Your Xiaomi Phone May Have Years of Support Left but Still Miss HyperOS 4

Xiaomi launched HyperOS 4 earlier this month, and testing is already moving fast. But there may be bad news if your Xiaomi, Redmi or POCO phone is stuck on Android 16. New data from Xiaomi's software builds suggests that the company may not bring HyperOS 4 to these devices at all.

That would be a change from Xiaomi's old approach, where a new HyperOS version did not always require a new Android version underneath.

According to data found in Xiaomi's code, 112 devices are expected to receive Android 17. Of those, 108 have already entered some form of internal HyperOS 4 testing. That's almost the entire list. Things look very different for phones that will stay on Android 16. So far, there are no signs of Xiaomi testing an Android 16-based version of HyperOS 4.

That doesn't confirm these phones have been dropped, but we're already far enough into development for the lack of test builds to mean something.

Several popular models are affected. The list includes the Redmi Note 13 Pro 4G, Redmi Note 14S, Redmi A5 4G, POCO C71, POCO M6 Pro 4G and POCO X6 5G. None has entered HyperOS 4 testing so far. Here's the strange part. Some of these phones still have years of official support left.

The Redmi Note 13 Pro series and POCO M6 Pro are due to receive security updates until early 2028. The Redmi A5 4G goes even further, with support planned until April 2029. So your phone could keep getting security patches for years without ever moving to HyperOS 4.

This is important because missing HyperOS 4 does not mean Xiaomi is ending support for these phones.

Security patches should continue according to each model's update policy. What users may lose are the new features, design changes and other improvements tied to HyperOS 4.

Xiaomi also hasn't officially said that every Android 16 device will be excluded. For now, we're looking at internal software development rather than a final update list.

Still, the pattern is hard to ignore. HyperOS 4 is based on Android 17, and Xiaomi seems much more interested in building around that platform than spending time adapting the update to Android 16. The first stable HyperOS 4 build is also reportedly ready, with newer devices already moving through testing.

To be honest, I can understand the technical reason. Supporting fewer Android bases should make updates easier to build and maintain.

That won't make owners of a POCO X6 5G or Redmi Note 13 Pro 4G feel any better, though.

If Xiaomi really drops Android 16 devices from HyperOS 4, having years of software support left may no longer mean getting years of new HyperOS versions.