Category: Xiaomi

Xiaomi Redmi Note May Come to Indian Shores on 2nd December

It’s been a while since Xiaomi launched a new product in India and as expected, the company has started teasing the India launch of its phablet – the Xiaomi Redmi Note. In addition, a report also claims that the phablet might be available for sale starting 2nd December. The Chinese manufacturer has started a campaign on its Facebook page for the Indian customers which reads, “Want to win a Redmi Note?” The page also says, “Show us your creative side and win a Redmi Note from Mi!”, with he contest deadline being Friday i.e. November 21 till 9:00 PM IST.

Post by Mi India.

Notably, Xiaomi is sending teasers for the launch the same way it did for Mi3 and Redmi 1S. Also, it's worth noting that the company had stopped selling Mi3 in India to focus more on the Redmi 1S.

While the Chinese electronics giant is busy preparing for occasional flash sales and celebrating the new tag of being the world’s third-largest smartphone maker, it seems like the company is heading forward in the Indian market with some new offerings. In a recent post on Facebook, Hugo Barra (Vice President of International for Xiaomi) mentioned that the Redmi Note is finally ready for India.
[caption id="attachment_83382" align="aligncenter" width="650"] With its high specs and big screen, this will be a great device for a multimedia enthusiast on a budget.[/caption]
A good news arriving with the device is its price. The Xiaomi Redmi Note has been priced at just Rs. 9,999. The phone comes with a 5.5-inch 720p IPS display, 1.7 GHz MediaTek MT6592 octa-core processor supported by 2 GB of RAM.

The device was expected to launch a month back, however, it didn’t happen. In an interview with a popular publication last month, Barra said that the Redmi Note will come to India in late October or early November. It looks like the early November in the Chinese calendar is here.

November 21, 2014
Xiaomi’s Upcoming ‘Cheaper Than the Cheapest’ Smartphone Leaked

Earlier we reported that Xiaomi was planning to invest in a Chinese chipmaker Leadcore to offer more cheap devices. Now, according to a report, Xiaomi has acquired 51% stake in the company. It is expected that with the inclusion of these chips, the price of Redmi phones might go even further down.

Leadcore is generally not recognised when it comes to system chips as this segment is ruled by the likes of Qualcomm and MediaTek. However, that isn’t to say that they should be ruled out, especially after a healthy cash injection from Xiaomi. The only processor that could catch our attention is Leadcore LC1860 chip, which will reported be used by Xiaomi in its future devices.

The LC1860 system chip is built around the a 28nm Cortex A7 architecture running at 2.0GHz with a Mali T628 GPU. Now, according to a report by Gizchina, the company is working on a device powered by LC1860 that will be priced at ¥399 and will be LTE capable. This translates to approximately Rs. 4,000 as per Indian currency.

A leaked specification sheet suggests that the SoC can support 2k LCD displays and record up to 720p videos at 120fps and 1080p videos at 60fps. It also has 4G LTE support. In addition, the Gizchina’s report also said that the device will have a 720p HD display and 1 GB of RAM.

Xiaomi’s handsets are really cheap as it is. Now, the phones with LC chips would bring that price further down, which is a good thing (as long as these LC chips can offer decent performance). However, we doubt that Xiaomi will give up on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon processors though, we think that Xiaomi will include these LC chips in their cheapest smartphone line and once again push the limits of low-cost smartphones, while sticking to Snapdragon for their high-end phones.

November 14, 2014
Xiaomi Hints at the Arrival of Redmi Note in India

It is been a while since Xiaomi has launched a new product in India. While the Chinese company is busy preparing for occasional flash sales and celebrating the new tag of being the world’s third-largest smartphone maker, it seems like the company is moving forward in the Indian market with new offerings.

In a recent post on Facebook, Hugo Barra (Vice President of International for Xiaomi) mentioned that the Redmi Note is finally ready for India. The device was expected to launch a month back, however, it didn’t happen. In an interview with a popular publication last month, Barra said that the Redmi Note will come to India in late October or early November. It looks like the early November in the Chinese calendar is here.

In the Facebook post, Bara mentioned “Mi Indonesia: 10,000 Redmi Note out of stock in under 40 secs today!” adding that the next in the list will be India. The post further mentioned that the Xiaomi’s Vice President’s may have landed in Bangalore, India for the same reason – launch of Redmi Note. Xiaomi India Head Manu Jain also confirmed that the company is aiming for the end of this month or early next month for the device.

