The story broke last week that Xiaomi smartphone users in some selected countries like Cuba, Iran, Syria, and Sudan, were blocked from using their smartphones. The move was aimed at curtailing the illegal activities of resellers who smuggle such smartphones into unauthorized regions to sell such. Xiaomi had stated then that it was part of its export policy to prevent access to users who purchase the device in these restricted regions.

Xiaomi has said that it was part of an ongoing investigation to determine whether the smartphones were smuggled to unauthorized regions like Cuba, Syria, Sudan, and a few other countries. The move is seen as an anti-smuggling measure aimed at preventing resellers from selling Xiaomi smartphones in these prohibited regions. However, buyers who bought their devices in legal markets and are using them in these prohibited countries are now allowed to continue using their smartphones. Indeed, in a country like Cuba on the list of prohibited countries, Xiaomi accounts for up to 15% of active smartphones in the country. The disconnection would have resulted in disruptions to a huge segment of the population.

Xiaomi says the ongoing investigation has achieved significant results, although no further detail on the depth of the results achieved was mentioned. The decision to restore access to legal owners of Xiaomi smartphones in these markets may be a middle-ground solution, as the company’s export policy expressly prohibits the use of its smartphones outside legal markets.

RELATED:

• Xiaomi Mi Pad 5 global version gets unboxed, price revealed too
• Xiaomi Mi 11X, POCO F3 get MIUI 12.5 Enhanced Edition update
• Xiaomi controls 50% of China’s OLED TV market, sold over 10K OLED TVs in 15 days

(source)

The post Here’s why Xiaomi blocked its phone users in some regions; Access restored! appeared first on Gizmochina.

Giztop is giving Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra, Global Edition, 12GB + 256GB  for $1399. 

Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra comes with a 6.81” 2K E4 AMOLED display and is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 5G processor. The smartphone comes with a triple rear camera setup with a 50MP main camera and a 20MP AI front camera for selfies. Powered by a massive 5000 mAh battery the smartphone supports both 67W wired and wireless charging. Available in Ceramic White and Black colors, the smartphone comes with 12GB LPDDR5  RAM and 256GB UFS 3.1 Storage.

Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra Global Edition is now available for purchase at Giztop for $1399. Please note that the above-mentioned price is applicable only to the 12GB + 256GB variant. 

For more information on such exciting deals and offers check out our deals hub.

* Please Note: When you buy something using the links in our articles, we may earn a small commission at no cost to you.

The post Get Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra Global Edition for $1399 at Giztop appeared first on Gizmochina.

It looks like Xiaomi’s huge fanbase is in for a treat! The Chinese smartphone manufacturer has teamed up with Banggood to offers some of its well-received smartphones at prices that are simply unbeatable.

Moreover, these devices have been assigned specific coupons that can be used for extra discounts. We will not only shed light on the aforesaid discounts but also show how you can save a considerable amount of more money at the time of checking out.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 8

Xiaomi took the covers off the Redmi Note 8 in a launch event held in China in August this year. Aside from housing 48-megapixel quad cameras on the optics front, the Redmi Note 8 is loaded with exciting features. You can now buy different variants of the phone at a reduced price from Banggood.

• Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 [4GB RAM+64GB ROM]

The original asking price of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 is $269.99, but much to the relief of those on a tight budget, the phone has gone up for sale bearing a reduced price tag of only $261.08 via Banggood. In addition to getting this noteworthy discount, you can get free shipping on orders over $19.99.

If that doesn’t impress you much, you can get an extra $101.09 off by applying coupon code BGD11N84 at the time of checking out. The coupon helps you bring the retail price of the phone down to just $159.99 before you place your order.

To use the coupon and grab the discount, simply follow this link to the promotion page.

• Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 [4GB RAM+128GB ROM]

This is the slightly larger Redmi Note 8 variant that would normally set you back $299.99 on both online, as well as offline stores. Much to the relief of cost-conscious buyers, Banggood is offering it for a dropped price of just $291.58.

As if that weren’t enough, you can even extend this discount by applying coupon code BGD11N88 at checkout. The aforesaid coupon enables you to save $11.59 more by reducing the original selling price of the Redmi Note 8 to just $179.99 during the checkout process. You can visit this link to get the discount and place your order.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 Pro

The Redmi Note 8 Pro was launched in August at a launch event that took place in China. One of the highlights of the Redmi Note 8 Pro includes a 64-megapixel quad-camera setup that enables you to capture memorable moments in the form of crystal-clear photos. The phone is now available on Banggood for a lowered price.

• Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 Pro [6GB RAM+64GB ROM]

Available in three eye-catching color options – Pearl White, Mineral Grey and Forest Green, the global version of the Redmi Note 8 Pro has gone up for sale on Banggood carrying a $328.18 price sticker. Those who aren’t willing to spend that kind of money on a high-end smartphone can apply coupon code BGD11N8P6 for a $118.19 off.

As a result, the original selling price of the Redmi Note 8 Pro drops to only $209.99 before you click the ‘Place Your Order’ button. To take full advantage o the coupon before it expires, simply follow this link. You can also get free shipping on orders over $19.99.

