Xiaomi Launches the Mi 5s and the Mi 5s Plus in China

Just about half a year from the launch of its 2016 flagship, Xiaomi has released two more devices that become part of its flagship lineup. The Mi 5s and the Mi 5s Plus are upgrades over the Mi 5, and offer some changes that make for an interesting lineup.

Both the new devices ditch the glass back of the Mi 5 and opt for a metallic unibody design. The contouring of the devices is similar to the Mi 5, but instead of glass or ceramic, you get a brushed metal finish on the metallic back. The fingerprint scanner is differently placed and implemented on the devices — the Mi 5s features an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor on the front that utilizes Qualcomm's Sense ID technology. The ultrasonic fingerprint sensor can work through multiple materials and with higher accuracy, which allows the sensor to be placed below the glass surface. It is also immune to surface contaminants like sweat and condensation. The Mi 5s Plus goes for a traditional sensor placed on the rear of the device.

Xiaomi Mi 5s

The Mi 5s features a 5.15″ FHD LCD display, with the higher end variant also supporting pressure-sensitivity. The insides come bearing a Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 SoC, options of 3GB LPDDR4 RAM and 64GB of UFS 2.0 storage or 4GB RAM and 128GB of internal storage. The battery is of a decent 3,200 mAh capacity, and supports Quick Charge 3.0 via the USB Type C port. The camera setup on the Mi 5s is a 13MP Sony IMX 378 sensor on the rear with f/2.0 aperture and the front is a 4MP camera.

Xiaomi Mi 5s

As the name would imply, the Mi 5s Plus builds up on the 5s, but it does so in significant ways. The display gets a bump up to 5.7″, although it still retains the FHD resolution. The SoC remains the same with the Snapdragon 821, but the RAM and storage get bumped up to 4GB/64GB in the base variant and 6GB/128GB in the higher end variant. The larger screen also accommodates a larger 3,800 mAh battery. The camera setup on the front remains the same, but the rear setup opts for a dual-camera setup much like the Huawei P9. What you get is two 13MP sensors, with one for capturing color images and the other for capturing monochromatic images with more light and lesser noise. The camera and the software then combines the images together to give you an enhanced final photo.

Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus

The Mi 5s is priced at CNY 1999 ($300) for the base 3GB/64GB variant and CNY 2299 ($345) for the 4GB/128GB variant. The Mi 5s Plus comes in at CNY 2299 ($345) for the 4GB/64GB variant and CNY 2599 ($390) for the 6GB/128GB variant. The phones will go for sale in China, but there is no clear info on when these phones will arrive in markets outside of the region.

With the Mi 5s and the Mi 5s Plus, Xiaomi is preparing to battle against the new range of smartphones that have come out in the second half of 2016. But with Xiaomi following a six-month release cycle for flagships and refreshes, we can expect to see a newer flagship in the early months of 2017. We just hope that the flagships released in the past, like the Mi 5, are not forgotten with every passing six-month period.

What are your thoughts on the Xiaomi Mi 5s and the Mi 5s Plus? Let us know in the comments below!

Source: MIUI Forums

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