When Xiaomi filed a patent for a fingerprint scanner, people started speculating that we’re soon going to see the technology in one of the company’s upcoming devices, and the most likely candidate right now seems to be the Mi5. According to the new patent, the device can use an extra layer of glass over the home button which serves two functions – on one hand, it adds a little to the appearance of the phone, while on the other it also protects the components used in the fingerprint scanner.
Apple use something similar for their home button, protecting it with sapphire glass in order to make the fingerprint scanner more resilient. And considering the importance of the scanner in the device as a whole, it makes sense that they would pay special attention to its protection. We don’t know yet if there will be any other special protective measures in place, or if the extra layer of glass will prove sufficient for the Mi5, but hopefully it will do the job fine.
We don’t yet know when the phone is actually going to be unveiled yet though, and despite the speculation that it’s going to be announced in the fourth quarter of the year, there hasn’t been any official word from Xiaomi themselves. The company is traditionally a bit secretive about their upcoming projects, and it’s perfectly possible that they are indeed preparing the Mi5 for Q4 2015, but are going to keep quiet until they’re ready for the final big announcement.
The expected specifications of the phone include a 5.2 inch screen with a Quad HD resolution, and will be powered by a quad-core 2.7 GHz Snapdragon 805 processor. In addition, it’s going to have 3 GB of RAM and 16/64 GB of built-in storage, if the rest of the rumors are true. With all of that and a dedicated graphics processor, this device could be a huge entry into the Android market – especially if it comes with some extra gadgets like the fingerprint scanner that it’s rumored to have.
All of this will be powered by a 3600 mAh battery, which should hopefully prove sufficient for that package of hardware. It’s not a weak phone by any means, and it’s going to need a good battery to keep it running for a long time, but on the other hand, technology has been improving significantly lately as well and Android phones have become very good at making optimal use of their power. It’s not unlikely that the new Mi5 might require even less power than previous entries in the line if the company optimizes its operating system properly, but of course this is just speculation right now.