Smartphones have dramatically evolved over the years. What used to be a button-filled device—with call, end, menu buttons, trackballs, and even full keyboards—has now become largely screen-dominated. Even Apple once had a signature physical button on the front of its iPhones. Yet, one essential feature has always remained: power and volume buttons. However, Xiaomi is reportedly planning to challenge this long-standing norm. According to frequent leaker site SmartPrix, the Chinese OEM might be preparing to release the first fully buttonless smartphone in 2025.
Codenamed “Zhuque,” which refers to a mythical Chinese bird, the phone is expected to offer a sleek, unified look without any physical buttons. It will also reportedly feature an under-display selfie camera, similar to the one found on Samsung’s Z Fold series, further contributing to its clean design.
Inside, the Xiaomi phone without buttons is believed to be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 4 chipset. While OEMs such as Xiaomi have not yet revealed the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4, it often knows the product roadmap of Qualcomm well in advance, making plausibly this chipset for a late-2025 launch.
This might be good news, but Xiaomi has some significant technical problems. The removal of physical controls is not easily done. A proof of this is HTC’s attempt in 2018 with the U12 Plus by replacing buttons with pressure-sensitive ridges, but the technology turned out to be too unreliable. Samsung also did something similar with its Galaxy Note 10 in 2019 and then canceled it at the eleventh hour, adding buttons into the final design.
Whether Xiaomi will fully commit to a buttonless future remains to be seen. Eliminating physical buttons sacrifices accessibility and could create challenges in emergency situations, such as accessing recovery modes. The question remains will the aesthetic payoff outweigh these practical concerns? We may find out next year.
