Xiaomi Mi Mix Alpha 2 pops up in patent filing

The Mi Mix Alpha could well have re-positioned the Mi Mix series, but it never made its way to mass production. As it stands, there has been no commercially available Mi Mix device since the Mi Mix 3. Ultimately, the wraparound display proved unworkable, but LetsGoDigital has discovered that Xiaomi may not have abandoned the idea of the Alpha altogether.

It turns out that Xiaomi filed a patent in June with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, in which it detailed a smartphone that resembles the Mi Mix Alpha. In fact, it is improbable to tell the front of the display from the back, as it wraps uniformly around the chassis of the device. Only the orientation of the cameras offers an indication, which pop-up from within the main housing. The pop-up camera features three cameras and dual LED flashes, giving the device the usability of something like the ASUS ZenFone 7 series.

Unusually, the patent also includes space for a 3.5 mm headphone jack. Unsurprisingly, there is a USB Type-C port too, with Xiaomi not yet following Apple's rumoured plans of releasing a portless iPhone at some stage. The Mi Mix Alpha 2 may well remain at the design stage for Xiaomi, but is interesting to see the company continue to build on the form factor of the Mi Mix Alpha.