Xiaomi Mi9 Lite

Launched in the first week of January this year, the Mi9 Lite is an irresistible smartphone that adopts a slim, minimalist design, coupled with high performance. It is housed in an eye-catching frame which is made using high-quality metal and glass. You can get the Mi9 for a lowered price on Banggood.

• Xiaomi Mi9 Lite [6GB RAM+128GB ROM]

Banggood is offering a 9 percent off on the well-received Xiaomi Mi9 Lite smartphone, which usually sells for $419.99. Thanks to the above-mentioned discount, you can now buy it for just $383.08. Moreover, Banggood is offering free shipping to those who spend more than $19.99 on the website.

Furthermore, you can use coupon code BGD119L8 and get an extra $153.09 off. After applying the coupon, the original asking price of the Xiaomi Mi9 Lite reduces to just $229.99. The phone comes in Onyx Grey, Aurora Blue, and Pearl White color options. You can visit the promotion page by following this link.

Xiaomi Mi 9T Pro

Xiaomi announced the long-awaited Mi 9T Pro in August this year. The phone’s awe-inspiring features propelled it straight to skyrocketing popularity among Xiaomi fans. Even months after hitting the store shelves, the Mi 9T Pro continues to garner admiration. You can buy it for a reduced price through Banggood.

• Xiaomi Mi 9T Pro [6GB RAM+128GB ROM]

The feature-laden Mi 9T Pro understandably carries a steep price tag of $599.99, but if you place your order through Banggood, you can get your tech greedy hands on the phone for a considerably reduced price o just $597.79. Moreover, you get free shipping if your cart value exceeds $19.99.

New users can take advantage of an $18 OFF Coupon and save more money. The rest of the Banggood users can apply coupon code BGD119TP to bring the asking price of the Mi 9T Pro down to just $349.99 during the checkout process. The coupon enables you to save $247.8 more.

To ensure you are not too late to grab this great discount, just follow this link without wasting more time.

The post Buy Top-End Xiaomi Branded Smartphones at Unbeatable Prices from Banggood [Coupons] appeared first on Gizmochina.

A flagship product essentially refers to a company’s core product or service which is most appreciable among its loyal users. In other words, the best product of the company can be touted as its flagship product.

A flagship smartphone boasts an impressive array of features, paired with top-end specifications, which makes it stand out from the rest of the products made by the company. There are no prizes for guessing that these mobile phones aren’t easy on the pocketbook.

To make these steeply-priced flagship products available to those living on a tight budget, Banggood has launched a new promo called Xiaomi Flagship Products. If you have restlessly been waiting to get your tech greedy hands on one of Xiaomi’s flagship handsets without emptying your pocket, this is your chance.

As part of the promo, the Chinese online store is offering a wide range of Xioami-branded mobile devices for considerably lowered prices. You can save up to $100 on these smartphones that have carefully been split into multiple categories.

Realme R5 is the first mobile phone available on the promotion page. More importantly, you can pre-order it for a lowered price.

While the Realme R5 4GB RAM+128GB ROM variant usually retails for $269.99, you can pre-order for just $256.19 from the promotion page. As if that weren’t enough, you can reduce its retail price to just $169.99 by applying coupon code BGREALMER54 at checkout.

Likewise, you can bring the original asking price of the 2GB RAM+16GB ROM Redmi 7A variant down to just $69.99 by applying coupon code BG7AECL at checkout. Note that the phone usually sells for $109.99.

The 2GB RAM+32GB ROM Redmi 7A model usually carries a $119.99 price tag, by using coupon code BG7AE32EU you can reduce its selling price to just $79.99. Moreover, you get free shipping on orders over $19.99.

The rest of the smartphones have been divided into three categories including New Arrivals, Brand Zone, and More Recommended.

The first section on the activity page called New Arrival features a slew of well-received mobile phones that you can buy without burning a hole in your pocket. While some of these phones carry heavily discounted price tags, some have been assigned dedicated coupons that you can use to save money at checkout.

For example, the ZTE Nubia Red Magic 3 with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage capacity would set you back $899.99, but you can now buy it for a lowered price of just $707.59 under the New Arrival category on the activity page.

Aside from this 21 percent discount, you can get free shipping if your cart value exceeds $19.99.

If you are a brand-conscious buyer, you can head straight to the next category called Brand Zone. The section features well-received mobile phones from Xiaomi, OnePlus, and Ulefone bearing considerably lowered prices.

The concluding section dubbed More Recommended is worth checking out as well. It features the Oppo Realme X and Oppo Realme 3 Pro smartphones. You can avail noteworthy discounts on these devices for a limited period of time.

To take full advantage of the discounts and use the coupons before they expire, all you need to do is to follow this link without wasting time.

Xiaomi Flagship Products on Banggood

The post Save Up to $100 on Xiaomi Flagship Products on Banggood [Coupons Inside] appeared first on Gizmochina.

Looks like Xiaomi fans are in for a treat. As part of its latest promo, Banggood is now doling out big discounts on a slew of Xiaomi-branded items. Let’s delve straight into the details.

