So, as someone living and working in China, I've been super excited following up on the Xiaomi Phone. When they released the price as 2000 RMB (about $310 USD), I knew it had to be fake, or there was some serious funny business. The numbers just don't add up.
Engadget recently had a review of the Xiaomi phone and had it benchmarking near the Galaxy S 2 in several tests, so I think it makes sense to compare these two:
SGS 2 Advantages: Super AMOLED screen; 4.3 inch screen (vs 4 inch); forward facing camera; 1080p video recording (vs 720p); onboard storage (16 GB vs 4 GB); slightly smaller footprint.
Xiaomi Advantages: Price; processor speed (1.5 Ghz vs 1.2); battery (1930 mAh vs 1650); GLONASS and GPS tracking; highly customizable UI out of the box.
In China, the SGS2 retails for about 4300 RMB (about $670 USD). So how does a phone which is in the SGS2's ballpark retail for less than half the price?
It gets even more peculiar. Here are some questions Xiaomi hasn't cleared up(or at least I haven't seen their responses yet):
1) Xiaomi uses a Qualcomm processor and a LCD screen from Sharp (Japanese import). So they can't be using local parts to save costs, how are they able to offer the phone at only $310?
2) Local competitors like Huawei and ZTE who have much more experience in manufacturing (and much more leverage with suppliers) have yet to produce a phone remotely like this. Also, their closest local competition in terms of specs is something like the Huawei Honor, a single core phone that retails for about $400. Yet Xiaomi, which has never produced hardware before is getting better deals than these guys on components? Samsung also does component development in-house, but Xiaomi is getting better pricing than Samsung?
3) Xiaomi was originally a software developer. How did they pull a piece of impressive hardware like this out of nowhere?
4) Why retail for $310? They could sell it for $500 and it would still be way cheaper than an SGS2. Hell, I paid more than 2000 RMB for the crappy 2 year old Nokia I'm still using over here.
My Chinese is OK so I've been trying to read more on the Xiaomi forums, but I haven't really gotten any new information, other than there's something like 300,000 preorders already. I figure there's got to be some serious funny business going on. Probably:
a) ridiculous free loans and/or development assistance from the government to built up national prestige; or
b) copying another phone's internals verbatim; or
c) fake components of some kind
It looked really smooth in the Engadget video, so I'm inclined to be believe it's option A. Good for consumers I guess, but probably lousy if you're a Chinese taxpayer. Any ideas on why the price is so low?
Smaller companies tend to do these kind of things.
However I'm interested as well.
I believe that it's one part 'a' and another that generally huawei and zte have primarily been marketed for export (to SE Asia, India, EU) but the government is really trying to subsidize local start ups to fight imports (like HTC, Sony, etc...) and get Chinese to spend their money on Chinese things. But if a Chinese phone were 3000 RMB and a Korean or Japanese phone was also 3000 RMB, no one would get the Chinese phone for obvious reasons.
so basically you just made up a thread without any evidence and full of speculation accusing Xiaomi not being legit.
india are making ARM Cortex 9 phones with 4 GB for only $35
if they can do it, so can china
lol
Mmmhmm .
I don't why people have so much comments , no offence though .
Forever living in my Galaxy Ace using XDA App
I support you , and do your know meizu'M9 or MX?
hehe
it is good for everyone. thank you!
AllGamer said:
india are making ARM Cortex 9 phones with 4 GB for only $35
if they can do it, so can china
lol
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Seriously?
cdesai said:
Seriously?
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yes, there is a post with the pictures and spec here in the forum
aprox 5 days old
it's made for the india school system
Hi it's my first post and I have no exact figures to support this other than a simple comparison to another industry.
I remember hearing from someone that the mark up on mobile phones (this was a while ago) was a few hundred percent. Remember that it doesn't cost 800 dollars to make a phone and the people that usually make it in third world manufacturing companies or places with poor working conditions only get paid a few dollars an hour to make your 800 dollar phones.
our
My comparison industry is optometry. The following information comes from someone I know who is an optometrist:
"Frames like Gucci and Prada cost $3 per frame to make. In the stores you pay $500 dollars to buy them. That is an insane mark up. However they can't retail it cheaper because of an agreement in place to prevent the devaluation of the brand."
I am sure the same thing happens in the cell phone industry.
Just thought that this might put the legitimacy of the phone in perspective.
Thanks for your time.
andao79 said:
So, as someone living and working in China, I've been super excited following up on the Xiaomi Phone. When they released the price as 2000 RMB (about $310 USD), I knew it had to be fake, or there was some serious funny business. The numbers just don't add up.
