Lenovo Will Launch Its Own Xiaomi Clone, will Samsung, Amazon be far behind?

[EbookReader]

The Xiaomi strategy is simple.

1) Sell it at near break-even.
2) Sell it online to cut out the expensive middleman.
3) Flash sale (which mean savings on marketing cost).

OnePlus is also following that strategy. (1 million smartphone sold each month). It's easy to see why Lenovo sees that as a huge threat. To Samsung, it will be the BIGGEST THREAT of all. Their profits will go down significantly since their peak.

http://techcrunch.com/2014/10/16/le...clone-to-boost-its-smartphone-brand-in-china/

Lenovo may be closing the gap on Apple and Samsung when it comes to global smartphone sales, but its position on home turf in China is under pressure from upstart Xiaomi. Predicted to sell at least 60 million smartphones in Asia this year, Xiaomi unexpectedly stole the top spot for smartphone sales in China during the last quarter of business to underline its arrival as a major player. Now Lenovo is taking a leaf out of its young rival’s book in a bid to keep up with the times.

The company announced this week that it is creating a new “smart device company” in China which will open its doors on April 1 2015. Far from an early April Fools’ Day joke, Lenovo’s new unit is rather Xiaomi-looking, based on the few details that it has revealed so far.

While Lenovo will keep its primary smartphone business which sells to consumers via carriers and retail stores, the new business — which does not yet have a name — will adopt an internet-only sales model for selling to consumers. It isn’t clear whether this business will sell phones using the same flash sales model favored by Xiaomi, but Lenovo is aiming to cash in on some of the buzz and excitement that Xiaomi has generated with its fun (and perhaps even cult) approach to online marketing and sales.

In addition to methodology, we can likely expect Lenovo’s new unit to sell phones at similar price points to Xiaomi. The company’s flagship Mi4 device retails for around $300, but its top-selling lower-end Redmi/Hongmi range is priced from around $130.

 

[sviato]

So Lenovo will sell phones under its name along with Motorola and this new brand? It's certainly interesting.

Samsung sells more lower-end devices than higher end, so I can see this eating into its market share. The company already had declining mobile profits for a few quarters - it will be interesting to see what effect Xiaomi's and Lenovo's high-specced low-priced phones and Apple's larger iPhones will have on Samsung's sales.

Good for Google either way!

 

[EbookReader]

http://www.benzinga.com/news/14/10/4932697/could-blackberry-lift-a-page-from-xiaomis-china-tactic

Could BlackBerry Lift A Page From Xiaomi's China Tactic?




Maybe Amazon will be smarter next time and use this strategy. OnePlus One is outselling Amazon Fire Phone by a very significant margin.

Maybe 10,000 a month for FirePhone vs 1,000,000 a month for OnePlus One.

 

[JaySoul]

It's the way forward for a significant segment of the market.

Think about how much we shop online now.

 

[Savor]

Lenovo still offers inferior quality to Xiaomi as the brand Lenovo. Now they want to copy something while the main company offers inferior quality? Gionee did the same thing with IUNI and Oppo is doing the same with OnePlus. Lenovo uses MediaTek which is generally cheaper and inferior to Qualcomm in GPU performance. Even octa-core MediaTeks can show UI stutter and lag. I was looking at the review of the Meizu MX4 and I stopped caring once I saw it using MediaTek.

I will stick to Xiaomi and Asus for lower budget phones. And maybe Oppo/OnePlus too. It really should be Amazon that should follow suit now that Google decided the Nexus devices shouldn't be catered to the budget conscious only. Amazon have the most appeal in the Western markets and have the site to cater to online flash sales...

 

[EbookReader]

Xiaomi is now the third biggest in the world.

If you can't beat them, join them:


The South Korea-based firm posted operating profit of 4.1 trillion won ($3.9 billion) for the third quarter -- a 60% decline from the previous year.
Third quarter sales were also lower than the previous year, falling nearly 20% to around 47.5 trillion won ($44.6 billion).

