Following on from Samsung, Xiaomi is giving us our second ‘Ultra’ in as many weeks, with the launch of the Mi 10 Ultra – its new top-tier smartphone.
The Mi 10 Ultra may have leaked just hours ahead of its formal launch but now the phone is official and it’s taking no prisoners; with the headline figure being 120.
You’ll find this in its camera, which boasts 120x ‘AI Super Xoom’, its 10-bit-colour display, which sports a 120Hz refresh rate, and its charging technology – fronted by 120W wired charging (offering a full charge of its sizeable 4500mAh battery in just 40 minutes), alongside 50W wireless charging and 10W reverse wireless charging.
What features does the Xiaomi Mi 10 Ultra have?
Much like the recently-launched Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra, Xiaomi has taken an ‘everything but the kitchen sink’ approach with the Mi 10 Ultra.
The numbers above are the main headline features but the full spec sheet doesn’t really show any signs of weakness in any other areas, if you’re after a spec king amid the current smartphone market – save for perhaps the use of a Snapdragon 865 chipset in place of the newer and more powerful Snapdragon 865+.
- 6.67in Full HD+ ‘TrueColor’ OLED display
- 19.5:9 aspect ratio
- 120Hz refresh rate
- 240Hz touch sampling rate
- 10-bit colour depth
- HDR10+ certified
- In-display fingerprint sensor
- Face unlock
- Dual stereo speakers
- Hi-Res audio-certified
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 processor
- LiquidCool 2.0 vapour chamber + 6-stack graphite layer + graphene cooling system
- 8GB/12GB/16GB LPDDR5 RAM
- 128GB/256GB/512GB UFS 3.1 storage
- 20Mp hole-punch front-facing camera
- Main cameras:
- 48MP f/1.85 1/1.32” ‘Super Sensor’ w/ 2.4μm 4-in-1 ‘Super Pixels’, 8P lens + OIS
- 120x ‘AI Super Zoom’ telephoto sensor
- 20Mp ultra-wide sensor w/ 128° FoV
- 12Mp portrait sensor
- 5G
- WiFi 6
- NFC
- IR blaster
- 4500mAh battery
- 120W fast wired charging, 50W fast wireless charging, 10W reverse wireless charging
- 211.8 grams
- MIUI 12 (atop Android 10)
- Colours: Obsidian Black, Mercury Silver, Transparent Edition
Xiaomi was also quick to shout about the fact that testing outfit DXOMARK have appointed the Mi 10 Ultra camera setup the highest-ranked on a smartphone with a score of 130 points – impressive, if you take stock in DXOMARK’s opinion.
For those concerned about the ludicrous fast-charging speeds cited, Xiaomi also says that the dual-cell battery is will retain at least 90% of its capacity after 800 charging cycles.
We discussed the Mi 10 Ultra on episode 28 of Fast Charge, Tech Advisor’s weekly phone show. It was the first topic covered, so skip to 6 minutes to start watching.
Related: Best Xiaomi phones 2020
Aside from the phone, Xiaomi also announced a number of other technological goodies; including the Redmi K30 Ultra – with 5G and a 64Mp-led quad-camera setup, the Ninebot GoKart Pro Lamborghini Edition and the Mi TV Lux Transparent Edition, which as you might have guessed is a transparent TV, with a 120Hz refresh rate and a transparent OLED display.
How much is the Xiaomi Mi 10 Ultra?
The Mi 10 Ultra is currently only slated to launch in mainland China, however, the availability of other members of the Mi 10 series in other markets across Asia and Europe gives us some hope that the phone will be available elsewhere at a later date.
It’s initially available for pre-order with a CNY¥100 down payment, however, the phone itself costs CNY¥5,299 (approximately £585, €650, US$765 or AU$1065), CNY¥5,599 (approximately £615, €685, US$805 or AU$1125), CNY¥5,999 (approximately £660, €735, US$865 or AU$1205) and CNY¥6,999 (approximately £770, €855, US$1010 or AU$1405) respectively, depending on the SKU chosen: 8GB RAM + 128GB, 8GB RAM + 256GB, 12GB RAM + 256GB or 16GB RAM + 512GB.
When can I buy the Xiaomi Mi 10 Ultra?
The Xiaomi Mi 10 Ultra will be available to pre-order for customers in mainland China from 9:30pm – Beijing time on 11 August and will be available for buy from 10am Beijing time on 16 August.