Mi CC9 Pro: This is Xiaomi's new camera beast with 5x optical zoom, a 108 MP sensor, and five rear cameras

While the Mi Note 10 has been the center of attention over the past few days, it would seem that Xiaomi had something equally impressive in the works. We’ve had multiple reports of the company working on phones with a 108 MP camera and we’re finally set to get the first of the lot, in the form of the Mi CC9 Pro.

Xiaomi launched the CC line a while ago with the release of the Mi CC9 and CC9e. It’s now set to follow the duo up with a more powerful, more impressive device in the CC9 Pro. The CC9 Pro will be Xiaomi’s most eye-catching camera phone to date.

There’s not much known about the CC9 Pro apart from its cameras. The CC line is camera-centric, so it makes sense that Xiaomi is marketing the phone as a camera device. And by all indications, it could live up to the marketing.

The Mi CC9 Pro will feature a whopping five rear cameras. It will be only the second phone to have such an array of sensors, after the Nokia 9 PureView. We’re willing to bet that the CC9 Pro outperforms the Nokia 9 in most shooting conditions, too.

The penta-lens setup isn’t a radical one, as it just fits in all the major camera types, bar a monochrome sensor. Of course, monochrome sensors are extinct these days—RIP—so it’s no surprise that the CC9 Pro misses one. What it does have is a wide-angle shooter, an ultra-wide-angle one, a telephoto lens, a macro lens, and a depth sensor. All bases covered, then.

The main shooter is a 108 MP sensor, the ISOCELL Bright HMX. That sensor was developed in collaboration with Xiaomi, so it’s no surprise that Xiaomi is currently the only OEM to have used it. It featured on the Mi Mix Alpha last month and will make its way to the mainstream market with the CC9 Pro.

The fact that it's a 108 MP sensor may lead most to believe that it’s just another example of the “megapixel wars”, but the ISOCELL Bright HMX is actually the biggest smartphone sensor in circulation, even considerably bigger than the huge 40 MP Sony IMX600 Huawei uses on its flagships. The bigger the physical size of the sensor, the more data it can capture.

The telephoto lens on the Mi CC9 Pro offers 5x optical zoom, joining the exclusive company of the OPPO Reno and Huawei P30 Pro. Details of the ultra-wide-angle shooter are unknown.

The CC9 Pro will sport a curved display with a waterdrop notch housing one selfie camera. It will be officially launched on November 5.