Xiaomi strikes hard : Prices new devices aggressively

Finally the big day arrived, Xiaomi has officially arrived in India after the big announcement of Xiaomi Mi 3 earlier. Bin Lin and Hugo Barra were on hand to launch the device in the country, where they shared key statistics in Xiaomi's growth, which saw the Chinese manufacturer accruing an astounding 271 percent increase in revenue in the first half of 2014.

Mi 3 has been priced at ₹13,999 which is a steal for the features and specifications it promises. I had already given a full review of Mi 3 earlier, So check it out. Mi 3 is available for registration today on Flipkart and will be available from 21st July.

But the big news apart from the company launching in India is the announcement of more Xiaomi devices including the Redmi series i.e, Redmi Note and Redmi 1S and that too the prices at which they are announced which is ₹6,999 and ₹9,999 respectively.

Redmi 1S is a budget smartphone and like Mi 3 and Redmi Note carries the tradition of good specs at a competitive price.

·        1.6 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 MSM8228

·        1GB of RAM

·        Adreno 305 GPU

·        4.7 inch HD Display

·        8GB Internal Storage

·        8MP Rear shooter

·        1.6MP Front Camera

·        Android 4.3 with MIUI

·        2G, 3G, Bluetooth, GPS

...

Redmi Note is a phablet with powerful specifications in the price segment. Let’s look at them.

·        1.7 GHz octa-core Mediatex processor MT6592

·        2GB RAM

·        ARM Mali-451 GPU

·        5.5 inch HD Display

·        8GB Internal Storage

·        13MP Rear shooter

·        5MP Front Camera

·        Android 4.3 with MIUI

·        2G, 3G, Bluetooth, GPS

...

Talking about the company's India operations, Manu Jain, India operations head, Xiaomi, said "We are looking to provide the best in class experience to our Mi fans in India. We are starting with 35+ service centres across top 20 cities, a hotline that operates 7 days a week, and a vibrant Mi India Facebook page. Our partner Flipkart, with its world-class technology and customer service, will be key to providing this experience."

Xiaomi will have 36 service centres in India with two exclusive Mi centres in Delhi and Bangalore.

Xiaomi stated that other devices set to make their way in the country including Mi TV 2, Xiaomi's 49-inch 4K 3D TV.

Mi Pad

So what do you think? Has Xiaomi made the right splash with the Mi 3 launch? The price is certainly great, but it remains to be seen whether the brand will work in India.