Xiaomi has formally launched what it calls its first “mid-size” foldable, the Xiaomi 18 Fold. It combines a 7.68-inch foldable screen with a 5.38-inch exterior screen, both in a new, even smaller aspect ratio. Xiaomi is touting its A4 aspect ratio on both displays, creating a more unified feel when transitioning between them. At 219g, it’s also the lightest foldable the company has ever made. Interestingly, the front screen has an asymmetrical notepad look, with the right edge corners curved while the hinge edge corners are square. This helps the device stand out even more when so many foldable devices seem to have the same design notes. On the eve of Apple revealing its first foray into foldable devices, I spent a little time with Xiaomi’s passport-style smartphone during IFA and (like the Galaxy Z Fold 8) I’m in love with this beefier frame. And the stunning red color. Both displays are the first to feature a Xiaomi HyperRGB panel, with a “full RGB subpixel structure.” Both displays reach a maximum brightness of 4000 nits and support LTPO adaptive refresh rates of 1-120 Hz. Xiaomi is also pushing a more robust aluminum alloy frame and its own Shield Glass 3.0 protection on both displays. A new generation Xiaomi patented hinge has a three-link design that wraps around the screen. In person, it feels solid and strong, stronger than competing folding hinges. I pulled out Samsung’s Fold 8 to compare with the 18 Fold, and the Xiaomi phone is noticeably a bit thicker, although it also has a much larger battery. For Xiaomi, it’s a big deal in other ways: It’s the first of its flagship phones to be powered by its own internal silicon chip, the XRING 03. Built on a 3nm process, the chip combines a 10-core big-core CPU with a 16-core GPU. Xiaomi says the XRING O3 is also the first SoC to support the latest LPDDR6 RAM for faster memory access and improved performance. The company claims the chip combination delivers 45 percent faster on-device decoding performance on the NPU than its previous generation flagship processor. I hope to give the foldable (and Xiaomi’s home-made silicon) more scrutiny when we bring one out for further testing. As we’re starting to expect from Xiaomi, it has a sizeable silicon-carbon battery with what is currently the largest battery capacity for a foldable form factor (editor’s note: there aren’t many). Fortunately, the Xiaomi 18 Fold supports up to 67W wired charging and 50W wireless charging with compatible chargers. Mat Smith for Engadget Despite its passport form, unlike Samsung, Xiaomi doesn’t seem to make any compromises when it comes to cameras, with a Leica triple camera system. The 200MP main camera has a 1/1.56-inch sensor along with a 50MP Leica periscope telephoto camera. Our brief preview didn’t allow for extensive testing of the camera; However, I’m still in love with the Xiaomi 17 Ultra, so I hope it works well. However, the main sensor of this foldable is smaller than the main camera of the 17 Ultra. Xiaomi did not share an IP rating, which remains a concern with foldable devices. Mat Smith for Engadget Xiaomi is teasing a special edition silicon nitride ceramic that will resist bumps and scratches better and weigh about 50% less than traditional zirconium ceramic. Unfortunately, that wasn’t on display in a small side room during Xiaomi’s IFA exhibition. That being said, this red version looks gorgeous. The 18 Fold will also launch in black and white along with red, starting at 10,999 yuan (approximately $1,640), but for now it’s only for China. We will update this story if we hear more about availability. And if not, there’s another foldable on the horizon. The foldable iPhone will also definitely arrive in the United States.
