Xiaomi Mi 4i With Octa-Core SoC Spotted, Tipped to Launch at April 23 Event

The 'Global Mi Phone Premiere', which is set to happen in India on April 23, is expected to see the launch of several new devices. However, new certification and benchmark listings over the weekend tip Xiaomi might introduce a new variant of its current flagship, the Xiaomi Mi 4 handset. Called the Mi 4i, the name ties in with the 'i' logo and caption on the event invite.

While the invite just mentioned "I IS COMING", new reports indicate that the Chinese smartphone maker might introduce the Mi 4i, which was spotted by Chinese website MyDrivers on Singapore's Infocomm Development authority (IDA) database, and also on GeekBench, a benchmarking website over the weekend.

As per the GeekBench listing, the Android 5.0.2 Lollipop-based Mi 4i smartphone will be powered by a 64-bit octa-core Snapdragon 615 processor clocked at 1.65GHz and coupled with 2GB of RAM. This makes the Mi 4i a less powerful variant of the Mi 4 flagship, which houses a 2.5GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 SoC with 3GB of RAM.

Interestingly, the specifications of Mi 4i closely match the also-unannounced Xiaomi handset codenamed 'Ferrari' that appeared in a benchmark listing last month. The benchmark had listed a 4.9-inch full-HD (1080x1920 pixels) display, Adreno 405 GPU, 12-megapixel rear camera, 4.8-megapixel front camera, and 16GB of built-in storage, in addition to the specifications from the latest leak.

At this point, the availability date or the price of the Mi 4i is not yet known. The upcoming global premier of Xiaomi will see CEO & Founder Lei Jun, President & Co-Founder Lin Bin, and VP Xiaomi Global Hugo Barra, in attendance.

The firm last week said it has set a new Guinness World Record for mobile phone sales by selling 2.11 million handsets in a 24-hour flash sale held to celebrate its fifth anniversary - the Mi Fan Festival. The half-day bonanza, which brought in CNY 2.08 billion ($335 million) from sales of handsets and other accessories broke the previous record held by Alibaba's Tmall, which sold 1.89 million handsets on Singles' Day in November during a 24-hour event.