Redmi Note is a 5.5-inch phablet, which comes with a MediaTek MT6592 octa-core SoC, and has a 13MP and 5MP rear back and front cameras respectively. The device also has a 8GB of internal storage, which is expandable up to 32 GB using a micro-SD card. The company has already announced that the Redmi Note in the country during Mi3 launch will be priced at Rs. 9,999. However, it is expected the Redmi Note will be available for Rs. 8,999, once it is launched.

November 13, 2014
Xiaomi Breaks Records, Sells 1.1 Million Mi Units Within 24 Hours

Xiaomi has announced that it has sold 1.16 million Mi smartphones in just 24 hours in China, generating a revenue of $254 million. This number is 2.8 times over the company’s revenue of 550 million yuan generated as a part of Singles’ Day in 2013. This is quite a phenomenal performance by Xiaomi, which according to IDC has sold over 17.3 million smartphones in the whole of Q3, 2014.

For those who are not familiar with November 11 (11/11), it is known as Singles’ Day (Anti-Valentine’s day or Bachelor’s day) in China and has become one of the largest online shopping days. Heavy discounts are offered by online retailers on a wide array of products as a part of the Singles’ Day sale, which is even bigger than the Cyber Monday and Black Friday sales in the US.

Xiaomi Singles’ Day final record: 1.16 million Mi phones sold, ¥1.56B (US$ 254M) in sales in 24 hours

— Hugo Barra (@hbarra) November 11, 2014

Xiaomi, which is just 4-year-old, has become the No.1 smartphone brand in China. The company’s VP Hugo Barra confirmed via Twitter that the sales have generated a revenue of $254 million with 1.16 million Mi units sold.

November 13, 2014
65,000 Xiaomi Redmi 1S Handsets to Go on Sale Today

The Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi is holding its tenth flash sale for Redmi 1S in India. The sale will kick off today at 2pm for registered users on Flipkart.

According to a tweet from the official account of the company, 65,000 Redmi 1S handsets will be up for sale. However, the company will not provide complimentary screen guards and micro-SIM card adapter with the handset in this sale, unlike previous sales.

The Flipkart registration page notes that only one smartphone will be available for sale for single email ID and as usual, advises users to log in at least 2 hours before the flash sale begins. It’s worth noticing that Flipkart’s procedure requires people to just add the handset to their cart for it to be classified as ‘sold out’, and people are given additional time to complete their purchase.

http://t.co/RWHbtGl1QN – A total of 65,000 Redmi 1S will be available tomorrow (Nov 11th) at 2PM! pic.twitter.com/04rACAYlxf

— Mi India (@MiIndiaOfficial) November 10, 2014

The last flash sale saw 1,00,000 Redmi 1S units going on sale, which was an increase of 40,000 units compared to the last flash sale that saw 60,000 units being made available.

Despite being in controversies regarding privacy concerns, Xiaomi has become the world’s third-biggest smartphone maker replacing Huawei. According to International Data Corporation (IDC), the smartphone maker has tripled the shipment since last year.

November 11, 2014
Xiaomi to Join Hands With Leadcore to Offer Cheaper Handsets

Chinese technology powerhouse Xiaomi is all set to acquire chip maker Leadcore. The company might take a 51% stake in the company. It is expected that with the inclusion of these chips, the price of Redmi phones might go even further down.

Xiaomi presently uses Qualcomm Snapdragon chipsets in its handsets. It’s the power of the snapdragon line of chipsets that has given a boost to Xiaomi to take on the world market. Its inclusion of high-quality equipments even on its lower-end devices has created a trust factor amongst its present and future customers.

The company debuted with the Xiaomi Redmi line. But the spec-sheet of these devices helps them to take on other available devices with much higher price tag. Xiaomi has to be very cautious about the quality of its products. They should make sure that the Leadcore chipsets provide the same level of performance as they got from Snapdragon chipsets. Xiaomi will still be using Snapdragon chipsets for its devices that are higher up in the food chain.

