Chinese Tech

iQOO has confirmed that it will launch a smartphone called the Z5 later in September 2021. The brand has also indirectly revealed that it will be a premium mid-ranger, thanks to its SoC, RAM and storage specs. A new leak also suggests it will have an FHD+ display.

As part of its live-streamed product launch of today, (September 15, 2021) Xiaomi has announced when its electric Scooter Pro 2 will hit the German market in Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1-themed special edition form. It has many specs in common with the normal version, although the new branded theme boosts its price by quite a bit.

Xiaomi has officially launched the Redmi 10 in Europe. Its specs are on par with its international variant, which includes a 90Hz LCD screen, a MediaTek Helio G88, 50MP quad rear cameras and a 5,000mAh battery. It will hit shelves on October 1 and retail for EUR 179.

Xiaomi has launched the Mi Smart Projector 2 in Europe. It has a peak brightness of 500 ANSI Lumens, a throw ratio of 1:2:1, covers 154% of the REC 709 colour gamut and runs Android TV 9.0 out of the box. Its price is set at €599 (US$708), putting it on the expensive end of the spectrum.

Xiaomi has revealed the 11 Lite 5G NE, its latest mid-range smartphone. The Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE builds on the Mi 11 Lite 5G with broadly the same hardware. The Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE will be available in Truffle Black, Bubblegum Blue, Peach Pink and Snowflake White.

Xiaomi has revealed the 11T Pro, the more premium equivalent to the 11T. The Xiaomi 11T Pro features a Snapdragon 888 SoC, a 120 Hz AMOLED display and a Samsung ISOCELL HM2 108 MP camera. The Xiaomi 11T Pro can recharge its large battery at up to 120 W too, returning it to full charge in under 20 minutes.

Xiaomi's latest mesh networking system comes in a pack of just 2 tower-like "nodes"; nevertheless, the OEM asserts this is all that is needed to allow the AX3000 to emit fast Wi-Fi 6 signals over an area of just over 370 square meters. It is based on a Qualcomm processor and also offers Gigabit ports.

Xiaomi has introduced the Mi Smart Band 6 NFC globally, having initially announced the fitness tracker in March. The Mi Smart Band 6 NFC supports contactless payments thanks to a Xiaomi and Mastercard partnership while retaining all the features of the original Mi Smart Band 6.

The Xiaomi 11T may be a budget option compared to the 11T Pro, but it still packs plenty of enticing hardware. Xiaomi has equipped the device with a Samsung ISOCELL HM2 camera, a 120 Hz and AMOLED display, a Dimensity 1200 Ultra SoC and a 5,000 mAh battery.

Xiaomi has unveiled the Mi Pad 5 series outside of China, but it has left the Mi Pad 5 Pro and Mi Pad 5 Pro 5G in its home market. In their place arrives the Pad 5, a rebranded Mi Pad 5 4G with a Snapdragon 860 SoC, a 2.5 K and 120 Hz display and an 8,720 mAh battery. The Xiaomi Pad 5 will launch in two colours.

Realme has now launched its new smart band, the Realme Band 2, in Malaysia. The Realme Band 2 offers a bigger display and battery compared to its predecessor and looks set to arrive in India with a price tag that would make it a cheaper alternative to Xiaomi's Mi Smart Band 6.

Xiaomi's new premium phones, the Xiaomi 11T and Xiaomi 11T Pro, will make their debuts tomorrow. Pricing information from reliable quarters has now been revealed, with the Xiaomi 11T Pro set to see a slight jump in price compared to its predecessor, the Mi 10T Pro.

Xiaomi has reportedly stated that users affected by the recent bout of remote phone locking can now start using their devices again. Apparently, the locking of Xiaomi, Redmi, and POCO phones out of the blue in prohibited countries such as Cuba and Iran was carried out as part of an investigation into grey market practices.

Xiaomi has surprised with the unveiling of its new Smart Glasses. The new device features bleeding-edge technology including a microLED display that the company claims can achieve a peak brightness of 2 million nits.

Redmi has now officially confirmed the imminent release of its second-gen affordable gaming laptop, the Redmi G (2021). The Redmi G (2021) will debut on September 22 and will hope to build on the strengths of last year's Redmi G while keeping things attainable.

