Neophyte Chinese mobile maker Xiaomi has made a fabulous entry into the smartphone market. Though the company does not trade in the NASDAQ or NYSE, it’s trying to compete in terms of specs as well as pricing with foreign competitors such as Apple (AAPL, Financial) and Samsung (SSNLF, Financial). A question is recently under close watch in China: Will Xiaomi’s newest offering disrupt the high-end smartphone market in China? Though the answer is still not very clear, Xiaomi is the first Chinese smartphone manufacturer that has taken such reputable companies head on. Xiaomi’s latest offering, the MI-One, has created waves in the Chinese smartphone market. So what are Xiaomi’s strategic plans? How does it secure its stand from other established rivals? Let’s read the further sections to derive the answer.
Amid intense competition
The company has marketed the MI-One as a smart, cool, powerful and less expensive device, compared to Apple’s iPhone. And the model has created ripples in China from the month of July. As per news sources, the model has already accrued over three million unit sales within the short span soon after its formal launch.
With its impressive computing hardware, reasonable price and domestic appeal – it’s not surprising that the model has taken off so well. However, unseating the market honchos- Samsung and Apple holding 14% and 9% of Chinese smartphone market share –Â has by no means been accomplished.
As Apple continues to remain as a high-end brand in China, its popularity in Tier I cities of the nation has gone unwavered, even after the Xiaomi device was released in the market. But for the second tier cities, this new device might change the dynamics of the high-end smartphone market. In those cities, a premium smartphone can be replaced by better effective devices having good functionality and better affordability.
This in turn could become a concern for Apple at a later phase, as its success has been mainly linked to its market penetration in the second and third tier cities of China. Thus, Apple might fail to gain traction in such markets, if lower cost rivals like Xiaomi continue to gain quick popularity in such cities.
Samsung has created more affordable phones than Apple, and has a chunk of market share in China. But, this market share might see depletion if Xiaomi makes further inroads. Currently, there are sources which are speaking of the upcoming launch of new high-end Redmi smartphone from the Xiaomi workshop. This might send a shock down the spine of Samsung and Apple – since they have ruled the premium market segment till date, and this could mean losing market share for them rather rapidly.
The newest offering on the platter
A Chinese report published over the last weekend has tipped that the company might bring out the new high-end smartphone and has also released some of its specifications.
This smartphone would be unveiled in four storage variants – 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB with price tags of around $165, $215 and $245 respectively and 128GB for which the price details are not yet available.
According to the Chinese report via PhotoArena, this phone would be powered by an octa-core chip from MediaTek (MDTKF, Financial)Â and have 3GB of internal RAM memory. The model would sport a 5.5-inch screen and is expected to carry a 20.7 MP rear-facing camera and an 8 MP snapper at the front.
This phone might be the sequel to the popular Xiaomi Redmi Note and would feature 4G LTE and NFC connectivity. Another report claims that this chipset in the smartphone has scored an impressive 47,233 on the AnTuTu Benchmark tests.
With all these revealed specs, it seems like the company has quite a powerhouse coming to the markets off late. So, will we see this device offered by this year end? A report has tipped that the company which is often referred as the Apple of China, is gearing up to launch the high-end Redmi phone globally. Sources have conveyed that the versions of this smartphone may get released in India by end of September this year, but the company is yet to make any official announcement.
Parting thoughts
Xiaomi has already sold 26.1 million devices in China in the first half of 2014. The company is targeting the youth and the tech savvy clan who urge for better features with less to shell out. And Xiaomi could become the most popular among them; if the smartphone matches the functionalities provided by its major rivals and is sold with a reasonable sticker price. With the new Redmi smartphone expected to be released by the year end, Xiaomi hopes to see much better days ahead in China, as well as around the globe. So, let’s stay tuned and keep watching.
