Samsung and Apple should watch out for this brand-new flagship

Xiaomi has offered its T-series of more affordable flagship phones each year for a few generations now, sitting a step below the mainline Xiaomi flagship phones. Now, the company has finally peeled the curtain back on the Xiaomi 13T and Xiaomi 13T Pro.

The two phones share a number of features, namely an IP68 rating for the first time in the series, a 6.67-inch 144Hz OLED screen (2,712 x 1,220), a 5,000mAh battery, dual stereo speakers, and Bluetooth 5.4 connectivity.

The two phones also share the same flexible Leica-branded rear camera system, consisting of a 50MP main camera (1/1.28-inch, 1.2-micron pixels, OIS), a 50MP 2x telephoto lens, and a 12MP ultrawide camera. Furthermore, Xiaomi is offering your choice of vibrant or authentic color profiles as well as custom photographic styles. Take a look at the front of the phones and you’ll find a 20MP camera for selfies and video calls.

Xiaomi adds that both phones will offer four generations of Android OS updates and five years of security patches. That puts Xiaomi on par with Samsung and OPPO when it comes to software update policies.

Xiaomi 13T versus 13T Pro: What are the differences?

The Xiaomi 13T Pro is effectively the China-only Redmi K60 Extreme Edition with a fresh coat of paint and Leica branding. The handset earns its Pro designation by virtue of its flagship-level MediaTek Dimensity 9200 Plus chipset, 12GB to 16GB of RAM, 256GB to 1TB of storage, and 120W wired charging speeds. The Pro variant also offers 8K video recording. 

The standard 13T serves up a mid-range but still capable Dimensity 8200 Ultra processor, 8GB to 12GB of RAM, 256GB of storage, and 67W wired charging.

There are still a couple of compromises on both phones to remind you that this isn’t quite on par with the Xiaomi 13 series. Expect a Gorilla Glass 5 front here rather than a more modern protective glass solution. There’s also no wireless charging on either model.

Xiaomi 13T series price and availability

Like the idea of the vanilla Xiaomi handset? Then you’ll need to spend £549 / €649 on the base 8GB/256GB variant. Want the Xiaomi 13T Pro? Well, you’ll need to stump up £649 / €799 for the entry-level 12GB/256GB model. The manufacturer is also offering a top-end 16GB/1TB variant for £799. 

The phones will be available in Alpine Blue, Meadow Green, and Black colors. The Alpine Blue color delivers a vegan leather back while the Meadow Green and Black colors offer glass backs.

Either way, it’s clear that the Xiaomi 13T Pro compares favorably to the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S23 and iPhone 15. You do miss out on wireless charging and the latest protective glass, but the Xiaomi handset brings a cheaper price tag, faster wired charging speeds, a higher refresh rate, a bigger battery, and more base storage. The base Xiaomi 13T also fares well against the Pixel 7 on paper, offering most of those aforementioned advantages plus a telephoto camera.