Xiaomi 16 Series Phone (Codenamed ‘Pandora’) May Feature Rear AMOLED Display

Key Highlights

• Xiaomi’s last phone with a rear screen was the Mi 11 Ultra, featuring a 1.1-inch AMOLED display.

• A new model, codenamed “Pandora,” has been discovered in the latest HyperOS codebase.

• Launch expected in September 2025, likely starting in China.

Xiaomi may be reviving the rear display concept with an upcoming phone from its 16 series lineup, more than five years after the Mi 11 Ultra introduced a small secondary screen next to its rear cameras. The device in question, internally codenamed “Pandora,” was recently identified in the Android 16-based HyperOS 2.3 code by XiaomiTime.

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The phone carries the model number 25098PN5AC and is also referenced as Q200 in the firmware. Notably, the code mentions “sub-screen display support,” hinting at the return of a secondary rear panel. According to previous leaks, this screen could be a full-width, horizontally-aligned matrix-style AMOLED sub-display.

A Modern Take on the Mi 11 Ultra’s Secondary Screen?

The Mi 11 Ultra’s rear display offered quick access to notifications, music controls, a selfie viewfinder, and clock widgets—but with limitations such as a 30-second screen timeout and lack of full app access. If Xiaomi’s Pandora device builds upon that foundation, we might see a far more capable and functional rear display, potentially with Always-On Display support and richer widget integration.

Top-Tier Hardware on Board

Under the hood, Pandora is rumored to feature Qualcomm’s SM8850 chip, expected to debut as the Snapdragon 8 Elite 2. Built on TSMC’s advanced 3nm process and featuring Oryon CPU cores, the chip reportedly scores 4,000+ in Geekbench single-core and 11,000+ in multi-core benchmarks—a significant leap over its predecessor.

Other expected specs include:

• 12GB LPDDR5x RAM

• 256GB UFS 4.1 storage

• A periscope telephoto lens among the rear camera setup

Launch Timeline and Positioning

Leaks suggest this device may be named the Xiaomi 16 Pro Max, positioned just below the Xiaomi 16 Ultra in the lineup. A launch is likely around September 2025, though early availability may be limited to the Chinese market.

Competition and Context

This follows the recent launch of the Nothing Phone 3, which introduced a Glyph Matrix display made up of customizable LEDs. In contrast, Xiaomi appears to be targeting more functionality with an actual AMOLED panel—potentially offering greater utility for multitaskers and tech enthusiasts if battery efficiency and app integration are well-executed.