Brand Deals

Crammed with all sorts of items, this category gives buyers an opportunity to save a considerable amount of money without breaking much of a sweat. Keeping in line with this, there’s a 50% off on the Xiaomi Yeelight smart table light, which usually sells for $66 on Banggood.

Thanks to the discount, this LED touch dimmable desk lamp can now be yours if you’re willing to shell out just $32.99 or $35.99 for the standard and rechargeable version, respectively.

You can even get a 27% off on the Xiaomi Mi MIX 2 smartphone, which would normally set you back $549.99 on the Chinese online store that guarantees the best bang for your buck. The phone is currently available at a reduced price of just $399.99. The discount is only valid for the black color version of the smartphone.

Hot Sale

The next category comprises items such as Xiaomi Mi Drone, Xiaomi MIJIA Newest Original Garden Electric Household Mosquito Dispeller, and lots more. Even the well-received Redmi Note 5 is up for grabs bearing a discounted price of just $228.79 in this section.

This is a noteworthy 19% reduction in the phone’s original selling price of $283.21. As if that weren’t enough, you can even choose between 2 color options including black and blue.

Mobile Phone & Accessories

Here you can buy all sorts of mobile phone and accessories at a dropped price. For example, you can get a 33% off on the Xiaomi Mi band 3 smart wristband, which usually carries a price sticker of $59.99. Thanks to the reduction in its retail price, the coveted smartwatch is now available for $39.99.

Aside from that, the promo features a slew of other categories such as Toys Hobbies and Robot, Home and Garden, Sport & Outdoor. You can visit this link to check out all the products and take advantage of the massive discounts before they come to an end.

The post Buy Xiaomi Products At Lowered Price On Banggood appeared first on Gizmochina.

Deemed as one of the world’s most coveted brands, Xiaomi has a reputation for manufacturing high-end consumer electronics including smartphones, mobiles apps, and laptops just to name a few. The Beijing based electronics giant manufacturers some of the most popular smartphones, smart wearables, and accessories that are likely to set you back a pretty penny on online stores.

But much to the delight of Xiaomi’s huge fan base, CooliCool is currently doling out big discounts on a broad range of Xiaomi-branded products. In a bid to simplify the search process, these items have been split into multiple categories.

Xiaomi Smartphones

If you’ve restlessly been waiting to get your hands on a top-notch smartphone without emptying your pocket, we got good news for you. This category is crammed with smartphones that have swept tech buffs off their feet, thanks to their top-end specifications and jaw-dropping features.

More importantly, the smartphones featured in this section are available at a heavily discounted price. For the sake of an instance, you can buy the Xiaomi Mi A1 smartphone at a reduced price of just $174.99. This is a noteworthy 30% reduction in the phone’s original asking price of $249.99.

Xiaomi Smart Wearable

If you’re a fitness conscious person who likes to keep a track of your health without burning a hole in your pocket, you’ve come to the right place. This section features several smart watches including the well-received Mi Band 3 and its equally popular predecessor, the Mi Band 2.

You can even buy the Amazfit Bip at a dropped price of just $79.99, while it normally carries a steep price tag of $99.99. Likewise, you can get a considerable 18% off on the Amazfit Pace, which usually sells for $169.99 on GearVita but is now available at a slashed price of just $139.99.

Xiaomi Earphones

Music lovers, rejoice. CooliCool is giving noteworthy discounts on a myriad of earphones from Xiaomi. You can choose from in-ear earphones, Bluetooth earphones or simply go for the Mi Fresh or Mi Relax version earphones without worrying about spending a fortune.

Keeping in line with this, there’s a 14% off on the Mi Relax version headphone that works with both Android and iOS devices. While its original asking price is $69.99 on CooliCool, the site is currently selling it for just $59.99.

Similarly, the Chinese online electronics store is offering massive discounts on Xiaomi speakers, backpacks, routers and TV boxes. You can follow this link in order to check out the rest of the products and get the discounts before they come to an end.

The post Check Out The Mi Special Brand Promotion On CooliCool; Get Big Discounts On Xiaomi Products appeared first on Gizmochina.

This is the Redmi 6 – yet another budget phone from Xiaomi. The device costs about $150 but as usual to Xiaomi, it offers quite a lot of value for the price. Stay tuned to the full Xiaomi Redmi 6 review.

VIDEO

UNBOXING

The phone ships with all the usual stuff, no extras included.

DESIGN

In terms of design, the Redmi 6 looks very similar to other Xiaomi phones. The build quality is great but I’m a bit disappointed that the phone is made entirely of plastic. We have a 5.45” 18:9 display that I found to be pretty good overall but I wish it was brighter for outdoor use. Also, I wish it had 1080p resolution.

Just above the display, we have a 5MP selfie camera and LED notification light.

On the back, there is a dual camera system and a fast and reliable fingerprint scanner.

There is also a face unlock feature that works quite well but I always prefer using a fingerprint reader.

Other features you need to know: the phone has a hybrid dual-SIM card slot, a headset jack that provides good sound quality, the phone uses a micro USB port for charging and finally, the loudspeaker is pretty good for a budget device. 

