Xiaomi aims at Apple,Samsung with new Mi5 smartphone

March 27, 2016 Android New Launch News Xiaomi

On Wednesday, the Chinese company, Xiaomi, launched its newest flagship, Mi5 with a view to extending its market beyond its current market.

Xiaomi Mi5

The device will be available in two variants both having 5.15-inch display. The first variant will be the 120GB costing $354 and the other one will cost around $254 dollars and will have a 32GB memory.

The Xiaomi Mi5 will first be launched in China, followed by other markets of the company. Some of the features you should expect from the smartphone include a curvy back, a fingerprint sensor, and a 16MP rear and 4MP front camera. The new flagship will also be available in white and gold models.

Now that the company is eyeing the European markets, the next question is whether it would succeed or not. Xiaomi, which is worth around $45 billion, has been able to build its brand and improve market share in its own country using a host of tactics among them selling low-priced, high-tech smartphones, using a slew of social media marketing, and selling directly to consumers. 

The slow growth in its current market has made the company to look to European and US markets where it hopes to break into a big market share for its smartphones. Previously, the Chinese smartphone company has hinted at breaking into the European and US market. However, there it didn’t state the timeframe for which that will happen. At this point, it seems the company is ready to take its product to this market to compete with Samsung and Apple. 

According to the IDC, Xiaomi holds 4.6% of smartphone market share. And the company is looking forward to expanding its market share with the 5.15-inch Mi5.

Conclusion 

The company has seen much growth in its home country, China, by making people drop their money on its software and services. If this model can work in China, is it possible for the company to see the same result in the West where Google and Apple have dominated the market? During the MWC event, the international vice-president of Xiaomi, Hugo Barra, is seen to be constantly comparing the Xiaomi Mi5 to rival Apple and Samsung in a bid to bring its brand to notice in the smartphone market. 

When Barra was interviewed and questioned about the ability of the company to replicate its sales model in the international market, he said, “We’ll bring this to other markets…so lot of exiting evolution ahead which will allow us to bring our internet content outside of China”.