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Gaming phones are still a niche product but often offer up top-of-the-line specs with edgy designs at a slightly more affordable price than other flagship devices. Xiaomi has announced the Black Shark 4 and 4 Pro gaming phones with pop-up mechanical shoulder buttons, 120W charging, and a 144Hz display. Interestingly enough, this latest device doesn’t look like a typical gaming phone outside of the extra shoulder buttons. Alongside the new devices are a couple of “pro-gaming” accessories.
Boasting a bold new design language and crafted from glass, Black Shark 4 Series smartphones usher in a major upgrade in ID design. Compared to previous Black Shark devices, the new minimalistic look is more streamlined and sophisticated, while still maintaining the brand’s quintessential “X Core” design.
Black Shark Press Release
Typically, gaming phones feature ultrasonic haptic shoulder buttons. By implementing magnetic pop-up mechanical buttons, The company states that gamers will have “unparalleled tactile control” while gaming. In addition to being used for gaming, the buttons can also be programmed to take screenshots, trigger the camera, and more.
Of course, performance is everything when it comes to gaming, and gaming phones are no different. The Black Shark 4 ships with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 while the Black Shark 4 Pro is powered by the 5nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 888. With 6 to 16GB of LPDDR5 RAM and 128 to 512GB of UFS3.1 flash storage (depending on model), games and apps should run buttery smooth.
As for the display, the 6.67-inch Samsung AMOLED display has a refresh rate of 144Hz and a touch sampling rate of 720Hz. According to the company, this translates into a touch delay of 8.3ms and a shooting delay of 24ms — the lowest in a smartphone touchscreen. To improve battery life, users can select between 144, 120, 90, or 60Hz refresh rates.
Other features include a 4500mAh battery with 120W charging (allowing the Black Shark 4 to fully charge in 16 minutes and the 4 Pro in 15), dual speaker cinematic audio, Sandwich liquid cooling, and a triple rear camera. Two new accessories available for the device are the Black Shark FunCooler 2 Pro (199 RMB (~US$30))to increase cooling while gaming and the Black Shark 3.5mm Earphones, available in normal and pro variants (149 RMB (~US$23)/249 RMB (~US$38)).
The Black Shark 4/4 Pro will be launching in China with pre-orders starting on March 26th. A global launch will be announced in the near future. The phone will be available in 7 different configurations:
- Black Shark 4
- 6GB+128GB: 2499 RMB (~US$385)
- 8GB+128GB: 2699 RMB (~US$415)
- 12GB+128GB: 2999 RMB (~US$460)
- 12GB+256G: 3299 RMB (~US$505)
- Black Shark 4 Pro
- 8GB+256GB: 3999 RMB (~US$615)
- 12GB+256GB: 4499 RMB (~US$690)
- 16GB+512GB: 5299 RMB (~US$815)
Of course, global pricing will likely be slightly higher and announced once the company updates global availability in the future.
What do you think about gaming phones in general and the latest entry into the niche market? Will you be picking one up? Let us know in the comments below or on Twitter, Facebook, or MeWe.
