The Xiaomi Phone 2, the high-end Chinese smartphone that aims to challenge Apple’s iPhone’s market share in China, has announced in Beijing on Thusday. Aesthetically similar to Meizu MX 4-core, the new mobile device features Qualcomm latest quad-core chip, 2 GB RAM and 16GB memory, a 4.3-inch 720p IPS display with the highest pixel density, all at a compellingly super low price point at 1999 yuan (US$310, contract free). We have attended the launch party in Beijing, which is considered to be equivalent to Apple’s keynote event. We have round-up all the highlights of the event, click in to find out how the Xiaomi Phone 2 will shake-up the whole smartphone market in China …
Mirroring Apple’s annual WWDC, where devotees would pay to listen to Steve Jobs showcasing new products, Xiaomi company only charged their fans 199 yuan (US$31) to attend the Beijing launch party, with the proceeds going to charity and offer attractive free gift for every attendees. Over 1,000 people flocked in to the event. Enthusiasts came from all over the country, were all lining up in a Bauhaus-style art hall in Beijing, enticed by hardware that matches the iPhone 4s at just half the cost. We don’t like the venue for the event, because most of the time all attendees were under the hot sun while waiting outside the entrance, without any cover, and the air-conditional was terribly weak inside the event hall, which created heavy sweating.
The launch event was held in a Bauhaus-style art hall with not much air-conditional.
A westerner attended the launching event, Xiaomi user felt proud of this.
The mobile toilet section, Xiaomi has provided some gimmick cartoon to entertain the spot.
A diehard fans has ‘mi’ tatoo on his arm, and a unique ‘mi’ haircut ! 
Fans were excited and waiting for the opening of the show Lei Jun, the founder and CEO of the company, is the public face of Xiaomi. Like Jobs, he has intense loyal fans—mostly young, male gadget hounds. Lei has more than 4 million microblog followers in China. When the company launched an annual convention like this, there is a feel of religious revivals, which is very similar to Apple culture. Lei Jun is the guy who produces Jobs-like buzz in China right now. This is our first time personally seeing him live-on-stage. Lei Jun has a pair of sleepy eyes and like to raise up his voice during the presentation. His dress code may make everyone think that he is
copying Steve Jobs, but he has his own attitude that favor the Chinese consumers.
“If Jobs had lived in China, I think he could not have succeeded,” Lei Jun said in an
interview with FORBES last month.
The CEO first explained why the company is making radio control car, because the geeks love it !
First-gen Xiaomi phone has already sold 3.52 million unit in China, since last year released.
The CEO is happy to have knock-off Xiaomi phone in the market.Xiaomi Phone 2 comes fitted with a Qualcomm APQ8064 1.5-GHz quad-core processor and an Adreno 320 graphics chip, a combination that the company claims is capable of rendering original Xbox quality graphics. The device features 8-megapixel rear camera with an f/2.0, 27mm wide-angle lens that can shoot stills at eight frames per second and record 1080p video. The 2-megapixel front-facing cameras can also record 1080p video too. Users get the option of a 2000 or 3000 mAh battery, though the latter adds 2 mm thickness to the device. The phone support WCDMA 850、1900 and 2100MHz, it’ll work on AT&T in the U.S. Xiaomi Phone 2 is slated for an October release. The company will offer a limited engineering version of the phone next month.
Boom ! Lei Jun officially announced Xiaomi Phone 2 …
this is very similar to Steve Jobs’ presentation.
The form factor of the new Xiaomi phone 2 is more suitable for Asian people to grab on.
Screen size comparison.
The screen has the highest pixel density than any other smartphone in the market.
Lei Jun has invited the Global VP of Qualcomm to
the stage, thanks for supplying of the new quad-core chip.
The new phone offers a slightly larger battery capacity while comparing with the first-gen model.
Lei Jun presented the new Xiaomi phone 2 on the stage.
Surprisingly, quite a number of attendees are actually Apple user.
Lots of attendees were busy sharing their live experience on social media through mobile devicesThe new Xiaomi device will run the latest version of MIUI, a highly-customizable ROM based on the Android Jelly Bean, and will also feature voice assistant functionality that is reported more accuracy than Apple’s SIRI. It packs several new features as well, the new free desktop interface is a interesting one, is a consistent graphical user interface that simulate a real desktop scenario, which is more humane-friendly than standard GUI while using it. Xiaomi will introduce different themes on free desktop interface which develop by other software companies. We love the Angry Birds theme provided by Rovio. Check out the video below.
MIUI, the highly-customizable ROM made by Xiaomi, has 6 million worldwide user
and support major smartphone from different brands
The new MIUI V4 can let user set super large icon for better viewing.
The brand new animated ‘free destop’ interface.
When Lei Jun announced the price of the new Xiaomi Phone 2, the audience went nuts !
After the presentation, all attendees were welcomed to
hands-on the new Xiaomi Phone 2 for 90 seconds.
All attendees were given a free Xiaomi radio control car,
fans seem to be very happy to collect their gift.
Enthusiasts were excited to try out the latest Xiaomi Phone.
The hands-on section was carried out in bright sunny outdoor area,
to test how well the screen can handle in sunlight.
The Angry Birds theme for the new free desktop interface. (Photo credit: zol.com.cn)
The redesign form factor fit well for Asian people. (Photo credit: zol.com.cn)
Display text in phonebook and SMS can be enlarged to super size. (Photo credit: zol.com.cn)The new phone will be selling dirt cheap in China for only US$310, making it a significantly more wallet-friendly option than Apple’s iPhone 4s or Samsung GalaxyS III. The high retail cost of the iPhone 4s, around US$800 for contract free device, is simply too high for many average Chinese consumer. It will be incredibly challenging for Xiaomi to execute an Apple model here. We think that Xiaomi Phone 2 might provides the best value of your money from a conumer point of view. Hardware specification has already come to a peak, in other words, nice, big screen and quad-core processor of pricy devices, will become a standard in the cheapest handset in China. Interestingly, Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun admitted on the stage that the production cost of the new phone is 2,350 yuan (US$370) per unit, which means a US$60 loss for every unit sold. A brave statement made by Lei Jun during the FORBES interview:
“We never planned to make a profit from hardware… so a price war will not affect me (the comapany) at all.”