Qualcomm has verified the designation of its next top-of-the-line chipset, the SM8850, which will be the first to have the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. The new chipset is the fifth generation of Qualcomm’s single-digit Snapdragon 8 series, a lineup that has traditionally been Qualcomm’s premium flagship smartphones.
Not by chance, Xiaomi made a similar announcement on the same day. Its next flagship will be revealed as the Xiaomi 17 Series instead of the “Xiaomi 16” with which it would have been consecutively named. The new brand name resembles Apple’s iPhone 17 series, implying that Xiaomi wants to put itself at the same level as the most direct competitor rather than farther away.
While unveiling, the Partner and President of Xiaomi Group, Lu Weibing, said that the Xiaomi 17 lineup is “the biggest jump ever in the history of Xiaomi’s digital series,” and added that the devices would be available one month earlier than last year’s. The official release is scheduled for the end of this month, right after Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Summit, from September 23 to 25, where the new chip will be introduced.
A Leap into the Ultra-Premium Segment
The Xiaomi 17 Series is the pinnacle of five years of study committed to the arrival of the company in the premium smartphone market. The lineup will be made up of three models:
- Xiaomi 17 – the most powerful standard flagship in Xiaomi’s history, solidified with numerous improvements while still being moderately priced.
- Xiaomi 17 Pro – detailed as the best and most compact flagship with cutting-edge camera technologies of the company.
- Xiaomi 17 Pro Max – aimed to represent the most advanced camera technologies of Xiaomi.
Moreover, these three variants will be available worldwide and powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip.
Xiaomi’s Strategy: Competing Head-to-Head with Apple
Lu acknowledged Xiaomi’s deliberate strategy of benchmarking itself against Apple, remarking:
“Five years ago, Xiaomi launched its high-end plan, learning from the strongest competitor and directly benchmarking the iPhone. Apple continues to excel—the success of the iPhone 17 series proves that—but Xiaomi is confident it can now face the iPhone head-to-head, on the same level and in the same generation.”
He noted that Xiaomi’s evolution has been marked by a shift from chasing raw specifications to delivering balanced, premium devices with strong integration of hardware and software, all aimed at enhancing user experience.
Backed by Massive R&D Investment
A critical part of Xiaomi’s push has been sustained investment in research and development. The company has invested over 100 billion RMB in innovation over the past five years and intends to double that figure to 200 billion RMB in the next five. The Xiaomi 17 Series will be the first to incorporate many of the breakthroughs born from this effort.
A Promise of Something New
Lu also hinted at an entirely fresh element coming to the Xiaomi 17 Series, suggesting the company intends to reenergize a market some consumers have begun to find repetitive:
“Beyond core technologies, we will bring something new to smartphones this time—because otherwise, many people feel today’s phones are starting to get a little boring.”
With Qualcomm’s most powerful chip to date and Xiaomi’s renewed ambition to challenge Apple directly, the Xiaomi 17 Series sets the stage for one of the most competitive flagship showdowns of the year.
