Xiaomi Mi5 hands-on (VIDEO)

The curved rear of the new Mi5.

Xiaomi’s Hugo Barra showed off the new Mi5 this morning at an event in Barcelona, Spain, on the sidelines of the Mobile World Congress.

The Mi5 was two years in development, he explained.

It’s the first time Xiaomi is doing a global launch for a new device, Barra said – but the new phone is not set to go on sale in Europe. Instead, it was an opportunity for Xiaomi to connect with the tech world as it descended on Barcelona.

After Barra gave an overview of Xiaomi and then led the audience on a “deep dive” of the Mi5’s new features, everyone got a chance for a hands-on with the new phone, which is divided into an entry-level model with a glass rear and a pricier Mi5 Pro that comes with a “3D ceramic” back. It costs more, Barra explained, because the zirconia ceramic is a nanomaterial that has to be baked at 1,500 degrees Celsius. The material works out 75 percent more expensive than good quality glass for the rear.

Both versions have a 5.15-inch screen, but the Mi5 itself is about the same size as the smaller-screened iPhone 6s thanks to much smaller bezels all round.

Here are videos of my hands-on with the white Mi5:

Xiaomi Mi5 has 5.15-inch screen but tiny borders/bezels means it still feels good in one hand. pic.twitter.com/2iHDHvliy7

— Steven Millward (@SirSteven) February 24, 2016