Xiaomi is putting an end one by one to all the rumours about its unreleased smartphones. After confirming the launch of its new flagship, Mi 5, expected in February, Xiaomi just revealed that another smartphone will join its affordable product portfolio as soon as next week. The long-rumoured Redmi 3 smartphone will finally become official on 12 January, Xiaomi confirmed in a teaser image shared on its official Weibo account.
The teaser gives away more than just a date, as it clearly shows the rear side of the device. According to GSM Arena, the Redmi 3 features an all-metal body with a five-inch display. As per the teaser image, the camera sensor is placed on the top left corner right next to an LED flash, just like in Xiaomi's Mi 4i smartphone. The power button and the volume rocker controls are lined up on the left side of the device and a 3.5mm headphone jack sits at the top.
The textured finish on the rear panel, however, is something new, and we expect to learn more on the new design at the official launch next week.
Xiaomi Redmi 3 had been spotted in the past at the TENNA and Geekbench websites. The unexpected leak revealed more details about the upcoming smartphone, such as a HD-resolution screen, 8.5mm thickness, Android 5.1.1 Lollipop OS, 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 octa-core processor, Adreno 405 GPU, 2GB RAM, 16GB storage and a 4,000mAh battery.
Rumours have it that the Redmi 3 will feature 13-megapixel rear-facing camera and a 5MP front-snapper.
Xiaomi's Redmi 3 smartphone succeeds the Redmi 2 series, which includes the Redmi 2 and Redmi 2 Prime models. Considering the leaked spec-sheet, it looks like a major improvement over its predecessors. Comparatively, the Redmi 2 Prime came with a 4.7-inch HD display, 1.2GHz Snapdragon 410 chipset, 2GB RAM, 16GB memory, 8MP primary snapper with LED flash, 2MP front camera and a 2,200mAh battery. It is unclear though if Redmi 3 will come with a microSD card slot like in the Redmi 2 series, but it would make more sense if it does.
