A few months back we wrote about Xiaomi’s (“Apple of China”) Mi Notebook Air, China’s attempt at competing with the Apple’s slim range of products like the new Mac Book and (older) Mac Book Air.

And yes, as you may have guessed, they are back. But this time with a phone.

Ever since Apple’s September event, several rumors have been released about the development of the iPhone 8. One specific detail that has emerged amidst other rumors is that next year’s generation iPhone is expected to feature an OLED display, allowing for the screen to extend along the entire front side of the phone – eliminating the top & bottom borders that currently houses the home button, front facing camera, and earpiece. This rumor has been supported by Apple’s patent to allow the Touch ID fingerprint sensor to work through the display screen, and leaks of a virtual home button being embedded into the display as well.

The rumored look of the 2017 iPhone 8. Photo courtesy of Marek Weidlich.’

Despite the rumors of the iPhone 8 being the first phone ever to have a “borderless” display, earlier this week Xiaomi has announced a new product for their smartphone line-up: the Mi Mix. Featuring a nearly borderless front-side, a speedy Snapdragon processor, and a 16 megapixel camera, this phone is not to go unnoticed by smartphone enthusiasts. Although the phone is gaining massive attention for its small borders, there continues to be a small strip at the bottom of the phone for the front facing 5 megapixel camera.

An advertisement display for the Mi Mix.

Full Specifications:

• Network Technology: GSM, HSPA, and LTE
• Dimensions: 158.8 x 81.9 x 7.9 mm (6.25 x 3.22 x 0.31 in)
• Weight: 209 g / 7.37 oz
• Screen Size: 6.4 in (~84% screen:body ratio)
• Operating System: Android Marshmallow
• Chipset: Qualcomm MSM8996 Snapdragon 821
• CPU: Quad-core
• GPU: Adreno 530
• Memory: 128GB – 4GB RAM or 256GM – 6GB RAM
• Camera:  16 megapixel, f/2.0, flash, gyro (front facing camera: 5 megapixels)
• Video: 2160p@30fps, 1080p@30fps, 720p@120fps
• Audio: Speaker & Headphone Jack (3.5mm)
• Communications: Wi-Fi, 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac dual-band. Bluetooth, v4.2, GPS, NFC.
• Battery: 4400 mAh

Other than the display, the phone also makes use of a fingerprint sensor and a IPS touchscreen display (capable of 16M colors).

The Mi Mix at a Xiaomi store. Photo courtesy of Engadget.

So, will Apple continue to develop their rumored borderless screen? Or will they shift their focus to another feature they could call “revolutionary”? The wait for the iPhone 8 may take some time (most likely September of 2017), but you can get a taste, or rather touch, of the borderless display of the Xiaomi Mi Mix in China soon.

The expected release date for China continues to be November 4th of this year, however it is unclear whether or not the phone will be available internationally later on.