HARDWARE

The Xiaomi Redmi 6 ships with the Helio P22 chipset, 3GB of RAM and 32GB of expandable storage. There is also a more expensive model with 64GB of storage and 4GB of RAM.

The overall gaming performance is pretty good. Games like Asphalt Xtreme, Shadow Fight 3 run fine, with just a few skipped frames. If you plan to play games like Pubg, you should expect to see a bit of stutter and minor lag.

USER INTERFACE

My Redmi 6 runs on the MIUI 9.6 that is based on Android 8.1. Unfortunately, I have the Chinese model, meaning the phone comes with some bloatware apps and without Google Services. A good thing is that it takes just a few minutes to install Google Services and you can remove most of the apps.

If you have used a Xiaomi phone before, you will feel right at home. The device has plenty of features and customization options. Usually, the phone is quite fast but you may see a bit of stutter from time to time. I can’t really complain about that but more expensive Xiaomi phones like the Redmi Note 5 feel faster.

IMAGE QUALITY

The overall image quality is pretty good. You can definitely take some nice pictures with this phone. There is an auto-HDR mode which is great but I found some of the pictures to look a bit cartoonish. Portrait mode takes pretty nice looking pictures too with just minimal artifacts.

There is also a selfie portrait mode that takes nice pictures for social media. I think that portrait selfies look much better than the regular ones.

Night image quality, however, does not really impress.

1080p video could look better. I tested the camera with the EIS feature on and that led to a lot of noise and jello effect in the video.

1080p selfie video looks pretty good overall and the sound recording quality is decent.

High-resolution camera samples

CONNECTIVITY

Connectivity department is where the Xiaomi Redmi 6 is very good. Call quality and signal reception are great, it takes just a few seconds for the GPS to find the location and other connectivity options work fine.

There is plenty of sensors on-board but there is no gyroscope which is a shame.

BATTERY LIFE

Most of the Xiaomi phones are known for great battery life and the Redmi 6 is no exception.

My record screen-on time was 10 hours. However, if you use the phone more intensively, you should expect to get about 7 hours of SOT.

It takes about 2 hours to fully charge the phone with the supplied charger.

CONCLUSIONS

The Redmi 6 is yet another good budget phone by Xiaomi.

The only complaints I have is that the phone is made of plastic, so it feels a bit cheap in comparison to other budget Xiaomi phones that are made of metal.

Also, I wish the device used a 1080p display and the screen was brighter. In addition, there is no gyroscope sensor which is a shame to Xiaomi.  Other than that, you get a phone with good cameras, pretty good overall performance and solid battery life.

Overall, the Redmi 6 may not be the only budget option out there but it is definitely a solid cheap phone for the price, despite a few flaws.

The post Xiaomi Redmi 6 Review – Yet Another Good Budget Phone appeared first on Gizmochina.

Xiaomi has announced the list of models that would feature in the third batch of MIUI 9 Closed Beta updates and this time around the models are many. The list contains almost all the Xiaomi models that are yet to get the update except the Mi 1 and Mi 2A. Xiaomi had disclosed recently in a Weibo post that it would hasten the third batch of MIUI 9 updates but we never expected it would be so soon.

The list of models for the third batch of MIUI 9 closed Beta update include; Mi 3, Mi Note 3, Mi Note 2 / 2S, Mi Pad 3, Mi Pad 2, Mi Pad 1, Redmi Pro, Redmi Note 4X-MediaTek version, Redmi Note 4 (all versions), Redmi Note 3S / 3X, Redmi Note 3 (all versions), Redmi Note 2 (all versions), Redmi Note (all versions), Redmi Note 1S, and Redmi Note 1.

Read More: World’s Fastest Electric Supercar NIO EP9 to Feature MIUI 9

Xiaomi had already released MIUI 9 Closed Beta updates for the Xiaomi Mi 6, Mi 5X, and Redmi Note Note 4X (Qualcomm version) in the first instance. Later on the Mi MIX, Mi Note 2, Mi 5, Mi 5s, Mi 5s Plus, Mi 5c, Mi Max 2, Mi Max, Mi 4S, Mi 4c, Mi Note Pro, and Redmi 4X were among the second batch of models that got updates recently. The third batch of updates would begin rolling to users on August 28 via OTA but you may need to set your device to be able to get automatic OTA update. Do note, though, that this is the China ROM and not the Global ROM. In addition, your device may not get all the functions of MIUI 9 as Xiaomi recently released a list of models that support Split screen multitasking function and it only included models running Android Nougat based MIUI.

(source)

The post Third Batch of MIUI 9 Closed Beta Includes Almost All Xiaomi Smartphones appeared first on Gizmochina.

It is a known fact that Xiaomi is facing financial deficit due to the poor performance it posted last year. It is also not a secret that the tech giant is planning a foray into the highly lucrative US market. Because of the financial implications of such venture, rumors were rife that the Chinese company is planning a fundraiser to help finance its entry into the US market.

This rumor has however, been debunked by Xiaomi’s Chief Financial Officer Shou Zi Chew in an interview with the Wall Street Journal at CES in Las Vegas. According to the company executive, Xiaomi doesn’t need to raise funds in order to respond to the loss of market shares to competitors. He hinted that the company is still very robust financially with a very healthy cash balance. He, however, refused to disclose specifics on how robust the cash balance is.

