This is the Black Shark 4, the latest gaming smartphone from Xiaomi gaming smartphone brand. My excitement for this smartphone has be trashed by a small but annoying detail.
The phone was announced in China on March 23, but we have no direct information to it. Why? Because, the revamped Black Shark does not allow us to choose which country website we want to visit. Instead, it automatically directs us to the global website. Way to go, Black Shark. Way to go.
I have scrutinized every detail of the website, but there is not country for me to choose. I spent a good 30 minutes, even contemplating VPN. But forget it cos’ it should see global launch pretty soon anyways.
Right now, my information is coming from Weibo and Black Shark official store on JD.com. We probably update this post, perhaps with a summary of the specs, when the device is launched globally.
Anywho… Xiaomi Black Shark 4 is, like its predecessor, offered in two models: Black Shark 4 Pro and Black Shark 4. But in what I thought was a strange move, the the non-Pro is getting the new 870 while the Pro gets the flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 880.
The 870 is, according to Qualcomm, a follow up to 865 that will power “a selection of flagship devices.” I guess devices running 870 a quasi-flagship? Anywho, that how it is now.
A few other specs that piqued my interest (before it got trashed by the website issue) was that the Black Shark 4 is outfitted with a 144 Hz refresh rate 6.7-inch Samsung E4 AMOLED display, 120W fast charging, pop-up mechanical triggers and the industry-first SSD for storage.
Black Shark is taking pre-order for the devices in China with prices ranging from 2,499 to 4,499 yuan (or about US$383-689).
Images: Weibo (黑鲨游戏手机).