There is also a great news for the potential consumers with this development. With Leadcore chips under their belt, the Redmi line of devices can see a major price cut. The phones are expected to lose as much as Rs. 2,000 off their price tag. The device will then truly become disruptive for the market and may cause loads of worry for the competitors. The ones who will seriously feel the brunt will be local manufacturers like Micromax, Lava and others. Guess we just have to wait to see another bloodbath, courtesy again by Xiaomi.

November 8, 2014
Xiaomi Gears to Take on GoPro With its Own Action Camera

GoPro has created a unique market for itself. It is almost reminiscent of the time when iPod came out and enjoyed the first-mover advantage. In the past few years, GoPros have gained pop culture prominence. Their cheap price tag and amazing ability to withstand extreme pressure has made it a darling of the adrenaline junkies and self-obsessed selfie-clickers alike. Other companies are trying to create a foothold in the action camera market. Recently, we saw HTC come out with its RE camera. Now, Chinese powerhouse Xiaomi is contemplating a dip into the action camera market.

If rumors are to be believed, Xiaomi’s action camera is expected to record 30 fps 4K videos, as well as 120 fps 1080p videos. The camera has a 138-degree wide angle lens. GoPro recently added 4K video recording feature in its new line of products. Xiaomi might use its brand recognition and its business tactics to disrupt GoPro’s market enough to squeeze in.

Xiaomi’s action camera will support micro-SD cards up to 128 GB. The device has pretty much everything to attract an action sports enthusiast. Using the 120 fps capability of the camera, one can take amazing slow motion pictures.

The camera is expected to come out first in China at a price of RMB 999, which translates to around Rs. 10,000, which is again an attractive price for a device of such caliber. It is expected to come out by the year end. We’ll be keeping a vigilant eye on the developments of this device.

November 8, 2014
Xiaomi Set to Bring Out a Massive 16000 mAh Power Bank

Xiaomi knows how to create an impression and gain public attention. The company has created waves in country after country with minimum marketing budgets. You really need to have a unique product to gather that much attention and they sure do have that. The company is bringing out a power bank which can take care of a week’s worth of charging needs.

With the advent of Quad HD display and other power-hungry elements on smart devices, the burden has never been greater on the battery. Even with great programming tweaks, the batteries still require a shot of juice at the end of every day. If you are always on the move, a power-bank can be a great solution for you and Xiaomi’s new 16000 mAh battery pack will keep you tension-free for a good long time. It may still have enough power left to take care of your weekend.

Previously, the Chinese electronics giant had launched 5200 mAh and 10400 mAh power bank variants. This is a whole new step for the company. The 16000 mAh power bank variant looks like an elongated version of the 5200 mAh battery pack. The size is similar to a smartphone, so you can even carry it around in your pocket with ease.

Keeping in mind that this is Xiaomi, you can expect the price to be dirt cheap. The power bank is expected to be priced at 129 yuan (Rs. 1300), but it can get slightly higher by the time it makes to India. Even at that price, it still wins over all the other alternatives in the market. Xiaomi seriously is a typhoon in the tech world.

November 4, 2014
Xiaomi is Reportedly Working on a Mid-Range 9.2-inch Tablet

Xiaomi has become a star among Android lovers. Despite catering to a few select Asian countries, the company has come a long way since last year. It very recently became the world’s third-largest smartphone maker, lagging behind only Samsung and Apple. However, it seems like Xiaomi isn’t closing the year just yet.

According to the GFXBench listing, Xiaomi is working on a 9.2-inch tablet. The mysterious tablet dubbed as Xiaomi 2014811 includes a 9.2-inch screen with 720p screen resolution. On the hardware front, it is said to come with a 1.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 410 processor with Adreno 306 GPU, paired with 1 GB of RAM and 8 GB of internal storage. It is said to run on Android KitKat and supports connectivity options like Bluetooth and Wi-Fi.

However, it is still under wraps as whether it will come with voice calling over the cellular network or not. If it does, the tablet, despite its huge size, will attract a lot of customers.

October 31, 2014
Xiaomi Now Holds the ‘World’s Third-Largest Smartphone Maker’ Tag

Despite being in controversies regarding privacy concerns, Xiaomi, the Chinese handset maker, has become the world’s third-biggest smartphone maker. According to the recent report by International Data Corporation (IDC), the smartphone maker has tripled the shipments since last year.

Also, it’s the first time Xiaomi has made it to the list of top 5 smartphone makers in the world, released by IDC. The company is trailing behind Samsung, who despite witnessing a steep fall in shipment from last year, still leads the race followed by Apple in the second position.

