Xiaomi is working on a new Android One phone, could be the Mi A3
Xiaomi all but single-handedly rejuvenated the Android One program in 2017. The program, at the time, was failing and was focused on bringing stock Android to cheap, Chinese brands but Xiaomi’s Mi A1 changed all of that, as it was the first phone by a large mainstream brand to be launched under the Android One banner. The company could be set to release yet another Android One phone, too—one that would be its fourth.
According to a report by XDA-Developers, Xiaomi is currently working on a new Android One phone. The company released the Mi A2 and A2 Lite in September last year, and there’s a chance the device in question is the Mi A3.
The tip is based on a developer finding traces of an Android One phone in the Mi 8’s MIUI 10 firmware. The device was referred to as orchid_sprout, with the “sprout” suffix being a sure indicator of phones in the Android One program. The Mi A1 and A2 were codenamed tissot_sprout and jasmine_sprout respectively, for example.
Another major detail is the fact that the phone will be equipped with an NFC chip. Till date, no Mi A series or Redmi phone has featured NFC, so this would very much be a new development.