Eight copper tubes for a laptop with a Core i5 U-series CPU? 1920 x 1200 native resolution for a 16:9 form factor? Chuwi may need to make some specification corrections to its latest 15.6-inch laptop.

Huawei has now unveiled its two newest office laptops, the MateBook 13s and MateBook 14s, in China. Both laptops offer lightweight builds, 2.5K 90 Hz displays, 16 GB of RAM standard, and 11th-gen Core i5 and Core i7 processors. Pricing begins at the equivalent of US$1,085.

Huawei has launched the PixLab X1, a laser printer with a futuristic look thanks to the "suspended" design of its upper lid. It is also hyper-modern in that its controls are in the form of a touchscreen and it can produce documents on smartphones via NFC. However, its most interesting aspect is that it is slated to run on the same HarmonyOS of this OEM's full mobile devices.

Xiaomi is hosting a hardware launch event this week, with the company clearly attempting to steal Apple's thunder. Now, it has started teasing its next-generation Lite smartphones, even if it promises to be a re-hash of the Mi 11 Lite series.

Realme has now officially acknowledged leaks pointing to the imminent release of a smartphone called the GT Neo 2 (or Neo2, as it turns out). The OEM has also posted a launch announcement for the same device. Meanwhile, a new leak hints at a collaboration between its brand and a high-end car marque.

Xiaomi has upgraded another of its smartphones to MIUI 12.5 Enhanced Edition. The Mi 11i has received the update alongside the September 2021 Android security patch, albeit on MIUI's global branch.

Xiaomi's Mi TV Stick is generally regarded as the best option for those seeking a capable, affordable TV stick. Realme is set to disrupt the market, however, with the Realme 4K Google TV Stick, thanks to Google TV support and 4K playback capability.

MIUI 12.5 Enhanced Edition has been wreaking havoc for some POCO F3 handsets. The device's random reboot issue has been acknowledged though, and a fixed build will arrive later this week.

Oppo is set to reveal ColorOS 12 on September 16 with new devices also expected to debut at the launch. Also making an appearance is a new limited edition version of its Find X3 Pro made in collaboration with Kodak.

According to a new leak, the Xiaomi 11T and 11T Pro will feature different high-end chipsets. Only one will arrive with the Snapdragon 888, although both have 120 Hz AMOLED displays and 108 MP primary cameras.

Huawei has started to extend invitations to a new event set to take place later in 2021. The OEM has divulged a location and host for this launch that strongly hints at an international debut for the product in question. Then again, the company has kept this device's identity a mystery for now.

Xiaomi will sell its new budget phone, Redmi 10, in Europe. The Redmi 10 will carry an affordable price tag, the same as last year's Redmi 9 while being a much-improved package, continuing Xiaomi's tradition of offering excellent bang for the buck.

Previous leaks have hinted at an upcoming OPPO smartphone with a new design intended to recall Xiaomi's Mi 11 Ultra in its camera hump. Now, the latest tips assert that this device will indeed launch soon as the K9 Pro. It is slated to arrive with an up-to-date MediaTek Dimensity SoC and an AMOLED display.

Xiaomi failed to launch a successor to the Mi Note 10 in 2020 but we could finally get one later this year. The company is geared to release the CC11 series in China, and details of the CC11 Pro—a phone that could well make its way to the global market as the Note 11—have now surfaced.

Yet another OnePlus Nord 2 has gone up in flames. The phone reportedly exploded spontaneously even though it wasn't charging or in use at all. Unlike the previous case, however, OnePlus may find this incident difficult to sweep under the carpet, as the owner of the exploded Nord 2 is a lawyer who looks set file a charge that could see Nord 2 sales discontinued entirely in India.

Xiaomi's code has now revealed the existence of four devices that will be powered by Qualcomm's next-gen flagship chipset, the Snapdragon 898. The phones include the Xiaomi 12 and Xiaomi 12 Ultra, while speculation leans towards the other two being the Redmi K50 Pro and Poco F4.

New renders have revealed what to expect from Xiaomi's upcoming 11T, 11T Pro and 11 Lite 5G NE. The trio will arrive on September 15, all with three rear-facing cameras and a sole front-facing sensor.