It is to be noted that Xiaomi’s focus on China and the neighbouring markets like Southeast Asia helped boost Xiaomi into the top 5 by resulting in triple-digit year-over-year growth in the third quarter of 2014. According to IDC, the launch of Xiaomi’s flagship phone MI4, which is meant to compete against Samsung’s Galaxy S5 and Apple’s iPhone in August, was the key to its success.

Although, the company has made a mark in China and its adjacent markets, it is still unclear how well it will fare in other markets where it faces greater competition from already established smartphone giants – Samsung and Apple. The report illustrates that while Samsung (24.7 percent) and Apple (12.3 percent) still dominate, LG’s recent popularity and increasing sale has also moved it to fourth.

“Despite rumors of a slowing market, smartphone shipments continue to see record-setting volumes. We’ve finally reached a point where the most developed markets are experiencing single-digit growth while emerging markets are still growing at more than 30 percent collectively,” said Ryan Reith, Program Director with IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker.

While Samsung remained the world’s leading smartphone maker, IDC said it was the only company in the top 5 to see shipment volume decline year-over-year. Meanwhile, Apple’s latest iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus pushed Apple to its largest third-quarter shipment ever.

The report reveals that Apple has sold close to 10 million units during their first launch weekend of the new smartphones and also continued to sell previous generation iPhone 5s and 5c in large numbers, which made up the bulk of Apple’s volume for the quarter.

October 30, 2014
In Response to the IAF Ban, Xiaomi Migrates its Cloud Server to India

The Chinese company was recently troubled by an outburst concerning a national privacy issue. The Indian Air Force banned its personnel from using Xiaomi smartphones as they were considered a security threat. Now the company has planned to completely migrate the cloud servers out from Beijing and setup a local server for Indian customers.

IAF had cited a report by F-Secure which said that they found that the Redmi 1S was forwarding carrier name, phone number, IMEI (the device identifier) plus numbers from address book and text messages back to Beijing. Even after Xiaomi took proactive steps towards addressing its concern, IAF, is pressing on its officials and families to refrain from using the phones.

“Since early 2014, we have been migrating our services and corresponding data for Indian users from our Beijing data centers to Amazon AWS data centers in Singapore and USA. Parts of this migration will be completed by the end of October, and all of it will be completed by the end of 2014,” said an official release by Vice-President Hugo Barra.

“In 2015, we plan to launch a local data center in India to serve the needs of (and store data for) our Indian users. These efforts help significantly improve the performance of our services and also provide some peace of mind for users in India, ensuring that we treat their data with utmost care and the highest privacy standards.” Barra added.

The security solutions company, F-Secure, had done a test on the phones and found that they were automatically syncing the files on the cloud. Xiaomi said this was because cloud syncing was on by default on their devices. The company had released an OTA update on 10th August which would give the users the option to manually turn cloud syncing on.

Xiaomi added that F-Secure had acknowledged the efficacy of the new update. The company had also started the process of migration of the international user data out of its Beijing-based servers and started shifting it to Amazon’s AWS data centers.

October 27, 2014
IAF Adamant to Ban Use of Xiaomi Smartphones

The Indian Air Force (IAF), earlier this week had issued a circular to its employees asking then to refrain from using Chinese phones. The focus was mainly on the hot selling Xiaomi phones. It had cited a report by F-Secure which said that they found that the Redmi 1S was forwarding carrier name, phone number, IMEI (the device identifier) plus numbers from address book and text messages back to Beijing. Even after Xiaomi took proactive steps towards addressing its concern, IAF, is pressing on its officials and families to refrain from using the phones.

Xiaomi had earlier in an interaction with PTI said that IAF must be taking into consideration an earlier privacy concern raised by F-secure. The security solutions company had done a test on the phones and found that they were automatically syncing the files on the cloud. Xiaomi said this was because cloud syncing was on by default on their devices. The company had released an OTA update on 10th August which would give the users the option to manually turn cloud syncing on.

Xiaomi added that F-Secure had acknowledged the efficacy of the new update. The company had also started the process of migration of the international user data out of its Beijing-based servers and started shifting it to Amazon’s AWS data centers.

