In the last 2 years or thereabout, we have seen metal become the new favorite material for phones. Before then, plastic used to be the major material before a switch to glass for flagship phones. One analyst says we should expect a return to glass for flagships this year.

Analyst @Sun Changxu took to Weibo to announce that information she learnt from those involved in the supply chain says that this year’s flagship phones are either made of glass or ceramic.

It is reported that glass factories have increased production of 2.5D and 3D glass. They also say overall demand for the first half of the year have exceeded expectations.

Ceramic is another material that is starting to gain popularity. Xiaomi has played a key role in that regard. Its concept phone, the Mi MIX features a ceramic body and its next flagship, the Mi 6 is said to feature a special ceramic edition in addition to the standard variant that will have a glass back.

READ MORE: Ceramic Body Production Capacity Should Increase  Soon Following ¥8.7 billion Investment

Last year, the Xiaomi Mi 5 had a ceramic variant but due to production issues, had to be cancelled. They also faced similar problems with the Mi MIX but have managed to keep up its production. There were rumors of a glass variant launching at CES but surprisingly it was a white ceramic version that was unveiled.

What do you think about the switch to glass? Do you prefer metal or are you indifferent?

The post For 2017 Flagships, Glass May Be The New Design Material Not Metal appeared first on Gizmochina.

When the Xiaomi Mi MIX launched, the phone manufacturer already explained that it will be in short supply due to the difficulty associated with the production of its ceramic body. Quite a number of people complained as to why they had to settle for a ceramic body in the first place but I guess they wanted to score top marks for design.

Now that the hype around the phone has reduced, it seems they have had a rethink about the design and might be releasing a newer version of the phone with a body that is easier to make. According to the source, the newer version of the Mi MIX will be white and will sport a glass body.

If you remember, we reported about a month ago that there was going to be a white ceramic version of the phone. There were even leaked pictures of the device. While that might have been a production sample, we don’t know if Xiaomi has totally shelved it in favor of a version with a glass body.

If Xiaomi does release the Mi MIX with a glass body, we should expect it to cost less. Xiaomi did the same when they released the Mi 5 Pro with a glass body since they had production issues when making the ceramic version of the Mi 5 Pro.

READ MORE: Official Pictures of 20000mAh Xiaomi Mi Power 2 Power Bank

Lynx store initially had a white Mi MIX listed for ¥3000 (~$432) before pulling the page down. Although it’s lesser than the official price of the ceramic black version which is priced at ¥3499 for the 128GB version and ¥3999 for the 256GB model, it doesn’t mean that will be the final selling price when it is available.

The post New Version of The Mi MIX With A Lower Price Tag? appeared first on Gizmochina.