Read More: Xiaomi Teases Upcoming News Conference in India Slated For January 19

Xiaomi had been one of the high fliers since it opened its doors, even topping the Chinese smartphone market in 2014. However, several factors such as unavailability of its smartphones and using a single sales channel led to the company losing some of its market shares to competitors like OPPO, Vivo, and Huawei. The company is repositioning by adopting multiple sales channels and also targeting markets outside of China in a bid to recover lost grounds. It is yet to be seen if the company can recover but there is no doubt they are capable of doing that, with the avalanche of innovative products in their arsenal such as the Mi Mix and Mi TV 4 unveiled at CES 2017.

(source)

The post Xiaomi Denies Rumors That it is Planning a Fundraiser appeared first on Gizmochina.

Xiaomi makes some of the best value for money smartphones that we have seen in the market lately, but the company has one major drawback, inadequate supply of its products. Many of the new smartphone launches from the company are hard to get even in China, which means most of the desired consumers are left disappointed. But looks like the company is taking appropriate measures to change this.

In an internal letter sent by Xiaomi’s CEO Lei Jun, he has stated that from now onwards, he will personally be responsible for the phone supply chain of Xiaomi. The existing supply chain head, Zhou Guangping will now take care of the technology research department of the company. Now that the CEO himself is going to take care of the supply of Xiaomi smartphones, it looks like this issue has been given due attention. And this change should positively affect the company. If the supply improves, the sales will improve and everyone is happy end of the day. It was an urgent matter and we hope it will solved real soon.

So, what do you think? If Lei Jun, the CEO himself is in charge of the supply of the company’s smartphones, will we be seeing a significant improvement in the overall availability of Xiaomi products?

In case you are wondering, yesterday, we reported that Xiaomi is manufacturing around 700,000 units of the Mi 5 per month, lower than Huawei Mate 8’s 900,000 and OPPO R9’s 2 million per month figure.

The post Xiaomi’s Supply Problem Could Be Solved Soon, Lei Jun Takes Charge appeared first on Gizmochina.

Xiaomi’s CEO Lei Jun had revealed a week back that the company would significantly increase the production capacity of Xiaomi Mi 5 in April. Once that was done, we could expect more stock to be available for purchase during the flash sales organized by the company.

Now, a new report quoting industry chain sources in China state that Lei Jun is confident about increasing the capacity and the supply shortage problem would be greatly reduced by next month.

The same source further revealed that originally, Xiaomi planned to maintain a stock of around 1.5 million units, but assessing the current demand for the phone, the company has added additional stock, taking the total to 2.5 million units. This means the company increased the stock by a good 1 million units than what it previously had planned.

This is definitely good news for Xiaomi fans as many were disappointed with the phone not being available for purchase despite a few flash sales. In every sale, the Mi 5 went out of stock in less than a few minutes, which meant there were a number of users who ended up missing the sale. But with this much addition in stock, we can now expect users in China, India and even worldwide (via resellers) to get their orders fulfilled.

We hope that in this 2.5 million units, there are a lot of Black Mi 5 editions. The black borders on the screen blend well in the black version. On the other hand, it stands out in the white version which is why many users prefer the former than the latter version.

So, we can now expect Xiaomi to stock up the Mi 5 in plenty during the coming flash sales so that it lasts more than a few minutes. This is good news for Indian Xiaomi fans as well as it should mean more stock for them as well.

(via)

The post Xiaomi Has Significantly Increased Xiaomi Mi 5’s Stock Says New Report appeared first on Gizmochina.

Xiaomi announced the Mi 5 flagship yesterday. Its an amazing value for money smartphone, featuring powerful specs, all at an impressive price tag of less than $300. While the Mi 5 will first go on sale in China only, fans from other markets can also get hold of this device via third party retailers. Like expected, even Giztop has made the Xiaomi Mi 5 flagship available for pre-order on its website. So, even users outside of China can purchase the device.

As always, the pricing is higher than the retail price of the Mi 5. You can get the base version with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage from $399 on the website. There are three colors available for pre-order, namely white, black and gold.

If you are looking to get hold of the 4GB RAM + 64GB ROM version, you will have to shell out $100 more for its pre-order. This version is available in three colors as well and will cost you $499 in all for pre-order. Finally, the top end version, namely the Xiaomi Mi 5 Pro with a faster chipset, and larger 128GB storage can be pre-ordered for $599.

The first batch of Xiaomi Mi 5 units is expected to ship in March. The order shipping dates will be based on the rank of your order. Early orders will get their shipments in the first batch itself.

Specs wise, the Mi 5 turns out to be a powerful flagship. It comes with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 chipset on board with 3GB / 4GB RAM options depending on the variants mentioned above. There’s 32GB / 64GB  / 128GB storage options available, and there’s no MicroSD card slot, so you will be limited to the storage that the phone comes with.

