Xiaomi is reportedly preparing to launch its first wide-format foldable smartphone, and new information has surfaced about one of the biggest questions surrounding the device: its price.
According to a report from Chinese tech media, the Xiaomi 18 Fold is expected to debut in early September, with an official announcement potentially coming as soon as next week. The device has already opened for blind pre-orders in China, but Xiaomi has yet to reveal its final retail pricing.
Xiaomi 18 Fold Could Cost Around ¥12,000
Several Chinese bloggers reportedly expect the Xiaomi 18 Fold to be priced at around ¥12,000.
If that estimate proves accurate, the foldable would be positioned close to Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold8, which reportedly starts at ¥12,999 in China.
Pricing remains unconfirmed at this stage, however, and Xiaomi could offer multiple memory and storage configurations with different prices.
The Xiaomi 18 Fold could have an interesting advantage over its main competitors if the leaked hardware specifications are accurate. Reports claim that the phone will combine a powerful new chipset with an additional telephoto camera, potentially giving Xiaomi a more aggressive hardware package than some competing book-style foldables.
Wide Inner Display Could Be the Main Attraction
Unlike traditional foldable phones with relatively square inner screens, the Xiaomi 18 Fold is expected to use a wider inner display.
That design could make the phone more practical when unfolded. Watching widescreen video may result in smaller black bars, while split-screen multitasking could provide more usable horizontal space for documents, browsers and productivity applications.
Xiaomi is also reportedly preparing HyperOS 4 with deeper optimization for the wider display. If the software is properly adapted to the unusual screen ratio, the large inner panel could become more than simply a bigger screen and instead provide a more useful multitasking interface.
This could be one of the Xiaomi 18 Fold’s biggest differences from conventional book-style foldables.
XRING O3 Could Deliver a Major Performance Upgrade
Performance is expected to be another major selling point.
The Xiaomi 18 Fold is reportedly set to debut with Xiaomi’s next-generation XRING O3 chipset. The chip is said to use a 10-core all-big-core CPU architecture and has reportedly exceeded 15,000 points in multi-core benchmark testing.
According to the leaked figures, CPU performance could improve by around 60% compared with the previous generation.
The GPU is also expected to receive a substantial upgrade. XRING O3 reportedly introduces the G2-Ultra NX GPU, with graphics performance claimed to be approximately 85% higher while power consumption could be reduced by as much as 64%.
These figures have not yet been independently verified, so real-world performance will ultimately depend on Xiaomi’s final software tuning and thermal management.
Reportedly the First Mobile Chip With LPDDR6 Support
Another notable claim concerns memory technology.
XRING O3 is reportedly the first mobile processor to support LPDDR6 memory, with a maximum memory bandwidth of approximately 113.8GB/s. That would represent an estimated 48% increase over XRING O1, according to the leaked information.
The chipset is also said to use Xiaomi’s unified interconnect architecture together with advanced top-layer metal routing technology. The combination reportedly reduces static latency to approximately 82ns, potentially improving communication between different parts of the system.
For everyday users, these architectural changes may not be immediately visible in a specification sheet. Their real value will depend on whether they translate into smoother multitasking, faster application response and more consistent performance under sustained workloads.
Xiaomi 18 Fold vs. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8
If the reported ¥12,000 price is accurate, Xiaomi would be entering a highly competitive segment.
Samsung has already established its Fold series as one of the best-known book-style foldable lines, while Xiaomi appears to be taking a different approach by emphasizing a wider inner display and aggressive hardware specifications.
The reported XRING O3 platform, dedicated telephoto camera and wide-screen design could give the Xiaomi 18 Fold a distinctive position.
However, price alone will not determine its value. Hinge durability, thickness, weight, battery life, camera quality, software optimization and long-term update support will all be important factors.
Xiaomi 18 Fold: What to Expect
The Xiaomi 18 Fold is shaping up to be an ambitious first-generation wide-format foldable from Xiaomi.
A rumored price around ¥12,000, combined with the XRING O3 processor, a wider inner screen, LPDDR6 support and a dedicated telephoto camera, suggests that Xiaomi wants to compete directly with the most expensive foldable phones rather than positioning the device as a budget alternative.
The final price and specifications should become clearer when Xiaomi officially announces the phone in early September.
Until then, the reported ¥12,000 price, 15,000+ multi-core score, 85% GPU improvement and LPDDR6 support should be treated as leaked information rather than confirmed specifications.