After its successful stint in developing markets, particularly India, Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi has entered an uncharted territory – Europe. The company has announced its arrival in Spain by unveiling two of its handsets, the Google-powered Xiaomi Mi A1 and Mi Mix 2.
The move came after years of speculations that the Chinese technology giant would expand its market towards the West. The company has been having a wonderful run in India so far, becoming one of the top companies in terms of sales in just a few years. However, it is to be seen whether it will do well in developed markets.
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The Mi A1 is priced at €229 (around $260) and the Mi Mix 2 at €499 (around $570) in Spain and it will available for purchase on online stores like mi.com/es, Amazon.es and AliExpress.com, and physical retail stores like Media Markt, Phone House and Carrefour starting November 11, the day Xiaomi is scheduled to open two stores in the national capital Madrid, according to The Verge. Pre-order for the two handsets is now open, and they will be made available in other retailers on November 22.
Xiaomi will also sell its products like the Mi Electric Scooter, the Mi Band 2 and the Mi Action Camera 4 in Spain besides Mi A1 and Mi Mix 2.
Now, the big question is whether Xiaomi will also enter the United States. Nothing is sure at the moment but Wang Xiang, SVP, Xiaomi has hinted at the possibility by revealing its plan to expand to other countries.
"In order to be focused, we want to make Spain successful first. And then we can think of other markets and countries. We want to learn from the customers about the taste of European people," Wang Xiang told The Verge.
Xiaomi Mi A1 key specifications:
The Android One smartphone features a 5.5-inch FHD display with 1,080x1,920 pixels (403 ppi pixel density), a Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor, an Android 7.1.2 Nougat operating system, a 4GB RAM, a 64GB ROM storage (expandable up to 128GB via microSD card), and a 3,080mAh battery with fast charging technology.
In terms of camera, it has a dual 12MP+12MP wide-angle/telephoto rear camera with 26mm lens and f/2.2 aperture / 50mm lens and f/2.6 aperture, 2X optical zoom, 1.25µm large pixels and dual-LED (dual tone) flash, and a 5MP front-snapper.
Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 key specifications:
The handset sports a 5.99-inch IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen with 1,080x2,160 pixels (403 ppi density), and 18:9 aspect ratio. Under the hood, it has Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset, MIUI 9 based on Android 7.1 Nougat, 6GB/8GB RAM, 64GB/128GB/256GB storage (no microSD card slot), and 3,400mAh battery with fast charging 9V/2A (Quick Charge 3.0).
In terms of camera, it has a 12MP main camera with f/2.0 aperture, phase detection autofocus, OIS (4-axis), dual-LED (dual tone) flash, 1/2.9" sensor size, 1.25 µm pixel size touch focus and face detection, and a 5MP front-snapper with f/2.0 aperture.
