When we hear about a rumored superphone being worked on by the likes of Samsung or HTC, it’s something that definitely interests us but it’s hardly surprising; after all, these major smartphone manufacturers are the ones we expect to see leading the market. Every once in a while, though, a lesser-known brand releases a handset that can hold its own against the big boys. We saw just that happen when we learned about the Xiaomi M1 over the summer, an Android running a custom MIUI ROM and powered by a dual-core 1.5GHz Snapdragon. Now rumors are already targeting its successor, the M2, and the specs we’ve heard so far are nothing short of impressive.
Supposedly, the M2 would step up to a 2.5GHz processor, with 2.5GB of RAM to match. Then give the phone a 4.6-inch display (no word on resolution), 32GB of internal flash storage, and a pair of cameras consisting of a 12-megapixel main sensor and a 5-megapixel front-facer, and you’ve got what sounds like a real contender.
The M2 would likely arrive running Ice Cream Sandwich and could be priced at what works out to under $400, off-contract. There’s nothing in the way of confirmation for those specs or this pricing information, so we need to tread carefully, lest we get wrapped-up in a device that’s just a figment of someone’s imagination, but if even parts of what we’ve heard check out, the M2 should be one smartphone worth paying attention to in 2012.