Other features includes a powerful 16MP Sony IMX298 sensor with DTI technology, 4-axis OIS and PDAF. Front features a 4MP Ultrapixel camera. There’s a 5.15-inch display on board with FHD resolution. Inside, you get as 3000mAh battery with QC 3.0 which provides up to 2.5 hours of talktime in just 5 minutes of charging. Full specs of the Xiaomi Mi 5 can be check out from here.

The post Xiaomi Mi 5 & Mi 5 Pro Up For Pre-Order On Giztop appeared first on Gizmochina.

Sometime mid last year, we heard rumors that Xiaomi was developing in-house chipsets to power some of its low-end smartphones. This topic has come to light a few times in the past few months, however, neither the company nor related parties were ready to comment. Now, a new report from Reuters throws some more light into the company plans for its in-house chipsets. The agency reports that one of the sources with direct knowledge of the matter has said that the company plans to release smartphones with its own chipsets by the second half of 2016.

Xiaomi has traditionally sourced chipsets for its smartphones from market leaders such as Qualcomm and Mediatek. The company even has a low-end smartphone with a Leadcore chipset. But, if this news turns out to be true, this would be the first time the company is venturing into the chipset market.

However, this move is not really surprising. Xiaomi seems to be simply following the footsteps of top end smartphone manufacturers like Samsung and Apple. These two, and even Huawei use in-house designed chipsets inside its smartphones.

As for Xiaomi, at the moment, the source reveals that the self-designed chipsets would most likely end up in the company’s mid-range and low-end devices. Its not known whether Xiaomi aims to completely rely on its own chipsets in the coming years, but at least we can expect to see models from the Redmi Note series to feature in-house designed processors.

Given that only three major companies, namely Apple, Samsung and Huawei have successfully managed to release smartphones with their self-designed processors, it would be interesting to see whether Xiaomi manages to become the fourth one on the list this year.

Second half of 2016 isn’t very far and if this report is correct, expect a lot more information about Xiaomi’s processor plans in the coming months. Stay tuned.

The post Report: Xiaomi To Use It’s Own Processors In Smartphones By Second Half of 2016 appeared first on Gizmochina.

Yesterday, Apple officially unveiled Apple Pay in China, which is one of the most important markets for the Cupertino giant. However, it looks like Apple may not be the only smartphone company in China to work on a mobile payment service. IHS Analyst Kevin Wang revealed late last night that Chinese tech giants like Xiaomi, Huawei, ZTE etc are all planning to release their own payment service in the country.

So, Chinese users could soon be flooded with a number of options for paying at a store. Given their experience in the local market, they could very well provide features which are more convinient to its users. Could this be why Xiaomi decided to bring back NFC on the Mi 5 flagship?

RELATED: Xiaomi CEO confirms a bunch of features on the Mi 5

Lei Jun, the CEO of Xiaomi, confirmed via a screenshot that the phone will come with NFC. Back in 2014, the company had said that there weren’t enough NFC users for them to include it inside its Xiaomi Mi 4 flagship. But looks like a feature like Xiaomi Pay can be a compelling reason for the company to incorporate NFC inside its latest flagship.

As of now, Xiaomi has not revealed anything about a possible feature like Xiaomi Pay. But let’s wait for the official announcement of the Mi 5, which is on February 24, for more details.

Stay tuned.

The post Xiaomi, Huawei & ZTE To Release Payment Service Like Apple Pay, Says Analyst appeared first on Gizmochina.

Xiaomi has been on a roll as they released quite a few smartphones lately and we have a few really interesting devices here – the Redmi 3 and the Remi Note 3. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the battle of Xiaomies.

In case you missed it, check out full Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 review and Xiaomi Redmi 3 review.

Buy Xiaomi phones from Giztop

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Xiaomi Redmi 3 vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 VIDEO REVIEW:

[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMb_S2CCTu0[/embedyt]

Xiaomi Redmi 3 vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 Comparison Review: DESIGN and DISPLAY

When it comes to the looks, both phones carry the same design language but what is obvious is that the Redmi 3 is a lot smaller as it sports only a 5” 720p panel whereas the Note 3 has a 5.5” 1080p one.

Speaking of displays, it is evident that the Note 3 has a better panel mainly due to its sharpness as it simply has more pixels. The Redmi 3 also sports a good display but it has only 720p resolution. On the other hand, it is slightly brighter and the white colour does not look a bit yellowish as on the Note 3.

On the front top both smartphones have 5MP selfie shooters and the Note 3 has a notification LED here whereas the Redmi 3 has implemented it near the home button, which is, the same as other capacitive keys, not backlit.

The Redmi Note 3 has an edge here as its capacitive buttons have a nice backlight.

Both Xiaomies are made almost entirely of metal (except for the top and bottom parts for antennas). As far as optics, smartphones have 13MP shooters with PDAF but only the Note 3 has a dual tone dual LED flash as the Redmi 3 has a single LED.

Another advantage that the bigger Xiaomi phone has – a fingerprint scanner, which is a feature that has become important for many users. 

The buttons, which are located on the right on each phone feel nice and they are made of metal too. On the left we have a dual micro SIM card slot on the Redmi Note 3 but the Redmi 3’s one slot also doubles as a microSD card for storage expansion.

