It's almost five years since the Xiaomi Mi 2 was released, in November 2012 to be precise, and the Mi 2s was launched in April 2013, but millions of people are still stuck with these handsets till date. Wondering what could be the secret behind this long shelf life? Even Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun is not sure but he does have a clue.
Lei Jun has posted on his Weibo page that nearly 500 million people are still using the Xiaomi Mi 2 and Mi 2S (called Millet 2 and Millet 2S respectively in China), and this is after the release of several flagships namely the Xiaomi Mi 3, Mi 4, Mi 5 and Mi 6. The Chinese technology giant has also released dozens of smartphones, including the upgraded versions of its flagships, Note series and Mi Max series. So, it is surprising to know that millions of people are still using these almost 5-year-old handsets.
Also read: White Xiaomi Mi 6 set for release after months of waiting
Interestingly, Lei Jun thinks that users of Xiaomi Mi 2 and Mi 2S are still not abandoning them for the new versions, probably because of its small screen size -- 4.3-inch. He asked if the small screen is the reason for the long shelf life of the devices.
The fact is big screen is the trend now and even Apple has broken its "small-screen is best" stand to survive the competition. But one can't rule out Lei Jun's proposition as Apple's iPhone SE, which sports a 4-inch display, has done well in the market.
The owners of Xiaomi Mi 2 and Xiaomi 2S have something to cheer about as the official MIUI English forum has included the devices in the list that will get MIUI 9 based on Android 7.0 Nougat.
It may be mentioned that the Xiaomi Mi 2 was released in November 2012 with a 4.3 inch IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen with 720x1,280 pixels (342 ppi pixel density), a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro, and an MIUI 5.0 based on Android 4.1 Jelly Bean (upgradable to Android 4.4.4 KitKat). It also has a 2GB RAM, a 16/32 GB internal storage, an 8MP main camera with f/2.0 aperture, 27mm lens, autofocus and LED flash, a 2MP secondary snapper, and a 2,000mAh battery.
On the other hand, Xiaomi Mi 2s was released in April 2013. It sports a 4.3-inch PS LCD capacitive touchscreen with 720x1,280 pixels (342 ppi pixel density), powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor and runs MIUI 5.0 OS based on Android 4.1 Jelly Bean (upgradable to Android 4.4.4 KitKat). It features a 2GB RAM, a 16/32 GB internal storage, an 8MP main camera with f/2.2 aperture for 16 GB version or 13MP camera for 32 GB version with f/2.2 aperture, autofocus and LED flash, a 2MP secondary snapper, and a 2,000mAh battery.
