Previous leaks suggest that Samsung's Galaxy S21 will be a decent upgrade over the previous model, but new leaks of the Xiaomi Mi 11 reveal that Samsung could face stiff competition next year.

Leaker Ice Universe posted an image of a screen protector claimed to be from the Chinese company's upcoming flagship device, the Xiaomi Mi 11. If the image is legitimate, the Mi 11's display has four curved sides, which could give the device a very sleek appearance.

However, Ice Universe claims that the Mi 11 will feature the new Snapdragon 888 chip. This is Qualcomm's newly revealed flagship chipset, which promises to deliver performance that will chase the powerful A14 Bionic found in the iPhone 12.

Combined with an impressive display, the Mi 11 could be the phone to get excited about in 2021, not the Galaxy S21.

Samsung has been using curved edges on its displays for the past few years, but until now only on the left and right edges. However, according to this leak, the Mi 11 has curved edges on all edges. This is something we have only seen on Huawei's P40 Pro series.

In short, Xiaomi may take the lead in further advancing smartphone screen design in 2021; other than the bezel shaving seen on the iPhone 12 Pro, the evolution of smartphone displays in 2020 was not particularly exciting, and One might say that, other than the widespread adoption of 120Hz refresh rate panels, many smartphones now use the very common punch-hole selfie camera and feature either flat or curved edges.

Samsung is usually one of the companies pushing the envelope with its displays. See Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 2 folding display. However, according to previous leaks, the Galaxy S21 and Galaxy S21 Plus are expected to have a "2.5D" FHD flat-edge display. And only the Galaxy S21 Ultra is expected to have curved left and right edges on the QHD display. Therefore, the Xiaomi Mi 11 could have a winning display next year.

Nevertheless, the curved display edges may be visually appealing, and the wider device may be more comfortable in the user's hand. However, if the curves are too extreme, the handset may not feel comfortable or the display may be easily tapped accidentally.

From the angle of the shot, it is difficult to determine how drastic the curve is in this leaked image. Therefore, we will have to see the real thing to know how far Xiaomi is pushing the display, but Samsung should pay attention.

You might not think Xiaomi and Samsung are rivals. However, the Galaxy S21 and Mi 11 will have much in common.

Both phones will almost certainly use the Snapdragon 888 chipset, as Qualcomm's new chip will be added to flagship Android phones as soon as it is announced. Which phone will have the performance advantage will depend on the RAM and software optimization with which the chipset is paired.

Given that the Mi 10 Pro had a 108MP main camera, we expect the Mii 11 to use the same megapixel camera, but perhaps with an improved sensor. the Galaxy S21 Ultra is also said to use a 108MP camera. The two models may compete on this front as well, since the Galaxy S21 Ultra is also said to use a 108MP camera.

Of course, much of a smartphone's camera performance comes down to software-side image processing, and Samsung continues to improve it. However, in our review of the Mi 10 Pro, we were impressed with the phone's camera performance. So there is room for Xiaomi to impress with the Mi 11 and tell a story with some of the best camera phones.

However, while Xiaomi still sells its flagship Mi series at the expected price, there is a noticeable price gap with Samsung.

For example, the Mi 10 Pro we reviewed earlier this year sells for about $999. This is the same price as the basic Galaxy S20, but Xiaomi's 256GB of massive storage, larger display, and the aforementioned 108MP camera are all better than the basic S20. However, the Galaxy S21 is said to be up to $150 cheaper than the previous model, and Samsung may win the value battle next year.

Another problem is the difficulty of getting Xiaomi phones in the US. In the UK they are sold by mobile carriers and other retailers, but if you are on the other side of the Atlantic you have to import them. That would make the cost higher than buying a regular Samsung phone. But if you're really interested in this quad-curve display, it's probably worth it.

Xiaomi will likely release the Mi 11 in the first quarter of 2021, based on past launch events. Samsung has been repeatedly rumored to release the Galaxy S21 in January of this year, and it appears that it plans to launch earlier than usual to avoid losing sales to Apple's iPhone 12 and other flagship models to be released in late 2020.

So, as the New Year rolls around, we may see a new battle for the top spot in the list of best Android phones.