Besides the usual ports, it is really cool that Xiaomi adds the IR blaster in their budget phones lineup. The setup of it is pretty straightforward on each device and I was able to control my TV in a few minutes.  

Overall, both Xiaomies feel solid and they are well-constructed devices. The metal build adds that premium look and feel we don’t see on all budget phones and this is what you are getting with either Xiaomi handset. 

Xiaomi Redmi 3 vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 Comparison Review: USER INTERFACE 

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Xiaomi Redmi 3 comes with MIUI 7.1, which is built on top of Android 5.1 and the Note 3 has a very similar yet older Android 5.0 build. 

The user interface is identical on each phone, well, they run the same MIUI after all. But what about performance? Well, it is really comparable. However, the Note 3 is just slightly faster at times, e.g. it may take a split of a second longer to open up the settings menu or do some other basic stuff on the Redmi 3. On the other hand, this phone still runs on  a very early software build whereas the Note 3 has already received numerous software updates. 

If you are not yet familiar with the MIUI, it has tons of customisation options, which include a wide choice of themes, wallpapers, fonts and so on. You can select from a few pre-installed ones or simply go to the online theme store where you will find thousands of different themes to suit everyone’s taste. 

Also, you can highly customise the LED light, assign different tasks to capacitive buttons and so on. 

Finally, MIUI runs fast and fluid most of the times on each device. There were just a few minor hiccups but they are not even worth complaining about. Overall, I’m happy with the way the user interface works on a daily basis especially if you consider a feature set and customisation options it offers.

Xiaomi Redmi 3 vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 Comparison Review: BENCHMARKS

Xiaomi Redmi 3:

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Xiaomi Redmi Note 3:

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Xiaomi Redmi 3 vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 Comparison Review: HARDWARE and PERFORMANCE

Xiaomi Redmi 3 has a pretty good hardware as it sports an octa-core Snapdragon 616 chip with the clocks speeds of up to 1.5GHz, 2GB of RAM and 16GB of expandable storage. 

The Redmi Note 3 is no slouch either. The lower-end model of the phone, which is my review unit, has an octa-core Mediatek Helio X10 chip with the clock speeds of 2.0GHz, 2GB of RAM and only 16GB of non-expandable storage. 

Both phones have enough processing power, so you can have enjoyable 3D gaming experience without any stutter or lag, well, if you do not max out the graphics settings. 

In addition, neither phone has overheating issues.

Xiaomi Redmi 3 vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 Comparison Review: CAMERA

If you want to download camera samples, check out full Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 review and Xiaomi Redmi 3 review.

As far as the image quality, I have made a separate camera comparison video, so you may want to check it out for more camera samples.  

The daylight photos taken with the Redmi Note 3 usually have more details, a little bit less noise and they tend to be slightly brighter. However, some of the images taken by both Xiaomies are comparable.

It is a similar story with indoor shots and here the Redmi Note 3 shines in one more aspect – dynamic range. The auto-mode does a better job equally exposing the main object and shadows of the scene. 

What is more, Redmi 3’s camera produced a lot more blurry shots, which led to quite terribly looking photos. 

Finally, the Redmi Note 3 has a wider FOV (field of view) meaning that you can fit more into the shot. 

As for night images, the Note 3 just blows the Redmi 3 out of the water. It produces images with much more details and less noise and the pictures just look much better overall.

The Redmi 3 also has a very annoying red tint in each night photo.

As for selfie shooter, the Redmi Note 3 is also better overall but the difference is not always significant. 

1080p video recording is a department where the Note 3 shines again. It’s footage is not flawless as it is also a budget phone but the device’s camera captures more details, the footage looks sharper and last but not least the sound quality is much better.

Overall, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 is a clear winner in each and every aspect. Although some of the daylight images taken with the Redmi 3 can be comparable, its camera’s capabilities are much worse than the Note 3’s. Hopefully, we will see a few software updates to improve that. 

Xiaomi Redmi 3 vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 Comparison Review: MULTIMEDIA

As for multimedia consumption, the Redmi Note 3 is better mainly due to a bigger and higher resolution display. However, other aspects like sound via earphones and the loudspeaker are very close in terms of the overall quality and it is hard to choose a winner. 

Xiaomi Redmi 3 vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 Comparison Review: CONNECTIVITY

All the connectivity options work great on each device. Call quality is okay and signal reception is excellent. Also, Wifi, GPS and Bluetooth are working fine. However, I was disappointed that the Redmi 3 does not support 5GHz Wifi connection, while the Note 3 has this feature.

Xiaomi Redmi 3 vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 Comparison Review: BATTERY LIFE

The Xiaomi Redmi 3 has a huge 4100mAh non-removable battery. However, its bigger brother is no slouch either as it sports a 4000mAh unit. That sounds comparable but the Redmi 3 has to power a smaller display with lesser resolution and thus it leads to a better battery life.

Xiaomi Redmi 3:

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In fact, the power pack on the Redmi 3 is one of the best in class. I could not squeeze the battery out in one day even on heavy usage that involved gaming, installing lots of apps, watching a lot videos, taking pictures, browsing the web and so on. 

