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Why is Xiaomi not a national pride? Chinese netizens ask

Efe UdinJanuary 8, 2019

May locals in China have often wonder why Chinese manufacturing giant, Xiaomi, makes giant strides in other countries especially India but its still in the shadows of Huawei in China. Today, in a short interaction with Lei Jun, some Chinese fans of Xiaomi tried to get Lei Jun to answer the question “Why is Huawei a national brand but Xiaomi is not?”. Xiaomi’s CEO intelligently passed the question and he gave no direct response.

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According to Xiaomi’s 2018 Q3 financial report, Xiaomi ranked first in the Indian mobile phone market for four consecutive quarters, with a significant market share. At the same time, Xiaomi’s mobile phone shipments in Indonesia increased by 337% year-on-year, ranking second. Xiaomi’s mobile phone shipments in Western Europe increased by 386% year-on-year, ranking fourth. In addition, the company has entered the top five in the mobile phone market in 30 countries and regions. Its foreign revenue surged by 112.7% year-on-year, and the proportion of overseas revenue in the third quarter reached 43.9%. It is worth noting that its Q3 global mobile phone shipments fell by 6% year-on-year, and Xiaomi is considered to be the main growth driver of the global mobile phone industry.

So why can’t Xiaomi achieve these figures in China? Does the Chinese need something that Xiaomi doesn’t have? Is it about the stiff competition in the Chinese market or is it related to Xiaomi’s relatively young age? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

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About the author
Efe Udin
Efe Udin, a government tech policy expert is a seasoned tech writer with over seven years of tech writing experience. Efe's true passion lies in exploring the intersection of technology, politics, and brand feuds.

With an astute understanding of the power dynamics and competitive landscape within the tech world, Efe delves into the intricacies of how technology influences political discourse and how brand rivalries shape the industry.

Allan Mwenda
January 8, 2019
It’s because they lack the prestige that Huawei and Apple have at the high end.

Tech Fan
January 8, 2019
Maybe Xiaomi doesn’t exert the same efforts in china as in other countries by making hot offers and discounts that can attract people . I think they also didn’t innovate or their phones are not the best .
For example , Mi mix 3 which is the company’s premium flagship of 2018 can’t beat honor magic 2 ( china exclusive ) which is nearly the same price as the magic 2 but the magic has larger battery , more cameras , slightly faster CPU . So, Xiaomi needs to make more complete phones for the same price as there are many chinese phones that have the same or more features than Xiaomi’s phones with the same price tag . I’m looking forward to seeing Xiaomi leading the Chinese market as well as the global markets and overtake the likes of Huawei , Oppo and Vivo .

Freeje238
January 9, 2019
People say that it’s not as premium as Huawei. It started off as a copycat of Apple and it had quality problems before so it stuck to their minds. When I changed phones from Huawei (Mate 8) to Mi8, Chinese colleagues questioned my choice.
Cyril Dieudonne
January 9, 2019
Xiaomi does well in China, but it has the image of an affordable brand
which it isn’t so much anymore. Redmi brand will become what was Xiaomi at the beginning. I trust Xiaomi 10 times more than huawei. I would buy 10 xiaomi phones before I even buy a huawei. Huawei has bette communication than Xiaomi, that’s all, Huawei also receives shitloads of cash from the central government… easier for them