Xiaomi’s Mi Mix Alpha Is a Crazy Phone With 180% Screen-to-Body Ratio

Although everyone’s been talking a lot about foldable phones, Xiaomi is thinking about something entirely different. The company just introduced its concept phone Mi Mix Alpha, a device that’s almost entirely made of a display.

The device apparently has a 180.6% screen-to-body ratio, thanks to the wraparound display. Almost all of its components are inside the display, including the in-display fingerprint scanner, and the pressure-sensitive buttons on the sides. There’s still a thin bar at the back for the cameras, though.

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Xiaomi’s Mi Mix Alpha comes with Samsung’s 108-megapixel camera that can capture photos with a 12,032 x 9,024 pixel resolution, reports Engadget. It also has a 20MP ultra-wide sensor and a 12MP telephoto lens at the back. There are no selfie cameras since you can just flip the device around and use to look into the view finder.

Specs-wise, the device is powered by a Snapdragon 855+ chipset, 12GB of RAM, 512GB of storage, and a 4,050mAh battery with 40W fast charging capability. It also supports 5G, by the way.

I am not going to lie, this is a very cool looking device. But it’s not clear how the software will take advantage of the display at the back, or whether the display is actually of any use. At $2,810, the device also won’t be cheap. Xiaomi says the device is already in small-scale production and it will be available in December in China. But for the device to have any real consumer interest, this display design actually needs to come with some useful features.

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Conversation 11 comments

  • Daekar

    24 September, 2019 - 7:06 am

    <p>I look at this and my first impression is, "oh neat!" My second impression is, "but why, though?"</p>

  • geoslake

    24 September, 2019 - 8:11 am

    <p>The hardest part will be to find a case for it ?</p>

    • 02nz

      24 September, 2019 - 12:35 pm

      <blockquote><em><a href="#470166">In reply to geoslake:</a></em></blockquote><p>And a use case.</p>

  • Tony Barrett

    24 September, 2019 - 9:01 am

    <p>I can't see any reason to own something like that other than the cool factor. At least <em>some </em>companies are trying to innovate though… ;-)</p>

  • jchampeau

    Premium Member
    24 September, 2019 - 9:44 am

    <p>Xiaomi has jumped the, uh, xiark.</p>

  • shmuelie

    Premium Member
    24 September, 2019 - 11:36 am

    <p>That's one solution to the folding issues!</p>

  • mikes_infl

    24 September, 2019 - 2:10 pm

    <p>wait a minute – it has 80% more screen than body – ummm, what?!</p>

    • waethorn

      24 September, 2019 - 4:11 pm

      <blockquote><em><a href="#470409">In reply to mikes_infl:</a></em></blockquote><p>Apparently math is hard.</p>

  • Rycott

    Premium Member
    25 September, 2019 - 8:31 pm

    <p>So… how delicate are the glass back phones already? Let's just make it more screen instead! That'll increase durability! /s.</p>

  • youwerewarned

    27 September, 2019 - 1:19 am

    <p>I refuse to buy one until the price reaches $4000, having been bitten by the transient snob appeal of "merely" $1000 phones…</p>

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