Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 launching in the UK with slide-out cameras and near bezel-free screen

Chinese tech giant Xiaomi made its presence known in bombastic fashion when it launched in the UK in November, this year and it’s now bringing another of its star smartphones to market with the Mi Mix 3.

The phone originally launched in the company’s home region back in October, with the UK now shaping up to be the first international market that will see the Mi Mix 3 on (virtual) store shelves.

The company’s UK marketing director, Wilkin Lee, showcased the Mi Mix 3 to media at a closed event in central London, promising pricing and availability will be revealed in the coming weeks. What we do know is that the Mi Mix 3 will launch within the first half of Q1, 2019 and as with other Xiaomi smartphones, like the Mi 8 Pro, will serve as a competitively-priced premium flagship handset.

As for the phone itself, it’s as every bit as high-end and capable as the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S9 or the Huawei Mate 20 Pro. Boasting a ceramic back in either Onyx Black or Sapphire Blue, the phone looks like a precision piece of kit. It boasts a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor and a dual 12-megapixel camera arrangement on the back that’s practically identical to the one found on the Mi 8.

Xiaomi says it’s tweaked the camera experience, however, meaning the phone has achieved the highest DxO score (108) of any of the company’s devices and it’s the third-highest scoring smartphone overall, based on DxO’s rankings.

Flip the phone over and you’re presented with a near bezel-free display; 6.39-inch, 19.5:9 OLED display. Thanks to some mechanical wizardry, the Mi Mix 3 doesn’t require a notch and boasts an impressive 93.4% screen-to-body ratio.

The front-facing dual camera setup resides within a manually-operated sliding mechanism that locks in place via a pair of strong neodymium magnets – not unlike the Honor Magic 2. Lee promised that the Mix 3’s mechanism has been stress-tested to withstand up to 300,000 actions, far more than the spring-loaded sliders of old, which were only good for a comparatively measly 100,000 actions.

The cameras set within the mechanism consist of a 24-megapixel main snapper, accompanied by a 2-megapixel depth-of-field camera that can add artificial bokeh to footage when shooting both stills and video.

Beyond the innovative design work, the phone also boasts a capable Snapdragon 845 processor, 128GB of storage and 6GB of RAM. Unfortunately, the UK version of the Mi Mix 3 loses out on the more lavish 8GB and 10GB of RAM options, as well as the choice of 256GB of storage that the Chinese model can be had in. The model destined for the UK does at least support fast wireless charging, fast wired charging and packs a 3200mAh battery.

Xiaomi even throws a 10W fast wireless charging pad and 18W power adapter in-box, along with a case.

Excited for the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 to arrive in the UK? Let us know @TrustedReviews.