Realme launched the Realme Pad, Realme 8i, and Realme 8s 5G yesterday for the Indian market. Word on the grapevine touted a Realme 9 release as well, but fans will have to wait till next year, with the company sparking excitement by claiming the adoption of "fantastic mainstream processors".

Reports of Xiaomi locking Mi and Redmi-branded phones at an increasing rate have been shared online. It seems the Chinese OEM is targeting devices that have been bought or used in prohibited countries and territories. Xiaomi smartphones are popular in these sanctioned states but increased compliance with US policies indicates a likely expansion plan.

The Mi Mix 4 is Xiaomi's inaugural under-display camera flagship smartphone. This is an impressive breakthrough with which to launch; however, the device's all-new spec does come with the compromise of an FHD+ resolution. However, the latest rumors suggest that the OEM is already prepared to step up to 2K in its immediate successor.

Xiaomi has another mid-range smartphone in the works, not just the 11T or 11T Pro. The Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE is expected to pick up where the Mi 11 Lite 5G left off, but at a much lower price.

Alongside the Vivo X70 and X70 Pro, Vivo has also launched the X70 Pro+, a proper flagship with impressive camera hardware, IP68 certification, and a Snapdragon 888+. The X60 Pro+ already delivered excellent camera performance and the X70 Pro+ will hope to build on that thanks to its new V1 ISP chip.

Vivo has now unveiled the latest iteration in its lineup of premium phones, the Vivo X70 series, in China. The Vivo X70 and X70 Pro both feature excellent hardware and solid camera arrays, but a starting price tag that converts into just under US$600 may prove discouraging.

MediaTek has now unveiled its latest chipset for tablets, the Kompanio 900T. The Kompanio 900T sits underneath the Kompanio 1300T in the company's pecking order and will offer excellent performance and efficiency thanks to its Cortex-A78 cores and TSMC's 6 nm manufacturing process.

Realme has launched its first tablet: the Realme Pad. The slate will eventually be available in three different configurations and is powered by the MediaTek Helio 80 processor. Realme has priced the Realme Pad at a stunning starting point of just ₹13,999 (US$190) for the entry-level model. Sales of the tablet in India begin on September 16.

The Xiaomi 11T and Xiaomi 11T Pro launch nears, with Xiaomi set on unveiling the pair a day after Apple reveals the iPhone 13 series. Xiaomi has now confirmed that the 11T series will be its first devices to receive 3 Android OS updates and 4 years of security patches, matching the software support offered by other Android OEMs. Sadly, other Xiaomi devices are 'not included at this time'.

The Realme 8s and Realme 8i have been officially launched in India. Both phones are pretty feature-rich and fall under the highly competitive sub-INR 20,000 (US$271) segment. They will be available for purchase via Flipkart and Realme's official website starting on September 13

OPPO has announced new pricing and availability data for the Reno6 5G, a phone destined to stand out in the mid-range European market due to its MediaTek Dimensity 900 SoC. The device also offers an FHD+ AMOLED display, fast 65W charging and triple rear cameras.

Xiaomi will launch its first car eventually, with US$10 billion due to be invested in its EV vehicle business over the next decade. Now, the Xiaomi Community has put together a few interesting designs as to how that car could look.

The OEM OPPO has hinted that the next major upgrade to its version of Android, ColorOS 12, will be unveiled shortly. Meanwhile, a famous leaker has intimated that the same company will collaborate with the iconic photography brand Kodak to develop a smartphone that is also a homage to a classic camera.

Motorola has introduced its latest development in completely wireless method of keeping mobile-device powered as "Space Charging". The OEM has now condensed this next-gen technology into a desktop transmitter rated to send up to 5 watts (W) of power over an increased amount of open space to a compatible smartphone.

The Redmi K50 range of smartphones is already rumored to arrive in the form of high-quality handsets based on the specs predicted for them thus far. Now, a prominent leaker asserts their OEM will compound them with builds rated for IP68 levels of ingress-protection. The tipster also now supports the prospect of upgraded charging tech in the upcoming devices.

The iQOO 8 Pro recently launched as the world's first E5 AMOLED display smartphone. Unfortunately for fans of advanced mobile tech, it only did so in its native China. Now, however, a new Geekbench leak hints its OEM may be arranging wider availability for this flagship device.