Xiaomi Mi Note Pro Release Date: Preorders Begin May 6 After Three-Month Wait

The top-end Xiaomi Mi Note Pro smartphone, which was announced in January alongside the base model Xiaomi Mi Note, will soon be available for preorder. While the Mi Note has been on the market since late January, the Mi Note Pro was delayed without explanation.

But fans will be able to preorder the Mi Note Pro starting May 6, Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun announced on the Chinese social media website Weibo. There is no word on whether the Mi Note Pro will ship to customers immediately; an official release date has not been announced. However, a definitive date for preorders is a good indication that the Mi Note Pro will soon be on the market.

The Xiaomi Mi Note Pro features a 5.7-inch Quad HD display, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 chip, 4GB of RAM memory and a 64GB internal storage option, a 13-megapixel rear camera, 4-megapixel front camera and the Android 5.0 Lollipop OS with Xiaomi's MIUI 6 interface. It has slightly more advanced specifications than the base model Mi Note, which includes 3GB of RAM memory and 16GB and 64GB internal storage options, in addition to the features both devices have in common.

The Mi Note Pro will sell for 3,299 yuan ($532), while the Mi Note sells for 2,299 yuan ($371).

The Xiaomi Mi Note is popular among enthusiasts, having sold out in just three minutes when it went on sale Jan. 27. The smartphone has garnered rave reviews. However, it is not available in most Western countries, including the U.S. The Mi Note Pro will similarly be available in Xiaomi’s home market of China as well as India, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines.

On April 8, Xiaomi set a Guinness World Record for the most mobile phones sold online in a day when it sold 2.11 million handsets in 12 hours on its Mi.com website. Xiaomi sold 61.1 million devices in 2014 and hopes to sell 100 million in 2015.

The Chinese manufacturer has gained fans with tactics like allowing consumers to trade in their iPhone handsets for a Xiaomi smartphone. The smartphone maker also will expand to new markets, including Brazil, Russia, Thailand, Mexico and Turkey. Many Xiaomi devices released within the past year or so, including the Mi 4 and Mi 3, are still popular.