Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 launching in China with Android 8.1 Oreo

A couple of weeks ago Xiaomi launched their highly anticipated Redmi Note 5 and Redmi Note 5 Pro in India. For those curious, we went hands-on with the two new smartphones at the company’s initial launch event in New Delhi. Since then we’ve seen a couple of flash sales happen directly from Xiaomi and Flipkart, but so far it has been limited to India. We have just learned that the Chinese smartphone OEM is getting ready to launch the device in China later this month and it looks like it will be shipping with Android 8.1 Oreo.

It was an interesting move to see the company launch the Redmi Note 5 and Redmi Note 5 Pro in India first. The country has become a critical market for the company, so it’s certainly a move that makes sense from a business perspective. Now that Xiaomi has the India launch out of the way, they’re preparing to bring the device to their home country of China. According to their Weibo page, it will happen later this month on March 16th.

What’s more interesting about this launch is that Xiaomi looks to be shipping a newer version of Android on it. In India, the Redmi Note 5 and Redmi Note 5 Pro are both shipping with Android 7.1.1 Nougat with Xiaomi’s MIUI 9.2 OEM ROM. There was talk about Android Oreo at the event but a timeline has yet to be given. However, several TENAA listings have shown that Xiaomi is getting the device certified in their home country with Android 8.1 Oreo.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Android 8.1 Oreo

This move was somewhat expected as we previously reported that an update to Android 8.1 Oreo for the Redmi Note 5 Pro could bring support for Project Treble. We’ve seen very few smartphone OEMs update a device from Nougat to Oreo while also adding support for Project Treble. It’s become cliche to say that a company wants to launch with an outdated version of Android just to prevent the implementation of Project Treble, but there are some out there who are putting the work in for their customers.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Android 8.1 Oreo Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Android 8.1 Oreo Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Android 8.1 Oreo
Source 1: TENAA Source 2: TENAA Source 3: TENAA

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