Thirty Minutes with Xiaomi India’s Muralikrishnan B — an Orbital Exclusive
Xiaomi India is gearing up to launch the Xiaomi 13 Pro in India next week, with the upcoming smartphone expected to be the company’s first flagship phone with Leica-tuned cameras to debut in the country. The company faced headwinds in India last year, including increasing competition from other brands and scrutiny from government agencies in the country. This year, the company is all set to take on its rivals and plans to simplify its product portfolio in India, while making more products and sourcing more components in India.
In the latest episode of Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast, host Jamshed Avari and Senior Reviewer Sheldon Pinto talk to the President of Xiaomi India Mural Krishnan B to discuss the arrival of the Xiaomi 13 Pro, what customers expect from the company from 5G connectivity in India and Xiaomi’s plans for 2023 in India.
The Xiaomi 13 Pro is launching in India on February 26, just in time for the upcoming Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2023. Unlike the Xiaomi 12 Ultra, which didn’t debut in the country last year, this will be the company’s first flagship smartphone to feature cameras developed in collaboration with Leica.
Smartphone prices have been affected globally by a rise in the cost of various components that have become more expensive due to supply chain issues. Meanwhile, consumer expectations from entry-level devices have increased, while application loads have only increased over the years. Multitasking requirements have also increased as users perform more tasks with their smartphones.
On the other hand, many customers are holding on to their phones for longer. This is due to an improvement in the overall quality of smartphones and because some users are now waiting for 5G networks to be rolled out in their area before switching to a 5G-compatible smartphone, says Muralikrishnan.
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The company surveyed its customers in India about their expectations for 5G in India and found that users want faster network speeds, uninterrupted connectivity, and little to no buffering. However, users in India can find even more use cases for 5G as the next-generation network services are rolled out to more areas.
Last year, Xiaomi launched both 4G and 5G phones across all major price brackets between Rs. 10,000 and Rs. 15,000 and Rs. 15,000 and Rs. 20,000. By 2023, most of the company’s smartphones above Rs. 15,000 will offer 5G connectivity, the Xiaomi India head said.
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Despite a turbulent year in India last year, the company is optimistic about its performance in 2023. Xiaomi India will simplify its portfolio and significantly reduce the number of models. Meanwhile, the company is also doubling down on making and sourcing more components for its smartphones and smart TVs in India.
You can listen to all of this in detail in our episode by clicking the play button on the Spotify player above.
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