As expected, the feature-rich Xiaomi Mi 4i received an overwhelming response on Thursday, 30 April, on Flipkart.
The company boasted its feat on the official social networking site Facebook that all 40,000 Mi 4i units were sold out in 15 seconds. The company had received 3.5 lakh plus applications for the 30 April flash sale.
While some lucky consumers felt a sense of accomplishment to be able to bag the phone, there were others who got frustrated seeing some miscreants offering to sell the device at exorbitant prices on the company's official Facebook post (comments section). Some people linked the posts to Xiaomi India, pointing the audacity of racketeers.
In reply, Xiaomi India warned the miscreants to refrain from posting Mi 4i sale ads on Facebook or else face legal consequences.
"Posts on selling phones from your cart to other customers will not be taken lightly. We request you to delete your message from Mi India page," said the company on Facebook.
But these statements don't deter racketeers as they will go to free online classified sites like Quikr or OLX to sell the devices. We believe it's imperative for Xiaomi to streamline the Mi 4i production line to bridge the gap between demand and supply. Until this is not fixed, black marketing of Mi 4i is bound to continue.
Shortage of Mi 4i will also sway some frustrated customers away to look for alternative models; In India, there is a dearth of devices in this mid-range category.
[Also read: Xiaomi Mi4i vs. Asus Zenfone 2 (ZE551ML/ZE550ML) vs. YU Yureka vs. Moto G (2 Gen): Specification Comparison]
[Note: Registration window for the 7 May flash sale will be opened for the public at 6:00 pm evening today (30 April) at Flipkart.]
Key specifications of Xiaomi Mi 4i:
Models | Xiaomi Mi 4i |
Display |
|
OS | Android 5.0 Lollipop with MIUI 6.0 |
Processor | 2nd Generation 1.65GHZ Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 Series Octa-core (1.7GHz quad-core ARM Cortex A53 + 1.0GHz quad-core A53) CPU |
GPU | Adreno 405 |
RAM | 2GB LPDDR3 |
Storage capacity | 16GB (eMMC) |
Camera |
|
Battery | 3120 mAh |
Network | 4G-LTE |
Add-ons | Visual IVR (Interactive Voice Response), Dual-SIM (micro+ micro) slots, Wi-Fi (802.11 ac; MU-MIMO), GPS/GLONASS, uni-body design, |
Dimensions | 138.1 x 69.6 x 7.8 mm |
Weight | 130 g |
Price | ₹12,999/- |