Black Shark 6: New leak casts a shadow on hopes for the high-powered Xiaomi gaming smartphone

The eminent leaker Digital Chat Station's latest comments on Xiaomi's main sub-brand of gaming smartphones are so potentially regret-laden that they have led to speculation that its upcoming 6 series of early 2023 flagships will never see the light of day.

To be more specific, a Google translation of the generally accurate tipster's new Weibo post on the subject reads: "[Shark emoji] 6 series is really a pity" - a wording that can be interpreted to mean that plans to make and release the devices in question have fallen through, possibly due to widely-rumored money troubles at the subsidiary.

That might indeed be a shame, as Xiaomi is also now said to have ported the high-end ceramic finishes of the Mix or Ultra lines to next-gen Black Sharks. Such premium rear panels are thought to be paired to flat or 2.5D curved 2K displays, and to pack "super large sound chamber" technology for "symmetrical double speakers" - a phrase that may or may not indicate that they are also front-mounted.

The Xiaomi Black Shark 6 may also bring the "strongest active cooling" to mobile gaming in 2023, which might be powered by the same 5,000mAh/120W battery/charging profile of the new Redmi K60 Pro. Then again, the "pity" about this putative Snapdragon 8 Gen 2-powered smartphone may be the prospect of its aging IMX686 main camera sensor.

Some gaming phone enthusiasts may argue that this is not a priority in this arena; then again, the RedMagic 8 Pro has managed to step up to a high-end 50MP shooter already. Nevertheless, an actual launch for a potential rival in the Black Shark 6 remains very much in doubt for now.

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