On Sunday, Xiaomi unveiled its leading smartphone to the world in an effort to compete with Apple and Samsung for a piece of the upmarket. The Xiaomi 13 and 13 Pro were first introduced in China in December. The Beijing-based business is now introducing the gadget to the international market.
But Xiaomi is not the only Chinese smartphone manufacturer that’s attempted to break into the upmarket. Oppo also revealed its first foldable phone for the global market in Dember.
The Xiaomi 13 Pro gadget features Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Chipset and a 6.73-inch screen. Together with other high-end functions like ultra-fast charging, it sports a triple-lens camera. The company highlighted the benefits of the camera that it “co-engineered” with the German company Leica.
The 13 Pro starts at $1368.70, while the Xiaomi 13 is available for $1,053.
Rough previous years for Xiaomi
According to research firm IDC, Xiaomi had a difficult year in 2022, with its smartphone penetration decreasing 26% year over year, the worst decline among the top five largest handset suppliers. According to the most recent financial data, the firm lost money in the third quarter of 2009.
Xiaomi has faced several challenges, chief among them a more difficult macroeconomic environment imposed by a slowing Chinese economy. According to IDC, 1.21 billion smartphones will be distributed globally in 2022, which will be the lowest annual shipping total since 2013.
According to Neil Mawston, an analyst at TechInsights, Xiaomi is facing numerous obstacles inside China. From an ever-popular Apple iPhone, an unexpectedly strong Honor, and volatile Chinese consumers who frequently move between Android hardware companies in a flash.
Xiaomi has attempted to penetrate the international market for many years
Because of a strategy that entails launching high-end devices at incredibly low rates, Xiaomi has developed over to become one of the largest smartphone makers.
It used a similar strategy when it made its first attempt to enter the global market about seven years ago. It now seeks to penetrate the top end of the market, where margins are better and the industry is still growing.
Will Xiaomi successfully compete with Apple and Samsung in the premium category?
The market share of high-end smartphones, climbed from 11% in 2020 to 18% in 2022, per Canalys data. When Xiaomi gets into the luxury market, it will be challenging to compete with the two mobile giants. According to Canalys, Samsung and Apple product sales made 92% of the high-end sales in 2022.
Runar Bjrhovde, a research analyst at Canalys, says competing against large organizations with outstanding brand awareness, high-end perceptions, experience-focused solutions, and product ecosystems with high user stickiness is extremely challenging.
