Tweet
Tell us if you’ve seen this movie before. The Xiaomi 16 Pro Max is reportedly bringing back a secondary display on the back. Leaked images show Xiaomi reviving the rear screen idea from the Mi 11 Ultra, complete with Apple-inspired “Pro Max” naming that suggests innovation by imitation.
History Repeating Itself
Live images from China show a large camera module spanning the full width of the Xiaomi 16 Pro Max’s back, with what appears to be a secondary display embedded alongside the cameras. If this sounds familiar, that’s because Xiaomi already tried this exact concept with the Mi 11 Ultra back in 2021.
The Mi 11 Ultra featured a 1.1-inch rear display that could show notifications, act as a viewfinder for selfies, and control music playback. It was novel for about five minutes. Until most users realized they’d rather just flip their phone around like normal people.
Now the Xiaomi 16 Pro Max supposedly takes this concept further with LTPO technology, higher resolution, and always-on functionality. But adding more tech to a questionable idea doesn’t automatically make it less questionable.
The Secondary Display Graveyard
Xiaomi isn’t the first company to think secondary displays are the future. Remember the Meizu Pro 7’s rear display experiment? Or how about LG’s V20, which featured a secondary strip at the top that felt more like a novelty than a necessity?
Even Apple tried this with the MacBook Pro’s Touch Bar. It positioned it as revolutionary before quietly killing it off when they realized most people preferred actual function keys. Secondary displays sound cool in theory but struggle to find genuine utility in practice.
The Xiaomi 16 Pro Max is expected to launch in China between September 24-26. It is rumored to come with a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 2 processor and 7,500mAh battery.
The post Xiaomi 16 Pro Max Brings Back Secondary Display – Because the First Time Went So Well appeared first on Phandroid.
More...
History Repeating Itself
Live images from China show a large camera module spanning the full width of the Xiaomi 16 Pro Max’s back, with what appears to be a secondary display embedded alongside the cameras. If this sounds familiar, that’s because Xiaomi already tried this exact concept with the Mi 11 Ultra back in 2021.
The Mi 11 Ultra featured a 1.1-inch rear display that could show notifications, act as a viewfinder for selfies, and control music playback. It was novel for about five minutes. Until most users realized they’d rather just flip their phone around like normal people.
Now the Xiaomi 16 Pro Max supposedly takes this concept further with LTPO technology, higher resolution, and always-on functionality. But adding more tech to a questionable idea doesn’t automatically make it less questionable.
The Secondary Display Graveyard
Xiaomi isn’t the first company to think secondary displays are the future. Remember the Meizu Pro 7’s rear display experiment? Or how about LG’s V20, which featured a secondary strip at the top that felt more like a novelty than a necessity?
Even Apple tried this with the MacBook Pro’s Touch Bar. It positioned it as revolutionary before quietly killing it off when they realized most people preferred actual function keys. Secondary displays sound cool in theory but struggle to find genuine utility in practice.
The Xiaomi 16 Pro Max is expected to launch in China between September 24-26. It is rumored to come with a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 2 processor and 7,500mAh battery.
The post Xiaomi 16 Pro Max Brings Back Secondary Display – Because the First Time Went So Well appeared first on Phandroid.
More...
