Rumors Swirling of New Xiaomi Phone Coming in August

Leaked photos of a prototype Xiaomi M2

This week saw Xiaomi announcing officially that it’s making boatloads of money, but it has also seen numerous rumors emerge about the impending mid-August launch of a new model Xiaomi phone, predictably called the M2.

First, GizChina translated a leaked report from Xiaomifans.com about the new phone, which it said would feature a 720p screen and a quad-core processor while maintaining its predecessor’s 2000 RMB ($317) price. Today, TechWeb is running a report citing its own internal sources that seems to confirm the phone’s basic specs, but suggests that the phone will actually be priced at 2499 RMB ($396). The TechWeb report also suggests the new phone features a back-mounted camera similar to the iPhone 4S’s, although whether or not it’s exactly the same camera or just the same size sensor isn’t clear.

Xiaomi, of course, isn’t commenting on any of these rumors, but it’s hard to believe that isn’t where the leaks began, especially since none of the leaked photos features the front of the phone, making it difficult to tell whether or not Xiaomi has added a front-facing camera for video chatting to the M2. I’m guessing the lack of photos means they haven’t added it but don’t want to draw attention to that fact; that, however, is pure speculation on my part.

Will the real phone live up to our speculative spec list? It’s hard to tell from rumors alone. But with all sources agreeing on a couple things (quad-core processor, mid-August launch date), it seems likely that we’ll be getting some official news about the much-anticipated handset soon.