The U.S. market may not be very familiar, but Xiaomi's rumored Mi 5 is one of the most anticipated smartphone releases of 2015, a sequel to the company's current flagship Mi 4, according to Phone Arena.

As the outlet puts it, Xiaomi has become one of the world's biggest phone makers of 2014. The Chinese manufacturer was able to hit such record by working its way through Asia and other markets, without establishing official presence in the American arena.

Marketing lead Hugo Barra was noted to claim that the company's phones are "more fit" for developing regions of the world. The source went on to cite Brazil as a target market, set to receive Xiaomi's phones next year.

If it's not the Mi 5, Xiaomi is expected to unveil an alternative Mi 4S smartphone. Either of the two rumored handsets might join the likewise-speculated MiPad 2 tablet, wrote NDTV. Apparently, these devices are eyed to launch at the CES 2015, dated Jan. 5 - 9. That means we're only a few days away to see possibilities materialize.

At this point, the Mi 5 (or Mi 4S) has been speculated to feature a protective sapphire display, according reports cited by DigiTimes. The alleged specification refers to a 5.7-inch flagship model set to come out at the upcoming CES event.

Adopting sapphire screens require complicated processing, the outlet cited. Such technology was said to incur higher costs, potentially yielding a more expensive device.

In addition, NDTV reported that the Mi 5 / Mi 4S could pack Quad-HD display, running under a resolution of 1440 x 2560 pixels. Other rumored specs include 3 GB of RAM, Qualcomm's Snapdragon 810 processor and 20.7 MP main camera.

Yet a recent whisper claims that Mi 5 may sport razor-thin bezels, wrote Pocketnow.

In another recent note, Digital Trends covered the rumored specs of Mi 5, which included a 5.5-inch display and the possibility of utilizing Snapdragon 805. The source tipped that a fingerprint sensor could also make an appearance. With this, we see variations in rumors surrounding the expected flagship.

The outlet is convinced that the Mi 5 and Mi 4S could end up as separate units. As observed, the Chinese company's business strategy is often compared with Apple.

Pocketnow also cited talks hinting that the device could align with the company's usual affordable price points, which Digital Trends indicated to set around $325. But with the possible inclusion of sapphire, we could also expect to see an increase in retail cost.

Watch Phonetech's review of an Mi 5 design leak below.