Chinese tech giant Xiaomi has launched its latest smartphone model Xiaomi 15 and 15 Ultra, continuing to interrupt the market for higher-end devices for main android competitor Samsung.
The newest models were unveiled at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona and are set to feature the company’s largest chip and improved camera.
The Xiaomi 15 will set customers back US$1,047 (A$1,681) while the Xiaomi 15 Ultra will cost US$1,571 (A$2,523).
“Xiaomi has been hugely successful of building its brand with affordable technology and but now it’s moving up the value chain as it moves more into premium devices and that’s well-suited to the European market where we see an affluent audience,” Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight, told CNBC.
2024 was a big year for the company that saw global shipments of their smartphones grow 15.4% year-on-year, outpacing major international competitors Samsung and Apple.
Now the 3rd largest smartphone maker in the world, the company only began selling low-to-mid price smartphones in 2010 and has since expanded grabbing a hold of the European market across all products.
Xiaomi offers products such as tablets, earbuds, and fitness trackers alongside the phones.
In 2023 the company also expanded into the electric vehicle market with the announcement of the SU7, in their latest push to diversify products beyond consumer electronics.
The car is currently only available in China and delivers a staggering 1,527 hp for approximately US$72,800.
The EV also boasts its own 24-carat gold and carbon fibre bonnet badge and is already outselling the Tesla Model 3 in China
Vice president for data and analytics at IDC, Francisco Jeronimo, told CNBC the EV boosted Xiaomi’s brand.
“They are using the car as leverage to build on their brand which I think is a clever idea,” said Jeronimo.
Shares in the tech company reached record highs this week.
At the timing of writing (2:08 pm AEDT) Xiaomi Corp (HKG: 1810) shares were trading at HK$52.15 (A$10.79), up 0.68% from yesterday's close. The company has a market capitalisation of HK$1.31 trillion.
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