see which ends up being technically better and a better value product.

I have a feeling the Xiaomi may end up on top.

 

[klasma]

I'm sure I'm not the only one who wishes Apple could gaslight the competition into making products that Apple has no intention of making.

They’d have to gaslight their Korean and Chinese suppliers, which would be pretty difficult.

 

[delsoul]

If you can’t beat them, copy them 🙄

 

[klasma]

What is the point of this though. Xiaomi products are not available to purchase here in the US and those that have tried to import them have had egregious nightmares in doing so. Yes I know Macrumors is not just a US site, but I couldn't care any less about a product that I have very little ability to own or purchase.

You can get them on eBay and from other sources.

And on the flip side, MacRumors is reporting about a lot of US-only things.

 

[Lihto]

this foldable is next apple vision pro XD.. with this prices.. I don't see market for it..

 

[TruthAboveAllElse]

What is the point of this though. Xiaomi products are not available to purchase here in the US and those that have tried to import them have had egregious nightmares in doing so. Yes I know Macrumors is not just a US site, but I couldn't care any less about a product that I have very little ability to own or purchase.

I think you’re missing the part that it isn’t about what you couldn’t care less about.

Unrelated the that:
18 Fold… really?! Honestly that is just annoying.

 

[delsoul]

You can get them on eBay and from other sources.

And on the flip side, MacRumors is reporting about a lot of US-only things.

Truth. I have a huawei matebook x pro and is not an issue being used in the US. Even bought it at the Microsoft store at the time.

 

[svish]

Good color and great to see that it has a telephoto lens. Too bad that Apple foldable won't be having one. Don't know how many more years it will take for Apple to bring it.

 

[ClaraStahlbaum]

I wish Xiaomi was available in the US market.

 

[klasma]

It also comes in four colors:

 

[JTK Awesome]

lol. Soooo busy trying to ride apple’s coattails on a product in search of a need. A 2K plus phone with a crease in the screen.

This. I like the idea of collapsing an iPad into a pocket-size “phone.” I hate the fact that the SOTA is physically folding a screen to the point that it develops a permanent crease.

When we can do better than this I’ll be interested.

An iPad That Fits Your Pocket: Introducing a Roll-up Tablet With Flexible Screen Real Estate — Human Media Lab

Queen’s Human Media Lab unveils the world's first rollable touch-screen tablet, inspired by ancient scrolls BARCELONA - A Queen’s University research team has taken a page from history, rolled it up and created the MagicScroll – a rollable touch-screen tablet designed to capture the sea

hml.cs.ru.nl

 

[LoveToMacRumors]

apple: nooo that's impossible, it cannot have 3 cameras inside such a thin phone, we worked on this for years and didn't manage to, how can XIAOMI

 

[Amazing Iceman]

Xiaomi… LOL!

 

[Macalway]

"Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery"

Apple

 

[lilkwarrior]

lol. Soooo busy trying to ride apple’s coattails on a product in search of a need. A 2K plus phone with a crease in the screen.

Foldables directly more fulfill the utility of phones being pocket computers in distinct ways a slab phone factor simply cannot.

Several core functions of a smartphone are better with the foldable form factor such as typing and taking group photos.