Xiaomi Android 12 Upgrade List Shows It's On The Right Track

There was a time when smartphones that carried Chinese brands were known for at least two things. They were a lot cheaper, and they looked and felt like iPhone clones. Those have come a long way since then, and these companies are even starting to push the smartphone market in new directions. There are some cases where they are still catching up, like in the area of software updates, but Xiaomi's list of phones that will receive Android 12 shows signs of the company going in the right direction.

Although the company might vehemently deny it today, there was a time when Xiaomi's phones were pretty much derided as Chinese iPhone clones. It didn't help that the earliest iterations of its Android skin strongly mimicked the iOS look and feel to the point that it was barely recognizable as Android. On a technical level, that meant it was harder to apply those changes to future Android versions, making software updates practically non-existent on those devices.

MIUI today has changed considerably and, while it still keeps its unique Xiaomi personality, it's a lot closer to the standard Android experience than its predecessors have ever been. Xiaomi has also taken a stronger stance in keeping up with Android updates, especially major ones like Android 12.

@Xiaomiui just published an unofficial list of the phones that are eligible to get the update, though it doesn't exactly say when. The list is quite a long one, covering many models across its different brands, including Redmi. Given how most manufacturers used to have selective amnesia over the number of phones they're committed to supporting, it's an impressive number indeed.

It's far from perfect, of course. It notes that Redmi phones usually get only one major update, which is far below the acceptable standard. The Mi 9 series from 2019 is also excluded, despite being only two years old. Still, considering its history, there are strong positive steps forward for Xiaomi, and the company will hopefully continue in that direction.