Xiaomi Mi 7, Mi 7 Plus release date, specs rumors: Two flagship handsets to launch on March 2018

Official render of the Xiaomi Mi 6 smartphonesFacebook.com/xiaomiglobal

The rumors are rife that Xiaomi is gearing up for another big flagship reveal in the coming months. Specifically, the Chinese handset maker is expected to launch the Xiaomi Mi 7 and Mi 7 smartphones, all at the same time in March 2018.

According to the latest rumors, the Xiaomi Mi 7 and Mi 7 Plus will be unveiled at the same event early next year. It is not expected that the larger Mi 7 variant will get a separate launch, unlike the previous plus versions of the Xiaomi Mi handset.

Xiaomi released the Mi 6 handset just a few months ago, and there were rumors that the Mi 6 Plus launch would follow shortly. Still, Xiaomi has yet to confirm the Mi 6 Plus's development, and with the rumored unveiling of the Mi 7 and Mi 7 Plus just around the corner, a magnified version of Mi 6 seems to be a closed deal already. One of the possible reasons behind the shelved Xiaomi Mi 6 Plus plan is the lack of Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chips to power the devices.

It looks like Xiaomi is wasting no time to keep the Mi series updated with the biggest hardware specs existing today. For one, it was confirmed by Xiaomi's CEO that Xiaomi Mi 7 and Mi 7 Plus will receive the latest Snapdragon 845 processor, which serves as the successor to the 2017 top-tier mobile chip, Snapdragon 835. The Snapdragon 845 is believed to provide a great boost in performance, especially in dealing with artificial intelligence (AI) and dual-lens camera setups.

Putting aside the size difference, the Xiaomi Mi 7 and Mi 7 Plus will sport the same AMOLED panel, surrounded by a Gorilla Glass 5 protection. It is also rumored that both smartphones will have a body made of glass and metal. For the Mi 7, the AMOLED display measures up to 5.8-inches in length, with a bezel-less, all-screen full view. The front display has 18:8 aspect ratio, while the screen resolution is 2560 x 1440 pixels.

The Xiaomi Mi 7 will be powered by a 3,200mAh battery, while the Mi 7 Plus will get a slightly larger 3,500mAh battery. The processors of both handsets will be paired with 6 gigabytes (GB) of random access memory (RAM). Regarding the camera department, the Xiaomi Mi 7 and Mi 7 Plus will retain the Mi 6's current dual camera, complete with Sony IMX380 and IMX350 sensors. The rear-positioned dual cam will be a combination of two 19-megapixel (MP) lenses, while the front shooter will feature a single 16 MP sensor.