Engadget recently had a review of the Xiaomi phone and had it benchmarking near the Galaxy S 2 in several tests, so I think it makes sense to compare these two:
SGS 2 Advantages: Super AMOLED screen; 4.3 inch screen (vs 4 inch); forward facing camera; 1080p video recording (vs 720p); onboard storage (16 GB vs 4 GB); slightly smaller footprint.
Xiaomi Advantages: Price; processor speed (1.5 Ghz vs 1.2); battery (1930 mAh vs 1650); GLONASS and GPS tracking; highly customizable UI out of the box.
In China, the SGS2 retails for about 4300 RMB (about $670 USD). So how does a phone which is in the SGS2's ballpark retail for less than half the price?
It gets even more peculiar. Here are some questions Xiaomi hasn't cleared up(or at least I haven't seen their responses yet):
1) Xiaomi uses a Qualcomm processor and a LCD screen from Sharp (Japanese import). So they can't be using local parts to save costs, how are they able to offer the phone at only $310?
2) Local competitors like Huawei and ZTE who have much more experience in manufacturing (and much more leverage with suppliers) have yet to produce a phone remotely like this. Also, their closest local competition in terms of specs is something like the Huawei Honor, a single core phone that retails for about $400. Yet Xiaomi, which has never produced hardware before is getting better deals than these guys on components? Samsung also does component development in-house, but Xiaomi is getting better pricing than Samsung?
3) Xiaomi was originally a software developer. How did they pull a piece of impressive hardware like this out of nowhere?
4) Why retail for $310? They could sell it for $500 and it would still be way cheaper than an SGS2. Hell, I paid more than 2000 RMB for the crappy 2 year old Nokia I'm still using over here.
My Chinese is OK so I've been trying to read more on the Xiaomi forums, but I haven't really gotten any new information, other than there's something like 300,000 preorders already. I figure there's got to be some serious funny business going on. Probably:
a) ridiculous free loans and/or development assistance from the government to built up national prestige; or
b) copying another phone's internals verbatim; or
c) fake components of some kind
It looked really smooth in the Engadget video, so I'm inclined to be believe it's option A. Good for consumers I guess, but probably lousy if you're a Chinese taxpayer. Any ideas on why the price is so low?
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I'd get the M9 or M9x ( or something.. Quad Core? HELLOOOOO )
I don't see why someone would get a device ONLY for Miui, most phones out there have a build of MIUI.
You really think that $600 phone costs $600 to make?
The markup on electrical goods from brand names can be over 200%
My point is not really related to the idea of a markup, I KNOW all cell phones have a dramatic markup, and I read not long ago an iPhone 4 costs about $180 to make, while they retail for something like $600 out of contract.
I'm more interested in a) How did this company come out of nowhere with this sort of hardware? and b) They don't NEED to sell it for 2000 RMB for it to be a hit. They could have sold it for $400-450 and it would have still been a hell of a lot cheaper than a Galaxy S 2.
That, coupled with the fact that the big guns in China (Meizu, Huawei, ZTE) are not even in the same ballpark with specs or price, is really weird.
If i can demo one and it works well, i'll definitely pick one up, but there must be some serious funny business behind the scenes.
Why must there be funny business?
Well, you can build a cheap phone if you want.
The question is: can you sell it cheap?
Operating costs, brand advertisement etc. They have no problem there, they just build a phone having no ad space on western media.They can do it, they are smart enough.Plus: we enthusiasts are their advertisement plan, we buy it for cheap, all our friends will buy it.
It's a win win scenario.My 2 eurocents.
andao79 said:
My point is not really related to the idea of a markup, I KNOW all cell phones have a dramatic markup, and I read not long ago an iPhone 4 costs about $180 to make, while they retail for something like $600 out of contract.
I'm more interested in a) How did this company come out of nowhere with this sort of hardware? and b) They don't NEED to sell it for 2000 RMB for it to be a hit. They could have sold it for $400-450 and it would have still been a hell of a lot cheaper than a Galaxy S 2.
That, coupled with the fact that the big guns in China (Meizu, Huawei, ZTE) are not even in the same ballpark with specs or price, is really weird.
If i can demo one and it works well, i'll definitely pick one up, but there must be some serious funny business behind the scenes.
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The issue is risk. Do you risk spending $300 on a new unknown brand or do you spend $450 on a noname brand when you can get a well known brand for $600?
There is obviously going to be a greater curve of buyers the lower the price you go and finding the balance is where your marketers need mettle. I think the current price is going to be very good to get users into buying the phone. Obviously, if they can become the new HTC, their markup is going to increase hugely.
My concern is going to be: at ~$300, what is the customer service going to be like? HTC's is mediocre here in the UK, but if Vodafone, Orange et al resell this phone, it's going to be VERY attractive to us as the carriers are held responsible until end of warranty.
russ18uk said:
The issue is risk. Do you risk spending $300 on a new unknown brand or do you spend $450 on a noname brand when you can get a well known brand for $600?
