There’s a new addition to the flagship Xiaomi 12 series. The company has launched the Xiaomi 12 Lite, which is the direct successor to last year’s Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE.

(Update, August 20: Our Xiaomi 12 Lite review is up!)

(Update, August 10: Here are our first impressions of the Xiaomi 12 Lite, which is launching in the Philippines August 18!)

The suggested retail price of the Xiaomi 12 Lite for international markets is as follows:

• 6GB/128GB: $399 (about P22,276 converted)
• 8GB/128GB: $449 (P25,068)
• 8GB/256GB: $499 (P27,859)

It will be available in Lite Green, Lite Pink, and Black colors. Preorders have begun in select markets, but there’s no word yet on local availability. You might recall that the base variant of the Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE with 6GB RAM and 128GB storage carried a P16,990 ($304) price tag at launch in the Philippines. The 8GB/128GB and 8GB/256GB versions, on the other hand, sold for P18,990 ($340) and P20,990 ($376), respectively.

As for the specs, the latest model inherits the 6.55-inch, 20:9 AMOLED panel of its predecessor, but upgrades it to operate at 120Hz instead of 90Hz. Additionally, the 12 Lite retains the HDR10+ and Dolby Vision display technologies and Corning Gorilla Glass 5 screen protection of the previous model.

SEE ALSO: Xiaomi 12 review: Surprisingly compact powerhouse, Xiaomi 12 Pro review: Almost too much, and Xiaomi 12S Ultra, 12S Pro, 12S launched with Leica camera, SD 8+ Gen 1

Unfortunately, it doesn’t upgrade the processor, so you’re still looking at a Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G 5G chipset under the hood, coupled with up to 8GB RAM and 256GB of internal storage. You do get Android 12-based MIUI 13 out of the box, though. The battery is slightly bigger this time around, coming in at 4,300mAh. More importantly, it supports 67-watt fast charging out of the box.

The rear camera now has a 108-megapixel main image sensor, up from the Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE’s 64-megapixel primary unit, alongside an 8-megapixel ultrawide option and a 2-megapixel macro shooter. The selfie camera upgrades to a sharper 32-megapixel sensor, too.

Chic design and studio-level cameras.#Xiaomi12Lite is the phone for fashionistas. #MyStyleMyShot pic.twitter.com/DP2Gw9WtSH

— Xiaomi (@Xiaomi) July 9, 2022

Xiaomi 12 Lite specs

• 6.55-inch AMOLED display with 2,400 x 1,080 resolution, 120Hz refresh rate, Corning Gorilla Glass 5
• 6nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G processor with 5G
• Adreno 642L GPU
• 6GB/8GB LPDDR4X RAM
• 128GB/256GB UFS 3.1 storage
• Triple 108-megapixel main, 8-megapixel ultrawide, 2-megapixel macro rear cameras
• 32-megapixel front camera
• Under-display fingerprint reader
• 4,300mAh battery with 67-watt fast charging
• MIUI 13 based on Android 12
• Colors: Lite Pink, Lite Green, and Black

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