High-res Xiaomi Mi 5 16MP camera sample shared ahead of launch, by company chief

Hugo Barra, Xiaomi’s global VP, hasn’t been shy about teasing features for the upcoming Mi 5 smartphone. Xiaomi’s next flagship is being unveiled at an event in Barcelona, at MWC 2016. He’s already told us that the phone will come equipped with Qualcomm’s latest flagship processor, the Snapdragon 820.

Today, he’s back with a photo snapped with the Xiaomi Mi 5‘s main camera, and it looks to be a decent sensor. Full resolution images were posted to Xiaomi’s official forums.

When inspected, they reveal a resolution of 4608 x 3456, suggesting strongly that the Mi 5 will boast a 16MP camera (or 15.9MP to be more precise), which is exactly what has been rumored in the past.

Spent the holidays hanging out with my folks….aaaaand playing around with the insanely AMAZING ‪#‎Mi5‬ camera. I didn’t even have to fiddle with manual settings or adjust anything—except turn on HDR—this is a pure SOOC shot. I’ve cropped and zoomed in on the original, too, just so you can see the incredible details up close.

Although it’s only one image, the cropped section reveals some good detail and color. Saying that, the photos were clearly taken in an area with a lot of natural light. I’ll be more interested to see how the 16MP sensor copes in lower light conditions.

With the camera resolution nailed down, that’s one more element of the Mi 5 we’re now pretty certain on. Not long ago, retail packaging leaked seemingly confirming we’re going to see four different color options; gold, pink, white and black. We’re also expecting to see a 5.2-inch Quad HD resolution display.

From rumors, leaked imagery and official teasers, I think it’s safe to say the Mi 5 is a clear like-for-like Galaxy S7 competitor. Albeit one which will undoubtedly cost less. Like the Xiaomi, Samsung’s next flagship is rumored to feature similar design, a Snapdragon 820 processor and Quad HD screen.