Xiaomi is shaking up its high-end lineup by pivoting away from compact clamshells to launch the passport-style Xiaomi 18 Fold in September 2026. Powered by an in-house TSMC-manufactured 3nm XRING O3 processor that has already shattered AnTuTu benchmarks, the new wide foldable follows a growing industry trend.
The smartphone industry’s obsession with passport-style foldables is accelerating. Popularised by Oppo back in 2021 and resurrected recently by Huawei with the Pura X Max alongside Samsung’s Galaxy Fold8, the wide foldable format is rapidly becoming the form factor of choice for major manufacturers. Apple is also preparing to enter the space with its own wide foldable device, and Xiaomi is officially joining the trend with its upcoming flagship.
Xiaomi Cancels MIX Flip 3 in Favor of the 18 Fold
Internal firmware tracking and recent leaks reveal a major strategic shift inside the Chinese tech giant. Xiaomi has officially canceled its small clamshell foldable line, pulling the plug on the anticipated MIX Flip 3, which had been internally codenamed pixiu. The compact powerhouse was nearing its final release window and was engineered to feature a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip.
This is not an unprecedented move for the company. Xiaomi made a similar late-stage adjustment last year when it canceled its previous large foldable, the MIX Fold 5 codenamed nirvana, just before its scheduled launch. By shelving small flips in an increasingly crowded clamshell market, the company is reallocating its resources to focus squarely on reviving its large-screen foldable series with the new Xiaomi 18 Fold, which carries the internal codename lhasa.
Design Leaks Reveal Passport Form Factor and Cabernet Red Color
Leaked internet images show the upcoming device tucked inside a protective case that covers the right folding side while exposing the sleek profile and thickness of the left panel. Unlike the Xiaomi Mix Fold 4 or the soon-to-launch Xiaomi Mix Fold 5, the new device adopts the shorter, broader passport dimensions designed to resemble a pocketable tablet rather than a square.
The leaked imagery also highlights a striking color option. To the naked eye, the finish appears maroon, closely resembling the Cabernet Sauvignon Red option introduced earlier this month on the performance-oriented Redmi K100 Pro Max by Xiaomi’s sub-brand Redmi. Meanwhile, the device breaks from competitors by housing a horizontal three-camera module on the rear that reminds of a Google Pixel camera shield design, featuring a 200-megapixel main sensor alongside ultra-wide and telephoto lenses.
In-House XRING O3 Chipset Drives Benchmark Record
Powering the flagship foldable is Xiaomi’s own custom silicon. Developed as a follow-up to previous iterations, the XRING O3 is manufactured by TSMC and marks a significant step in reducing the manufacturer’s reliance on external suppliers like Qualcomm and MediaTek.
Phone tipster Ice Universe revealed that the custom chip made its formal debut at the end of the XRING O3 keynote, which confirmed the September 2026 launch window for the foldable. According to benchmarking results shared by the tipster, the processor delivers an 85% graphics performance increase over its predecessor and stands as the first Xiaomi chipset to cross the 5-million point threshold in AnTuTu synthetic tests, alongside offering native support for LPDDR6 RAM.
China-Exclusive Availability and Regional Market Strategy
Consumers hoping to purchase the hardware outside of mainland China may face disappointment. Xiaomi has a history of keeping its foldable and custom-chip devices localized to its domestic market. The 2024 MIX Fold 4 remained exclusive to China, and the current MIX Flip 2 launched in June 2025 for approximately $878 USD as a domestic release.
Because the previous XRING-powered Xiaomi 15S Pro stayed confined to China, analysts expect the new wide foldable to follow the exact same retail path. While regional markets like Singapore continue to secure unique international arrivals such as the Oppo Find X9 Ultra, Vivo X300 Ultra, and the limited-release Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold, industry observers maintain that when it comes to experimental regional rollouts, local exclusivity remains the most probable outcome barring any unforeseen portfolio adjustments.
What Comes Next in Xiaomi’s Flagship Window
Xiaomi is rapidly approaching its traditional autumn product window. Last year, the brand introduced its 17 series on September 25, and current indicators point to an identical late-September rollout for the 18 series. With the company substituting its traditional Ultra model with the foldable line this year, all eyes turn to the official September keynote to confirm final global availability details and pricing for the massively anticipated XRING O3 hardware.
