Xiaomi has introduced two new flagship devices, the Xiaomi 18 Fold smartphone and the Xiaomi Pad 9 Pro Max tablet, both built around the company’s newly developed Xiaomi XRING O3 processor. The announcement marks the arrival of Xiaomi’s first mid-size foldable phone and the debut of its second fully in-house chip design.
Design and Form Factor
The Xiaomi 18 Fold folds down to roughly the size of a passport and opens into a 7.58-inch tablet-style display while weighing only 219 grams and measuring just 5.02mm thick when unfolded. It follows a square-root-two-to-one aspect ratio, matching standard A4 paper proportions, allowing both the inner and outer screens to share the same ratio for a more seamless transition between them.
When folded, the phone measures 117.8 by 83.6mm with a thickness of 10.68mm, making it the lightest foldable Xiaomi has produced. Its rounded corners and flat-edge frame are intended to improve comfort in hand, while the 5.38-inch outer screen is sized for one-handed use.
Durability Improvements
The Xiaomi 18 Fold is engineered for long-term reliability, using a high-strength aluminum alloy frame and reinforced glass on both the outer display and back panel, with additional strengthening through ion implantation. A redesigned hinge uses a three-link mechanism that wraps around the screen for added protection.
The inner display uses a dual-layer ultra-thin glass structure, alongside a new stretchable film in the touch layer, which together deliver 258 percent higher impact resistance than before and allow the phone to withstand drops from up to 1.2 meters. The crease on the inner display has also been minimized to no more than 30 micrometers in depth.
XRING O3 Processor
The XRING O3 chip in the Xiaomi 18 Fold is built on a 3-nanometer process and contains 24 billion transistors, up from 19 billion in the previous generation. It pairs a 10-core CPU, made up of Ultra, Premium, and Pro cores, with a 16-core G2-Ultra NX GPU. The CPU delivers 60% higher performance with 25% lower power draw, while the GPU offers an 85% graphics boost and 64% lower power consumption versus its predecessor.
The chip is also the first to support LPDDR6 memory, reaching data rates up to 10,667 Mbps and total bandwidth of 113.8 GB/s. An integrated AI architecture includes a quad-core neural processing unit capable of 200 TOPS of tensor performance, contributing to 45% faster on-device processing.
Camera and Display
The Xiaomi 18 Fold features a 200MP Leica triple-camera setup led by a large main sensor supporting native high dynamic range, along with a 50MP periscope telephoto lens offering lossless zoom up to 160mm. Both the inner and outer displays use a full RGB subpixel structure and reach up to 4,000 nits of peak brightness with a 1-120Hz adaptive refresh rate.
The device houses a 6,000mAh silicon-carbon battery, the largest in its category, with support for 67W wired and 50W wireless charging. As for connectivity, you get global roaming across more than 210 countries, Wi-Fi 7, and UWB support. The Ceramic Edition variant uses lightweight silicon nitride, a material more commonly found in aerospace and automotive engines, for the back panel.
Xiaomi Pad 9 Pro Max
Alongside the Xiaomi 18 Fold, the brand also unveiled the Xiaomi Pad 9 Pro Max, a 13.3-inch tablet also powered by the XRING O3 chip. It features a 3.4K display with 144Hz refresh rate and up to 1,000 nits brightness, alongside a 12000mAh battery with 120W charging. The tablet introduces DP-in video input supporting up to 3.4K at 120Hz and includes a six-microphone array for improved audio capture.
Specifications
| Display | External Screen: 5.38-inch 1712 x 1168 AMOLED, 120Hz Internal Screen: 7.58-inch 2364 x 1672 AMOLED, 120Hz |
| Processor | XRING O3 (3nm) |
| RAM | 12GB/16GB |
| Storage | 256GB/512GB/1TB |
| Rear Camera | 200MP main (OIS) 50MP periscope telephoto (OIS) 50MP ultrawide 3.5x optical zoom, 7x in-sensor lossless zoom |
| Front Camera | 16MP (inner and outer) |
| Battery | 6,000mAh 67W wired fast charging 50W wireless fast charging |
| OS | HyperOS 4 (Android 17) |
| Other Features | IP58 |
Pricing and Availability
The Xiaomi 18 Fold starts at CNY 10,999 for the 12GB + 256GB configuration, going up to CNY 14,999 for the 16GB+1TB model, and the Ceramic Edition starting at CNY 15,999. The Pad 9 Pro Max starts at CNY 4,799 and reaches CNY 7,899 for its top Matte Glass configuration.
For more information on the Xiaomi 18 Fold, click here. You may also check out Xiaomi Philippines’ official website to check out its current product lineup.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
A: It is Xiaomi’s first mid-size foldable smartphone and the first device to use the Xiaomi XRING O3 chip.
It weighs 219 grams and measures 5.02mm thick when unfolded.
It is a 3-nanometer, 24-billion-transistor chip with a 10-core CPU and 16-core GPU, and it is the first to support LPDDR6 memory.
A 200-megapixel Leica triple-camera system with a main sensor and a 50-megapixel periscope telephoto lens.
It starts at 4,799 yuan for the base 8GB+256GB configuration.
Emman has been writing technical and feature articles since 2010. Prior to this, he became one of the instructors at Asia Pacific College in 2008, and eventually landed a job as Business Analyst and Technical Writer at Integrated Open Source Solutions for almost 3 years.
Emman Tortoza
Emman has been writing technical and feature articles since 2010. Prior to this, he became one of the instructors at Asia Pacific College in 2008, and eventually landed a job as Business Analyst and Technical Writer at Integrated Open Source Solutions for almost 3 years.
View all articles →
