Xiaomi launched the Mi 6 in 2017 as its flagship device and the smartphone ran on MIUI 8 which was based on Android 7.1.1 Nougat. Over the last two years, Xiaomi updated the Mi 6 with at least one incremental Android update and two MIUI updates. MIUI 10 was released for the smartphone last August and the update was based on Android 8.1 Oreo. We know very well that Xiaomi likes to keep a clear distinction between its MIUI updates as well as incremental Android updates – as well as prioritize the former. Being a two-year-old device, it sat low on the priority list for an Android Pie update and Xiaomi even mulled dropping support for it, reasoning that it had already brought the latest features via MIUI updates.
After negative feedback from users, the decision was revisited and Xiaomi promised to offer the update for the Mi 6. Eventually, the first MIUI beta update for Mi 6 in China was rolled out two months later i.e. in April 2019. Last month, the global variants of Mi 6 also got the opportunity to taste Android Pie with the global MIUI beta. This was one of the final global MIUI betas since Xiaomi shut its global beta program starting July to focus on updates for the wide catalog of smartphones.
After sufficient evaluation, the company has finally rolled out a stable Android Pie update for the Xiaomi Mi 6. This update with build number 10.4.1.0 is for global units of the Xiaomi flagship. Users may not see any aesthetic change with the update since MIUI 10 runs on top of it.
If you own a Xiaomi Mi 6 and don't want to wait for the global rollout, you can grab the full firmware ZIP (1.6GB) from the download link and install it by selecting the "Chose update package" option from Settings>About Phone>System update. If you don't see the option, tap 10 times on the MIUI 10 icon and the option will appear. Alternatively, you can boot into recovery and flash the update ZIP from there.
MIUI 10.4.1.0 based on Android 9 Pie for Xiaomi Mi 6
Thanks to XDA Recognized Developer yshalsager for the download links!