Xiaomi 18 Ultra will arrive with a new generation of its own processor! It will be a real beast

An in-house chipset has long ceased to be the exclusive domain of Apple, which has been pursuing this path since time immemorial. Samsung with Exynos, Google with the Tensor series, Huawei with its Kirin chips gradually joined, and last year Xiaomi also got its first taste with the Xring O1 chip, which powered the 15S Pro model and two tablets. The strategy of quietly weakening dependence on Qualcomm continues – according to leaks, the Chinese are preparing a second generation called Xring O3, which will arrive in a special variant of the Xiaomi 18 Ultra.

Redesigned processor and graphics up by a quarter

Under the codename “Lhasa” lies a rather significant redesign. With Xring O1, Xiaomi used an atypical four-level core structure – two powerful Cortex-X925, two mid-range A725, four trimmed A725, and two efficient A520. With the new version, the manufacturer will simplify the architecture back to three levels, with the role of the former “big” cluster being taken over by efficient “small” cores, which have significantly increased in clock speeds – from 1.79 GHz directly to 3.02 GHz.

The main performance cores should then break the 4 GHz barrier for the first time, specifically at 4.05 GHz, while the second performance pair will shift from 3.39 to 3.43 GHz. Xiaomi is keeping the specific core names under wraps for now, but it is highly likely to be new ARM C1 cores. The graphics are expected to rely on Immortalis-G925 MP16 clocked at 1.5 GHz, or its successor Mali G1-Ultra – in any case, this is a 25% higher clock speed than with Xring O1.

The operating memory speed remains at 9,600 MT/s, which is still a top-tier value and will not be limiting in practice. Overall, Xring O3 should therefore be a solid step forward, though still more in the realm of optimization than a revolutionary leap.

Snapdragon for Europe again

According to leaker Yogesh Brar, Xiaomi does not plan a global release of the Xring O3 version, so Czech customers will receive the standard Xiaomi 18 Ultra with a Snapdragon variant. This makes sense, as Xiaomi is testing production stability and supply chains for its own chipset in its home market, where it has the most control.

In addition to the 18 Ultra, the Xring O3 should also appear in the upcoming foldable Xiaomi Mix Fold 5, whose premiere is expected as early as August. The Xiaomi 18 Ultra will arrive as planned in December, and only then will it become clear whether the Xring O3 can truly compete with the best that Qualcomm and MediaTek currently offer.

Would a version of a Xiaomi phone with its own chipset appeal to you, or do you prefer proven Snapdragons?

Source: GSMArena