Xiaomi might be taking a leaf out of the iPhone 17’s design book for the Xiaomi 16 Pro Max, but there’s a chance it could be resurrecting an old feature from a previous generation.

Leaker Ishan Agarwal has taken to X (formerly Twitter) to post what appear to be leaked images of the Xiaomi 16 Pro Max. They point to a new-look camera module that, according to the tipster, could very well feature a tiny display.

We don’t see the screen functioning in any of these pictures, but it certainly puts us in mind of a Xiaomi design from 2021. That was the year that Xiaomi released the Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra, pictured above.

One of the key features (or rather gimmicks) of that year’s top model was a little screen that sat on the back of the phone, right next to the camera module.

At just 1.1 inches in size, it was hardly a full secondary display of the kind we’re used to seeing on foldable phones. But it did serve as a handy time and battery indicator, could feature music app controls, and could even serve as a minuscule viewfinder for pumped up selfies in a pinch.

It’s perhaps no surprise that Xiaomi’s new design also appears to mirror the expected layout of the imminent iPhone 17. If so, there’s a chance that there won’t be a secondary display here after all, and that this is merely a cosmetic flourish.

We’re expecting Xiaomi to make an announcement on its new Xiaomi 16 flagship smartphone series next month. One previous rumour suggests that the range could feature a dramatically improved selfie camera.