Xiaomi opened sales of the 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max in China today, pairing Qualcomm’s new 2nm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 chips with two 200-megapixel Leica cameras, a second OLED on the back, and a hardware privacy layer on the front glass. Base 12GB plus 256GB units start at 5,999 yuan for the 18 Pro and 6,999 yuan for the 18 Pro Max, about $895 and $1,045. Steps up through 16GB plus 1TB land at 8,999 ($1,343) and 9,999 ($1,492) yuan. A transparent special edition sits higher. A global run is promised later this year after last year’s 17 Pro pair stayed in China.

Xiaomi just gave its next foldable, the 18 Fold, a public face five days before the China launch, and the company is calling the shape a mid-fold. Official video and stills from Lu Weibing’s Weibo posts show a shorter, wider inward folder finished in Nishino Red, with large rounded corners, thin bezels, and a horizontal pill-shaped camera bar that holds three lenses plus an LED flash. Folded, Xiaomi says the body is about the size of a passport and light enough for one-handed use. Opened, a 7.58-inch inner panel takes over, cut to a wider aspect ratio meant for split apps and video rather than a stretched copy of last year’s tall Mix Fold layout

Zack Nelson of JerryRigEverything recently tested the latest Xiaomi mid-range challenger, the Redmi Note 15 Pro+ 5G, for durability. This time around, the phone made some bold claims, as it has a fancy fiberglass back panel that’s allegedly ten times more impact resistant than regular glass, a front Gorilla Glass Victus 2 panel for scratch protection, an IP69 rating that means it can withstand extreme water and dust, and a massive 6500mAh silicon-carbon battery that’s supposed to retain 80% of its charge after 1,600 recharges. So, what happens when you make all of these allegations over the phone?