There is obviously going to be a greater curve of buyers the lower the price you go and finding the balance is where your marketers need mettle. I think the current price is going to be very good to get users into buying the phone. Obviously, if they can become the new HTC, their markup is going to increase hugely.
My concern is going to be: at ~$300, what is the customer service going to be like? HTC's is mediocre here in the UK, but if Vodafone, Orange et al resell this phone, it's going to be VERY attractive to us as the carriers are held responsible until end of warranty.
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Just to clarify, the retailer is responsible until you have had a reasonable amount of use out of it irrespective of warranty
The law doesn't care about warranties, they're in the best case an agreement that the device will be repaired without the need to take legal action, and in the worst case used to illegally convince consumers they have no rights.
Take my Sensation, afaik it has a 12month warranty.
Say the screen dies after 18 months, I'll be demanding O2 repair or replace it otherwise I'll be contacting trading standards as being a phone provided on a 24 month contract I should be able to expect it to last at least 24 months and more especially considering the price when new.
I love being a consumer in the UK
Xiaomo said:
I support you , and do your know meizu'M9 or MX?
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yes~ Meizu much better than xiaomi
kerwin_pig said:
yes~ Meizu much better than xiaomi
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WHY DID YOU DIG UP OLD THREADS
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium
Hi,
I'm in the UK, I currently have a ZTE Blade (Orange San Francisco) and am looking for a new phone. i was hoping you guys might be able to let me know what is best for my budget. I'd also be grateful if you could tell me whether you think there will be any big drops in the price of phones, so it is worth waiting a few months before buying.
I am not on a monthly contract
I would like to buy the phone second hand from eBay
Budget is £100-120
I'll need it on o2 network, but would prefer if it could be unlocked.
The camera should be decent
The GPS should work well
The screen should be good (my ZTE Blade has an OLED screen)
It should be fast and stable
It must be well made and solid
It should hold Wifi well
It should be good at getting reception
It should have a scratch resistant screen
It must be well supported by Devs so new ROM's are made keeping it up to date with Android OS's
I'm not looking for the best and latest phone just a faster and more reliable phone.
Thanks all
Cheers
Ross
HTC Sensation or HTC HD2.
Hi all..
Just wondering what people thought of the Chinese / cloned phones that pop up all over ebay?
I'm looking for a cheap ICS phone as my current phone contract is up for renewal and i want to lower the tariff but still get a newer phone.
The one I've seen is a gifive skyline X5 phone..
Just curious what there like.. i know there general performance will not equal the latest phones like the S3 or One X
don't buy those bad quality chinese cloned phone, you will waste your money. most of them will have problem after few months. they are cheap but with bad quality. if you are going to buy, i think Lenovo phone will suite your need, it't Chinese brand but good quality. my friends had 2 dead chinese phones within 3 months
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
My general advice is to not get them.. Poor quality, unless you buy from a brand name such as Goapple or Xiaomi.
i got my gi five at the beginning of December last year and had no issues whats so ever on giff gaff with it ended up getting the daughter one for Christmas and she over the moon with it. on here looking for custom roms now lol
allnighta said:
i got my gi five at the beginning of December last year and had no issues whats so ever on giff gaff with it ended up getting the daughter one for Christmas and she over the moon with it. on here looking for custom roms now lol
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ive had 1 for 9 month they great phones only problem is battery dies in 2 hour of heavy usage but i got mine off ebay had extra battery for free
I was shopping for a phone for my son the other day. He is only young so I wanted a mid range/budget Android phone.
The best I was offered was a Samsung Ace II still stranded on Gingerbread and it left me thinking - Has the current desire for ultra powerful octa-core 5" mega phones left companies ignoring their mid range offerings?
Maybe its my lack of knowledge but I struggle to find anything on a £15 - £20 p/m contract that I would recommend to anyone to keep for *two years*.
With a lot of other tech you get trickle down, with last years top or the range features becoming next years mid range, and often hardware stays viable for two or three years. I think you'd be pushed to find many phones with upgrade support after two years?
I'd love to hear peoples thoughts...
Sir, good place to post>>> **DEVICE SUGGESTION THREAD** -- Not sure what device to buy? Ask here!
nexus 4 is the right device you need
Try HTC One S
+1 for the Nexus 4...
The Nexus 4 is a great phone, in fact that's what I have myself, but you can't get it on a contract (easily) leaving you with either shelling out the full amount or going choices like the Ace 2 which manufacturers just don't seem to care to care about.
In fact I ended up getting him an HTC 8s on a £15 pm contract. I was more wondering if in general people thought that manufacturers seem to have abandoned this section of the market.