Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 release date, price and specs: Handset could be the first to launch in the UK following deal with Three

Xiaomi is seemingly gearing up to release a whole bunch of new smartphones this year after a ton of released and unreleased Xiaomi-branded devices found their way onto the Eurasian Economic Commission’s website last month.

Here’s the full list of unannounced Xiaomi phones: Xiaomi Mi 7 Lite, Mi S1, Mi S2, Mi S3, Redmi S1, Redmi S3, Mi Mix 3S, Redmi A1, Redmi A2, Redmi Note 6, Redmi Note 6S, Redmi Note 6S Prime, Redmi Note 6 Prime, Redmi 6 Plus and the Redmi 6A Plus.

Notice anything interesting? Yep, there’s a Xiaomi Mi Mix 3S, but no Mi Mix 3. Does that mean that Xiaomi’s going to skip the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3? Certainly not, but it is surprising to see the phone left off the list.

We’ve already seen concept leaks of the Mi Mix 3, so we’re pretty sure the phone is at least in development. You can see the leaks below, as well as other news and rumours we’ve rounded up about the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3.

Xiaomi Mi Mix 3: Everything we know so far

Not all the rumours about the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 ended up being true, a 4,300mAh battery was always going to be ambitious in such a thin and relatively cheap phone, but it was a significant, attractive upgrade on its predecessor.

 Now, more than nine months since the Mi Mix 2 made headlines, our attention has well and truly turned towards the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3. 

It may feel a little premature to be discussing the Mi Mix 3, and we’re not expecting to see the Mi Mix 3 for a few months yet but that hasn’t stopped us collating all the rumours to get us excited.

What’s more, we’ve had the clearest hint yet that the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 will be coming to the UK after Three UK confirmed it had signed a partnership with the Chinese firm to bring its handsets to Blighty. After launching in Spain last year, which marked the company’s first official launch in a European country, Three’s chief digital officer Tom Malleschitz said to “watch this space”. Until now, you could only import Xiaomi devices to the UK from third-party retailers.

This news follows claims Xiaomi is set to launch the world’s largest IPO since 2014. Reports suggest it is aiming to raise $10 billion, which would value the company at a staggering $100bn. 

With this in mind, here is what we know so far about the Mi Mix 3 release date, price, specs and more. We’ll be updating this page as and when more information becomes available so be sure to check back in to see what’s in store for the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3.

Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 release date and price

The original Xiaomi Mi Mix was announced in December 2016 followed by the Mi Mix 2 in October 2017. Based on this pattern of releases, we’d expect the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 release date to be in September, at the earliest, but more realistically, October 2018. 

Xiaomi will likely unveil the phone in September but won’t start shipping until the following month.  

As Xiaomi doesn’t currently ship directly to the UK, we’re expecting the Mi Mix 3 to be available from resellers such as GearBest and Geekbuying as an import, unless the Three deal kicks in before the launch. 

Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 design

We may have seen the first glimpses of the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3, or at least its rear, thanks to Concept Leaks. The leaked image shows a smooth black panel with space for what appears to be a vertical dual rear camera, as well as a central fingerprint scanner.

The corners on the leaked handset are notably more rounded than Xiaomi’s previous models, too.

Beyond this, we’d be surprised in Xiaomi ditched the bezel-less display it has become famous for meaning many of the upgrades are likely to be internal, including the battery, camera specs and chipset.

Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 features

Leaks regarding the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3’s features have been few and far between and the previous models have been relatively well received, so it’s unlikely Xiaomi will fix something that isn’t broken.

Instead, we’ll run through what we’d like to see from the Mi Mix 3.

Waterproof features

Xiaomi’s phones aren’t waterproof, or water resistant for that matter, and with its more expensive rivals (as well as some mid-range models) offering such protection, we’d like to see it added to the Mi Mix 3.

Wireless charging

With Apple and Samsung both offering wireless charging, Xiaomi will be missing a trick not adding the feature to the Mi Mix 3.

READ NEXT: How does wireless charging work?

Headphone jack

We still bemoan the loss of the headphone jack on the iPhone, and subsequent handsets from Apple and its rivals. The Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 similarly ditched the headphone jack and we’d like to see it return.

If OnePlus can continue to make and sell flagships with the jack, why can’t Xiaomi?

VR support

Facebook’s Oculus recently announced it had partnered with Xiaomi to build the Oculus Go so the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 could add more support for VR apps and hardware, running more advanced sensors, for example. 

Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 specs

There isn’t much to go on specs-wise this early on in the rumour mill but we’d be surprised not to see the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chipset, with 6GB of RAM and up to 256GB of storage, on the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3.

The Xiaomi Mi Mix 2’s 5.99in, 18:9 display was so well received, the Mi Mix 3 may also follow suit.