Xiaomi 18 Pro series launched with Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6, privacy display; global launch confirmed
Xiaomi 18 Pro series has made its debut in China as the company’s latest set of flagship smartphones. The lineup includes two phones: Xiaomi 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max. Both phones come with Leica cameras, secondary rear displays, and Qualcomm’s latest flagship chipsets. Xiaomi has even added a privacy display on the 18 Pro series that prevents others from peeking at your screen.
In addition to the China debut, Xiaomi has also confirmed the 18 Pro series will be available globally. Xiaomi India’s X handle also posted the global launch announcement, suggesting the flagship lineup is headed here too.
Xiaomi 18 Pro Max specifications
Xiaomi 18 Pro Max is the more premium model of the two, and it differentiates itself with its large 6.9-inch (2624 x 1208 pixels) OLED display that supports 1-120Hz adaptive refresh rate, up to 4,000 nits peak brightness, Xiaomi’s Super Pixel 2.0 and M11 OLED technologies. Xiaomi has also equipped the phone with a privacy layer that will prevent others from seeing what’s on your screen from the side and also protects sensitive apps and content. The rear display is a 2.9-inch screen on the Xiaomi 18 Pro Max, which also has a 120Hz refresh rate and up to 4,000 nits brightness. It displays notifications, quick controls, mini-games, and AI-generated custom cards.
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Powering the Xiaomi 18 Pro Max is the new Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 chipset paired with up to 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM and 1TB of UFS 4.1 storage. This is Qualcomm’s fastest mobile chipset yet, designed to deliver significant performance improvements over its predecessor. The handset is also equipped with a 5,513 mm² heat dissipation area for cooling when gaming or doing intensive tasks.
For photography, the 18 Pro Max houses a Leica-branded camera setup featuring a 200MP primary camera, a 200MP periscope telephoto lens with 3.2x optical zoom, and a 50MP ultra-wide camera. Xiaomi has upgraded the primary and telephoto cameras from the 17 Pro Max. The 200MP camera with 3.2x optical zoom will appeal to users who frequently capture distant subjects or want highly detailed crops. The handset also supports up to 12.8x lossless zoom, 75mm portraits, and 12cm macro photography, along with Xiaomi’s new Legendary Moment imaging system, which offers on-device and cloud processing with three dedicated camera styles.
The new Xiaomi flagship packs an 8,500mAh battery with 100W wired, 50W wireless, and 27W wired reverse charging support. This is a notable upgrade over the Xiaomi 18 Pro Max’s 7,500mAh battery. On the software front, it runs HyperOS 4 based on Android 17 out of the box. The phone is also equipped with an AI button that can be customised for privacy controls, voice notes, and more.
Xiaomi 18 Pro specifications
Xiaomi 18 Pro is quite similar to the Pro Max but with some key differences. Its display hardware is the same, but you get a smaller 6.4-inch 2436 x 1120 display and a 2.7-inch rear display. The smartphone also gets the new Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6, which is part of the flagship lineup but a tier below the Extreme model. Battery capacity is also smaller on the 18 Pro, as it houses a 7,000mAh unit, but with the same charging support as the Pro Max.
The rest of the specifications are the same, including the camera, software version, and AI key. Both phones also come with IP66, IP68, and IP69 ratings for water and dust resistance.
The Xiaomi 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max are both very strong Android flagships with promising cameras, large batteries, and the latest flagship chipsets. Both phones also add to the experience with the rear displays and the privacy display. If you prioritise privacy and unique features, the 18 Pro series offers a distinct proposition, making it a ‘buy now’ if those are your key drivers. But you should still compare them with other competing flagships like the Vivo X500 series and the OPPO Find X10 phones.
Xiaomi 18 Pro starts at CNY 5,999 (Rs 85,800 approx.) for the 12GB + 256GB variant, while the 18 Pro Max has a starting price of CNY 6,999 (Rs 1,00,001 approx.).