I was able to achieve over 7 hours of screen-on time with max. auto brightness setting of the screen. 

Redmi Note 3:

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The Redmi Note 3 is not that good but it still performs well. I could get from 5 to 5.5h of SOT under exactly the same usage. 

Xiaomi Redmi 3 vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 Comparison Review: CONCLUSIONS

So, there you have it, the Xiaomi Redmi 3 vs the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3. Both smartphones are great choices in their respective price categories.

However, the Redmi Note 3 is a better device overall. It has a bigger and better display, better camera and some extras like a fingerprint scanner, and backlit capacitive buttons.

On the other hand, the Redmi 3 is for those who want a compact phone, a better battery life and a storage expansion option via the microSD card slot. Finally, the Redmi 3 costs less. It can be bought from the third-party resellers  for around $150 whereas the Remi Note 3 would cost you around $180. 

At the end of the day, if you want a better device and you don’t mind its size, take the Redmi Note 3. If you love compact cheap phones but you can’t find a good one, take the Redmi 3 but make sure to consider its flaws. 

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Xiaomi has been aggressively expanding its reach internationally. This Monday, KT Corp. the second largest carrier in South Korea started the sale of Xiaomi smartphones. However, in just a matter of two days, the carrier has reportedly stopped the sale.

This was the first time a carrier started selling Xiaomi smartphones in the country. The sale was carried out by KT Corp. in partnership with Interpark Corp., an online website in the country. Although it’s unclear what’s the exact reason for the suspension of sales, uncited sources claim it was due to some “legal matters related to sales”.

Although the majority of smartphone sales in the country is dominated by the two domestic players, Samsung and LG, Chinese companies like Huawei have become quite popular.

This is not the first time we are hearing Xiaomi’s smartphone sales being suspended outside of China. Last year, Xiaomi was barred from selling any smartphones in India for a small period. The Chinese company reportedly infringed on Ericsson’s patents. But the company was soon allowed to sell Qualcomm’s Snapdragon-based smartphones in the country.

As Xiaomi eyes further expansion, it will have to overcome such obstacles for smooth operation.

The post KT Corp. Stops The Sale Of Xiaomi Smartphones In South Korea appeared first on Gizmochina.

In case you forgot, Xiaomi’s festival day is here and we expect big sales by the end of today. The sale already started at 10 am sharp in China as expected and now, we have some official sales numbers.

Xiaomi is breaking all records today. The company reports that it has sold just over 1.57 billion Yuan worth of goods till now. That’s highly impressive given that the company managed to reach this figure in just 6 hours. What’s more, we have nearly 6 more hours until the sale ends and by the end of the day, this figure will have probably doubled ! That’s nearly 3 billion worth of goods that could be sold in a day’s time.

The company has also shared the individual shipments sold. 1.6 million Xiaomi smartphones were sold today, 32,000 Xiaomi tvs, and 510,000 smart home products. The total values of accessories sold exceed 130 million Yuan.
These figures are expected to increase and even nearly double by the end of the day, but lets wait for official data.
Anyways, whats do you think of the amount of sales made today? Are you impressed?

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Xiaomi celebrated its 5^th anniversary with a bang by announcing that the company’s smartphone sales have exceeded 100 million units. The announcement was made by the company’s CEO, Lei Jun, on the Xiaomi official Chinese blog who also said that the next five years will be very crucial to Xiaomi and that the competition in the next five years will be fierce due to the growth of local and foreign competitors as well as the entry of new players in the industry.

Xiaomi’s shipped almost 70 million units last year which means the company sold over 30 million units within the first three months of the current year to exceed its 100 million sales goal. The company has also said that their sales numbers would actually be higher if not for capacity or availability issues.

The company’s latest flagship devices, the Mi Note and Note Pro, which were announce last January are also expected to sell very well with their top-of-the-line features and specifications partnered with very competitive price tags which is Xiaomi’s signature style. The company also most recently announced two special editions of the Mi Note, the Ladies Edition and Bamboo Edition, which features a pink design and a natural bamboo rear panel, respectively.

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Late last year, the second police riot team of the United Nations peacekeeping force was sent to Liberia. Having 110 Chinese citizens, the team returned safely to the Chinese mainland two days ago, on March 13. Successful on its own accord, the mission served as further proof of the power of Chinese smartphones, Xiaomi in particular.

A number of team members of the Chinese peacekeeping police force shared through the micro-blogging network Weibo their thoughts on the mission, as well as a few photos through their Xiaomi smartphones. “The Signal Strength was absolutely great,” members of the team stated, giving further proof that Xiaomi hardware is a force to be reckoned with.

According to officials, the mission in Liberia served a test area for the Xiaomi smartphones and following the successful testing, the mobile devices have now become standard equipment for the Liberia FPU team.

The war in the West African country Liberia has been progressing in the course of over ten years. The Chinese peacekeeping police force was invited as a part of the United Nations team to perform various helpful missions, including infrastructure work, repairs and transportation. While the country’s communications have been damaged by the war, thus resulting in a low signal strength, the Xiaomi Smartphones proved to be powerful enough to deliver a top notch performance even in the harsh area of Liberia.

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