Xiaomi has officially launched its new Xiaomi 18 Pro series in China, featuring the Xiaomi 18 Pro and Xiaomi 18 Pro Max. The new flagships bring major upgrades across performance, cameras, displays, battery life and AI features, while becoming among the first smartphones to use Qualcomm’s new-generation 2nm flagship mobile platforms.
Notably, the standard Xiaomi 18 was not announced at the event. Xiaomi executive Lu Weibing previously confirmed that the standard model will be launched separately at a later date.
2nm Snapdragon chips and upgraded vibration motors
The Xiaomi 18 Pro is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6, while the higher-end Xiaomi 18 Pro Max is the first smartphone to feature the Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6.
Both chipsets are built using a new 2nm process, making the Xiaomi 18 Pro series one of the first smartphone lineups to adopt Qualcomm’s next-generation 2nm flagship platforms.
The Pro Max’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 is the more powerful option. Previous Geekbench listings indicated that the chipset features two prime cores clocked at up to 5.11GHz, alongside an Adreno 850 GPU.
The phones also introduce Xiaomi’s new Ultra-Wideband Cyber Motor system. The Xiaomi 18 Pro uses a 7514 linear motor, which Xiaomi says delivers a 75% increase in transient vibration output. The Pro Max gets a 0916C linear motor with a claimed 112% improvement, with vibration tuning covering 26 categories and 183 different scenarios.
Dual 200MP Leica camera system
Imaging is another major focus of the Xiaomi 18 Pro series.
Both models feature a Leica dual-200MP Ultra-Clear camera system, consisting of a 200MP main camera, a 200MP periscope telephoto camera and a 50MP ultra-wide camera. There is also a 50MP front-facing camera for selfies.
The main camera uses Xiaomi’s new Light Hunter 960 sensor, measuring 1/1.28-inch and paired with a 1G+6P glass-plastic hybrid lens. Xiaomi says its low-refractive-index characteristics and advanced optical coating help reduce internal reflections, ghosting and flare in challenging lighting conditions.
The phones also offer a dedicated 200MP Ultra-Clear Photography mode, allowing users to capture highly detailed images and crop them later while retaining more detail.
For telephoto photography, the 200MP periscope camera uses a relatively large 1/1.56-inch sensor. It supports 3.2x optical zoom and up to 120x digital zoom, with the larger sensor designed to improve light capture for distant and low-light shots.
Super Pixel 2.0 display with hardware-level privacy protection
The Xiaomi 18 Pro features a 6.4-inch display, while the Pro Max gets a larger 6.9-inch panel.
Both models use Xiaomi’s second-generation Super Pixel 2.0 technology with a full-RGB lossless pixel arrangement. Xiaomi claims the panels can deliver clarity comparable to a 2K display while maintaining the power consumption characteristics of a 1.5K panel.
The displays also use Xiaomi’s new M11 OLED luminous material system, including a new green-emitting material. According to Xiaomi, luminous efficiency has improved by 20%, while peak brightness reaches 4,000 nits for better visibility outdoors.
Another notable feature is hardware-level privacy protection.
Using Super Pixel technology, the Xiaomi 18 Pro series can control the direction of pixel light output to create a physical privacy effect. Users can enable privacy mode with a single tap, while Super XiaoAI’s expert mode also allows privacy protection to be activated by voice for the entire system, individual apps or selected app groups.
The phones feature a flat integrated rear-display design and a micro-curved quad-sided frame. The front bezels have also been reduced to just 0.99mm. Colour options include black, white, pink and blue, including the previously announced Galaxy Blue finish.
Rear display becomes more versatile with AI
The Xiaomi 18 Pro series retains the secondary display on the back of the phone, but this time it has been upgraded into the Dynamic Rear Display.
Beyond showing the time, notifications and wallpapers, users can upload images of people, pets or characters and use AI to generate different styles of content for the rear screen.
The rear display is also more interactive than before. It supports voice interaction and personalised memories, while users can control selected system functions and Mi Home smart devices through voice commands.
Xiaomi is also introducing AI-generated app cards, with examples including egg timers, water-drinking reminders, Pomodoro timers, English vocabulary tools and recipe recommendations. Users can generate small utilities based on their own needs, giving the rear display more practical uses.
The rear display reaches a peak brightness of 4,000 nits.
Up to 8,500mAh battery with 100W charging
Battery capacity has also received a major upgrade.
The Xiaomi 18 Pro packs a 7,000mAh Xiaomi Jinshajiang battery, while the Pro Max takes things further with a massive 8,500mAh battery.
Both models use a 32% high-silicon negative electrode battery technology, allowing Xiaomi to increase capacity while making more efficient use of the internal space.
Despite the large batteries, charging remains fast. Both phones support 100W wired charging and 50W wireless charging.
On the software side, the Xiaomi 18 Pro series is among the first devices to launch with Xiaomi’s new HyperOS 4, bringing together its latest AI capabilities and ecosystem features.
Xiaomi 18 Pro series pricing
The Xiaomi 18 Pro is available in four configurations:
- 12GB + 256GB: CNY 5,999 (about RM3,648)
- 12GB + 512GB: CNY 6,999 (about RM4,257)
- 16GB + 512GB: CNY 7,999 (about RM4,865)
- 16GB + 1TB: CNY 8,999 (about RM5,473)
The Xiaomi 18 Pro Max is also offered in four configurations:
- 12GB + 256GB: CNY 6,999 (about RM4,257)
- 12GB + 512GB: CNY 7,999 (about RM4,865)
- 16GB + 512GB: CNY 8,999 (about RM5,473)
- 16GB + 1TB: CNY 9,999 (about RM6,081)
There is also a transparent special edition of the Xiaomi 18 Pro. It features a fashionable red design with a micrometre-level film structure that creates a three-dimensional relief effect, alongside transparent wallpapers on the front and rear displays that highlight the phone’s internal components.
The special edition also comes with a customised transparent red charger, USB cable and gift box.
The Xiaomi 18 Pro series is now officially available in China, with Xiaomi confirming that the lineup will reach global markets later in 2026. However, details regarding its Malaysian launch date and local pricing have yet to be announced.
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