Xiaomi Plans to Unveil First Buttonless Flagship Smartphone Next Year: Report

Xiaomi is reportedly working on a buttonless smartphone. While the Chinese tech brand remains tight-lipped about any plans to launch a handset with an all-screen design, a new leak gives us more information about the device. The rumoured buttonless handset is said to be in the early stages of development and is expected to hit the market in 2025. It could be equipped with an under-display selfie camera and is likely to run on a Snapdragon chipset.

Xiaomi Working on a Button-Less Phone

Tipster Chun Bhai (X: @chunvn8888) in association with Smartprix, leaked details of Xiaomi's purported flagship buttonless device, which is said to be codenamed 'Zhuque'. This handset might lack physical power and volume buttons and will likely rely on gestures, pressure-sensitive edges and voice commands for controls, as per the publication.

The Zhuque smartphone is currently said to be in the early stages of development, and it could launch in 2025. It is tipped to feature an under-display selfie camera. The all-screen phone is expected to be powered by Qualcomm's unreleased Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 4 SoC. The same chipset codenamed SM8775 is believed to arrive on the Xiaomi 15S Pro that is said to arrive next year. It is rumoured to be an enhanced variant of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 chipset that is expected to debut in October.

Xiaomi has yet to reveal any details about the existence of a buttonless phone and we can expect the rumoured device to undergo changes before the final release. Apple was also tipped to introduce a buttonless design on the iPhone 15 Pro, but the handset arrived with the same physical buttons as its predecessors.

Other Chinese OEMs like Meizu and Vivo have successfully developed this technology in recent years. The Meizu Zero smartphone has no physical buttons, ports, or a SIM tray slot. It relies on eSIM and pressure-sensitive volume and power buttons. Similarly, the Vivo Apex 2019 concept phone doesn't have any physical buttons and relies on pressure and gestures for quick actions.