Xiaomi 18 Fold Launch: Xiaomi has officially entered the wide-foldable race with the Xiaomi 18 Fold, unveiled in China on September 7, 2026, and now the big question for Indian buyers is when—and at what price—it will land here.
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Xiaomi 18 Fold Launch: Global Launch Recap
The Xiaomi 18 Fold made its debut in China as Xiaomi’s first wide-format foldable and the first flagship device to run the company’s in-house Xring O3 chipset , its first wide-format foldable phone and the first flagship device powered by its Xring O3 processor. The launch positioned it directly against Samsung’s newly released Galaxy Z Fold8, and it also arrived alongside the Xiaomi Pad 9 Pro Max, which shares the same processor The company also introduced the Xiaomi Pad 9 Pro Max, which uses the same Xring O3 processor.
In China, the base 12GB/256GB variant starts at 10,999 yuan (around $1,638), while the top 16GB/1TB model is priced at 14,999 yuan (about $2,235) The base model, with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, starts at 10,999 yuan, or about $1,638. The version with 16 GB of RAM and 1 TB of storage costs 14,999 yuan, or about $2,235.
Xiaomi 18 Fold Launch: Design and Display
The 18 Fold pairs a 5.38-inch cover screen with a 7.58-inch internal display, both running 120Hz LTPO panels capable of hitting 4,000 nits of peak brightness The Xiaomi 18 Fold packs a 5.38-inch cover screen (1,712 x 1,168) and a 7.58-inch internal screen (2,364 x 1,672), with both panels featuring a 1-120Hz refresh rate and 4,000 nits of peak brightness. Xiaomi has also given the inner display a wider 2:1 aspect ratio compared to Samsung’s more squarish foldable, along with an anti-reflective coating The internal display has a 2:1 aspect ratio compared to the Galaxy Z Fold 8’s 4:3 inner screen, as well as an anti-reflective film.
Durability gets a major push too, with a dual-layer ultra-thin glass structure that Xiaomi claims is significantly tougher than its predecessor Xiaomi says this tech makes the display 178% stronger and 29% more impact resistant, albeit compared to 2024’s Mix Fold 4 foldable. The phone is built around a reworked hinge with hundreds of structural tweaks for a rounder folded profile, weighs 219 grams, and measures 10.68mm when closed, with IP58/IP59 water and dust resistance Xiaomi built the 18 Fold around its redesigned “Dragon Bone” hinge. The company said it made 492 structural changes to the hinge, which gives the phone a more rounded shape than the Galaxy Z Fold8.
Xiaomi 18 Fold Launch: Performance and Camera
Under the hood is Xiaomi’s own Xring O3 chip, built on a 3nm process with a 10-core CPU, 16-core GPU, and a 200 TOPS NPU, delivering notable gains in speed and efficiency over its predecessor The Xring O3 is manufactured on a 3nm process and features a 10-core CPU running up to 4.35GHz, a 16-core GPU, and an NPU rated at 200 TOPS. Xiaomi said the chip improves multi-core CPU performance by 60% and GPU performance by 85% compared with its predecessor.
On the imaging front, Xiaomi partnered with Leica for a triple rear setup featuring a 200MP main sensor, a 50MP ultrawide, and a 50MP periscope telephoto with 3.5x optical zoom Xiaomi developed the 18 Fold’s camera system with Leica. It includes a 200-megapixel main camera, a 50-megapixel ultrawide camera, and a 50-megapixel periscope telephoto camera with 3.5x optical zoom. Powering it all is a 6,000mAh battery with 67W wired and 50W wireless charging, running on HyperOS 4 out of the box A 6,000mAh battery powers the device, which ships with HyperOS 4. It supports 67W wired charging and 50W wireless charging.
What About India?
Xiaomi hasn’t confirmed a global or India release date yet The Xiaomi 18 Fold starts at ~$1,639, but there’s no word on a global release just yet. Indian listings have pegged the expected price at around ₹1,69,999, positioning it just below the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8, which starts at ₹1,79,999 in India In contrast, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 starts at Rs 1,79,999 in India. Since Xiaomi is using its own chipset rather than a licensed Qualcomm or MediaTek part, industry watchers believe the 18 Fold could undercut both the Z Fold8 and Apple’s rumoured foldable iPhone on price Although pricing in India is not yet revealed, since Xiaomi uses its own chipset, the 18 Fold could be cheaper than the Galaxy Z Fold 8 5G and the iPhone Ultra 5G.
Bottom Line: Xiaomi 18 Fold Launch
With a China launch behind it and strong early specs, the Xiaomi 18 Fold looks set to be one of the most aggressively specced foldables of the year. The real story for Indian buyers will be pricing and launch timing — expect BIS certification filings and a Flipkart or Xiaomi India teaser to be the first concrete signals. We’ll update this piece as soon as an official India date is confirmed.
