Xiaomi has launched the 18 Fold, a compact book-style foldable with a 6,000mAh battery, 200MP camera and the company’s new in-house processor.

However, the device is currently restricted to China, with Xiaomi yet to announce availability or pricing for Australia or other international markets.

The 18 Fold uses a short and wide design built around a 5.38-inch outer display and 7.58-inch folding inner display. Both LTPO OLED panels offer adaptive refresh rates between 1Hz and 120Hz and peak brightness of up to 4,000 nits.

It measures 10.7mm thick when folded and approximately 5mm when open, with a weight of 219g. Its wider proportions give both displays an aspect ratio close to 1.4:1, intended to improve video viewing and reading.

Powering the handset is Xiaomi’s 3nm XRING O3, its second internally designed processor and the first to appear in a Xiaomi flagship phone.

The chip combines a 10-core CPU with a 16-core GPU and supports LPDDR6 memory. Xiaomi claims CPU performance has increased by up to 60%, while power consumption has fallen by 25% compared with its previous chip.

A 6,000mAh silicon-carbon battery supports 67W wired and 50W wireless charging, substantially exceeding the 4,800mAh capacity offered by Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 8.

The Leica-branded rear camera system combines a 200MP primary sensor with a 50MP periscope telephoto camera offering an 80mm focal length and a 50MP ultrawide.

Xiaomi has also used a 7000-series aluminium frame, Shield Glass 3.0 and a redesigned three-link hinge. The dual-layer ultra-thin glass inner display reportedly delivers 258% greater impact resistance and drop protection from heights of up to 1.2 metres.

Chinese pricing starts at RMB 10,999 (around A$2,260) for the 12GB and 256GB model, rising to RMB 14,999 (A$3,085) for 16GB and 1TB. A limited Ceramic Edition starts at RMB 15,999 (A$3,290).

The launch lands as competition intensifies across foldables, with Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 8 already on sale and Apple expected to unveil its first foldable iPhone this week.