Although smartphones are sometimes very different, they have one crucial thing in common: they all have physical buttons. But that could change as early as next year.

According to trusted leaker chunvn8888 (via SmartPrix), Chinese company Xiaomi is developing a new flagship device for next year that will not have physical power and volume buttons. Xiaomi’s phone is reportedly in the early stages of development, which means it may never launch. If it does launch, it would be one of the few phones, mostly concepts, without physical buttons.

In 2019, the Vivo Apex 2019 Concept stood out for having no ports or buttons. It featured a magnetic power port for charging and data transfer. The Meizu Zero was another concept phone that had no buttons or ports. Instead, it relied on in-display fingerprint sensors and wireless charging.

A year before the Vivo phone was launched, HTC introduced the HTC U12 Plus, which had the unique “Edge Sense” feature that allowed you to control the phone by squeezing the sides.

How could Xiaomi replace the buttons on its rumored phone? Android Authority is probably on the right track when it suggests that the new phone could use capacitive buttons or pressure-sensitive sensors. Additionally, vibration motors could register inputs and provide haptic feedback.

It’s unclear if there’s a demand for phones without buttons. Buttons are often used to restart phones when the screen won’t turn on or freezes. This feature would have to be replaced somehow, right?

If you like Xiaomi but don’t want to wait for a buttonless phone, you don’t have to wait for a new phone to be released. The Xiaomi 15 Ultra is expected to launch early next year and take on the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra/Note. It should be one of the first phones to feature Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 chip.