It is important to know that this issue is not a cause for concern for the general public. The data, that is said to be collected by all service providers and handset manufacturers. The cause of concern was it going into the hands of a Chinese company. The Chinese government is notorious for collecting information without much regard for the legality of its actions. The country’s authorities had raged a man-in-the-middle attack to harvest passwords of iCloud users. Folks working in the military deal with sensitive information and that’s why the Air Force is exercising proactive caution. For the average person, you can go ahead and register for that next flash sale. It’s only going to get better after these incidents.

October 25, 2014
Heeding to Privacy Concerns, Xiaomi Shifts User Data Out of Beijing

Xiaomi has taken into consideration the massive privacy scares regarding their devices and are taking proactive steps towards addressing them. The company is planning to shift non-Chinese user data out of its Beijing data center. This comes after the directive issued by the Indian Air Force for its personnel, asking them or their families to refrain from using Chinese phones.

The Air Force had cautioned its employees, warning that Xiaomi was secretly sending user information to a secret location in China. Xiaomi has been a favorite amongst the young population because of high spec devices which are available for attractive prices. The buzz around it has led to a figurative stampede to get the device on Flipkart.

One of the most popular phones in India, the Xiaomi Redmi 1S sells out within seconds on Flipkart.

Seeing this accusation by the Air Force could cause trouble for its business in India, Xiaomi quickly went into damage control mode. Xiaomi’s Vice President of International, Hugo Barra wrote a detailed blog post on how the company plans to take on the issue.

Mr.Barra said that the company has been setting up servers in multiple locations and will be moving user data outside China. All international user data will be shifted to Amazon AWS data centers in California (USA) and Singapore. This migration process will be completed by the end of October and will benefit its users in Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Taiwan.

It was also said in the post that by next year the company will try to set up a local data centre in India and Brazil itself. This will give users faster access and privacy can be maintained in-country.

The Chinese authorities have been facing heavy criticism for engaging in a man-in-the-middle attack on Apple iCloud account. Considering the interfering nature of that government, it is rather safer to keep your data away from their prying eyes. We have to wait and see if these measures taken by the company offer some good solutions to the concern. People love these irresistible devices, but the importance of privacy cannot be overlooked.

October 24, 2014
Xiaomi to Offer 1,00,000 Redmi 1S Units on 14th October

After the Big Billion Day sale madness, Flipkart and Xiaomi are now readying themselves for the next Redmi 1S flash sale. There will be 1,00,000 Redmi units up for grabs on October 14, according to the Flipkart page. This news doesn’t come as much of a surprise, since Xiaomi had earlier revealed its plan to sell larger stocks every week during the upcoming festive season.

The registrations are already open for next sale, while Xiaomi claims to have received 2,00,000 registrations already. The registration window will be open till the 13th October midnight, while sale begins next day at 2PM.

The Redmi 1S is one of Xiaomi’s smartphones that sells like hot cakes, as it comes with high end specs with a price tag of Rs.5,999. The company has been accused of creating more demand than it can supply, as users have to register with Flipkart to participate in the sale. Registration only makes you eligible to buy, does not guarantee a unit.

Powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 chipset, the Redmi 1S has a Quad Core 1.6 GHz CPU the Adreno 305 GPU, 1 GB of RAM and 8 GB of inbuilt storage. The front of the Redmi 1S has a 4.7 inch 1280x720p display a total of 312 ppi, it’s protected by Asahi Dragontrail glass and has an IPS panel. Cameras comprise of an 8 MP snapper with a wide f2.2 aperture and a 1.6 MP front camera. The main camera is capable of a 1920 x 1080p Full HD video capture.

Compared to other smartphones in the same category, the Redmi 1S has a larger and sharper display, meanwhile it also takes an edge over Moto E when it comes to performance. Check out our review of the Redmi 1S.

October 11, 2014
Diwali Giveaway : Asus Zenfone 4 and Xiaomi In-Ear Earphones

Consider this the beginning of many exciting giveaways to come for this festive season. With this giveaway, we give you the chance to win a pair of these sleek earphones by Xiaomi and the Asus Zenfone 4. Simply enter the sweepstakes below.

Follow the instructions carefully and read the terms and conditions on the form as well as given here. This Giveaway is open only for residents of India.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Watch our unboxing and hands on video with the Asus Zenfone 4 here:

October 7, 2014