I get a thrill each time Xiaomi teases one thing new. Proper now, I’m excited about by no means looking for an outlet once more.

I by no means get bored testing Xiaomi’s telephones. They’ve foldables, huge one-inch Sony sensors that seize pictures with hanging depth, and now POCO X8 Professional leaks trace at a handset that would pack one of many largest batteries you’ll see in a mainstream smartphone. In China, the identical system will quickly launch because the Redmi Turbo 5, promising just a few surprises alongside the way in which.

Xiaomi’s transfer to tackle Tesla within the EV market sounds wild (I’m curious too), however the smartphone aspect is simply as thrilling. Whereas the typical value of smartphones in america is forecast to extend from 2023 to 2028, Xiaomi is taking a distinct method. The POCO X8 Professional might stand out by providing robust efficiency at a value that is sensible. In fact, like something value chasing, there’s a catch.

Launch date and value

Leaks counsel Xiaomi is making ready to launch the Redmi Turbo 5 in November for the Chinese language market. The system will comply with with a global rollout—because the POCO X8 Professional—round January.

Trying on the Turbo 4’s launch tag of CN¥1,999 ($280) for the 12 GB + 256 GB setup, the brand new mannequin ought to sit near that mark. With some new options on board, I’d nonetheless guess on a value close to $280, a variety the place Xiaomi tends to drag forward of the gang.

Design and show

Digital Chat Station says that the POCO X8 Professional will sport a steel mid-frame, an enormous step up from the plastic design of its predecessor. The punch-hole display screen design provides a modern, fashionable contact that makes the cellphone look sharper.

On the show entrance, the Redmi Turbo 5 shines with a 6.7-inch AMOLED panel, packing a 1220 x 2712 decision and a crisp 446 ppi pixel density. Pictures pop and scrolling feels easy due to the 120  Hz refresh price. Nevertheless, what units the Turbo 5 aside is the 4,000 nits peak brightness, making the display screen straightforward to see even underneath direct daylight. For comparability, the iPhone 17 Professional Max reaches 3,000 nits outdoor.

Efficiency

Good Pikachu says that the Turbo 5 might run on MediaTek’s Dimensity 8500 Extremely chipset. Speaking about MediaTek, the 9500e and 8500 chips are anticipated to drop by January. The 9500e stands out with speeds as much as 3.73 GHz. Its CPU mixes 1× Cortex-X925, 3× Cortex-X4, and 4× Cortex-A720 cores. So whereas the 9500e focuses on uncooked energy, the Dimensity 8500 leans towards stability. It makes use of TSMC’s 4nm course of and packs eight high-performance cores based mostly on ARM’s new A725 design.

If Xiaomi goes with the Dimensity 8500 Extremely, the Turbo 5 will be a part of the OPPO Reno 15 Professional, HONOR Energy 2, and realme Neo 8, all rumored to sport the identical MediaTek chip.

Battery

Smartphone makers have been pushing battery sizes to new heights in 2025, with the HONOR X70 hitting 8,300 mAh. And it appears like the subsequent breakthrough might be even greater.

One other report from Digital Chat Station claims that Xiaomi plans to pack a 9,000 mAh battery into one among its upcoming telephones. The one-cell silicon battery is prepared for manufacturing, in accordance with the Weibo tipster.

Which mannequin will get this monster battery stays unclear. Some sources level to a base 7,500 mAh model, so the 9,000 mAh possibility may go to a Professional or Professional Max variant. On prime of that, the mysterious handset will help 100 W quick charging, which raises the stakes even larger.

Nonetheless, I doubt the Redmi Turbo 5 sequence will attain markets exterior China with the identical battery. Telephones with greater silicon-carbon cells often drop capability for Europe and the US. So, preserve your expectations in examine.

If you happen to surprise why Apple and Samsung don’t supply huge batteries, the reply comes all the way down to strict rules. As an illustration, US federal guidelines (49 CFR 173.185) prohibit lithium-ion batteries inside telephones to twenty Wh, which caps the dimensions firms can ship. That explains my wrestle with the iPhone 15 Professional final week—my battery died in the midst of trip (kudos to my energy financial institution for getting me to the lodge and not using a downside).

Parting ideas

If Xiaomi brings the POCO X8 Professional to world markets with the identical 9,000 mAh battery, I’m already planning how one can seize one right here in Armenia. I can think about by no means worrying about operating out of juice, even on my longest days out. Simply excited about carrying a cellphone that lasts by means of journeys, work, and random scroll periods makes me smile. However hey, for those who’re within the “battery beats slim” camp like me, don’t get too excited simply but—Xiaomi may play it protected exterior China.

Grigor Baklajyan is a copywriter masking expertise at Gadget Move. His contributions embrace product evaluations, shopping for guides, how-to articles, and extra.