What you need to know
- Recent rumors claim that Xiaomi is working on a Privacy Display for its devices, but it will do so differently than Samsung.
- The company could look to software to get this done, and it might do so for HyperOS 4 (Android 17) “later this year.”
- Rumors after the Galaxy S26 Ultra debuted claimed other OEMs were looking to chase after Samsung’s newest feature, and Xiaomi and Honor were highlighted as potential candidates.
Samsung’s Privacy Display was a true highlight for the Galaxy S26 series, and another rumor expands on which of its competitors will do the same.
Rumors about this have continued on social media, with tipster Yogesh Brar claiming that Xiaomi is working on a Privacy Display (via Digital Trends). Early speculation from Brar claims that Xiaomi is working on a feature that’s “like” Samsung’s Privacy Display. This could be due to the Chinese OEM chasing a path toward this security feature through software.
Brar claims that Xiaomi could deploy its version of Privacy Display through a future HyperOS update. The post says this might arrive with HyperOS 4 “later this year.” Exactly how this could work is still unclear, especially since Xiaomi is (allegedly) chasing a software route, not hardware. As the publication theorizes, Xiaomi’s software-based Privacy Display could have some significant limitations compared to a hardware version.
We’ll have to see what this looks like to know for certain. Brar’s claim suggests HyperOS 4 will carry this, which is based on Android 17. Last year, Xiaomi started its major HyperOS rollout around late October. Perhaps we’ll see similar behavior again, and with this Privacy Display software.
Competition
Shortly after the Galaxy S26 series debuted, we were already seeing reports that Samsung’s competitors were eyeing Privacy Display. Rumors claimed that additional OEMs were already looking to mirror its technology. Specifics weren’t given, but it was speculated that such OEMs could include Xiaomi and maybe Honor. What’s most curious is that the tipster alleged that these companies would deploy a Privacy Display like Samsung, at a hardware level.
However, what we’re seeing rumored today about Xiaomi is that it could look to software to make this happen. It’s a curious shift, one that makes us even more curious as to how this would shape up. Earlier rumors said that we could see other OEMs’ take on Samsung’s Privacy Display later this year, in September, and after. Samsung’s new feature is incredibly welcome, especially for the sake of user privacy, but it’s not completely without fault.
In our testing, it appears that the inclusion of such technology has negatively impacted the S26 Ultra’s brightness. The display is slightly darker than the S25 Ultra from all angles.
Android Central’s Take
I’m really curious as to how a software version of the Privacy Display would work. Before, Samsung was solving a privacy issue for users, and removing the need of grabbing for an external version that you’d stick on. Sure, both have their negatives, but they get the job done. For Xiaomi—if I’m to believe this rumor—how would software get this done? Hopefully, I won’t have to wait too long to find out.