 

[kevinof]

Interesting trend. Not a fan of Xiaomi s/w but their h/w is pretty good. I think we're probably at a defining moment for smartphones. If you think about it - a couple of years ago if you wanted a decent smartphone you needed to fork out $$$ for it or get an 18/24 month contract. Low end phones were just that - low end.

Today you can get a Moto G for $150 no contract. This is a superb phone for little money with little or no compromises, and I can see the day not off when the h/w (ie the phone) is basically a commodity item. it's cost will be insignificant or close to it. This is where the likes of Xiaomi are pushing everyone.

The carriers and other high end smartphone manufacturers already see (or should see) the writing on the wall and will need to change their strategy.

Interesting times.

 

[Savor]

I went to my closest mall recently. There was like 300+ people around the ZTE kiosk because a phablet was selling for under $50 for only 4 hrs when it's original cost is $300. While I was watching what the commotion was all about for a ZTE w/ MediaTek, I realized the HTC store is no longer there and got replaced by Oppo! Yes, even OnePlus' mother company is killing HTC here. The $500 Oppo Find 7a with a 2800 mAh removal battery and superior camera offers better value than HTC One M8 at $600+.

It is only a matter of time when other Chinese brands start invading across the globe and start spreading like wildfire. The #1 PC maker in Lenovo have the most potential to succeed in US having bought IBM's ThinkPad lineup and Motorola Mobility. Other Chinese co-patriots like Xiaomi, Oppo, Huawei, ZTE along with Taiwanese Asus and Acer could all soon start replacing names like HTC, LG, and Sony among phone brands as a passing of the torch and changing of the guard. If Lenovo wants to succeed like Xiaomi, use Qualcomm. That's the key to Xiaomi's hardware QUALITY. Any other Chinese brand can price phones for cheap using LAGGY MediaTek. Snapdragons were always the key.

Two years ago, I wanted a Nexus 4 so bad. A couple weeks ago, I see them sell for $180 refurbished. I thought I'd rather get a $150 Asus Zenfone 5. And Nexus 4's intial $299 price was a gamechanger out West. That's how quickly the market changed and got interrupted by inexperienced phone makers. Good PRICE/SPECS ratio is the only ADVANTAGE most phone makers really needs to take over the West as seen from the OnePlus One success from a company that didn't even exist a year ago and the moderate successes from the Nexus 4, 5, and Moto G.

Sub-$300 smartphone flagships and sub-$150 for decent phones on par with the Moto G's. You never have to be forced into 2-yr contracts or pay more than $500 for an unlocked device ever again. The Chinese brands (ironically Communists, btw) can finally loosen the handcuffs forced from control freak carriers like Verizon and AT&T. It is about time the Android manufacturers can have more say instead of watching their devices get plagued by carrier bloatware, ugly logos, and slower and sometimes buggy updates.

It's a win-win for Google, Android OEM's, and consumer wallets alike.

 

[EbookReader]

http://www.fiercewireless.com/story...nges-74-q3-competition-intensifies/2014-10-30

Samsung's mobile profit plunges 74% in Q3 as competition intensifies
Xiaomi rises to No. 3 in the global smartphone market in Q3

 

[Savor]

I like that the #1 PC maker Lenovo is letting Motorola do their own thing and Lenovo wants to try their hand at this business model that Oppo is trying to emulate with OnePlus and Gionee has done with IUNI.

I checked out the Lenovo S856 and it has a Snapdragon 400. But the price is over $300+, well beyond Moto G's. Xiaomi Redmi 1S was upgraded from MediaTek to Snapdragon 400 and cost less than HALF that at $125. The biggest differences between these Chinese brands amongst each other and other global brands is the SoC they use. Many companies can offer cheap phones powered by MediaTek. Not many China brands use the more expensive Qualcomm. I think MediaTek is serviceable enough if you don't game much or don't mind occasional UI lag and stutter. But they generally aren't on par with Snapdragons.

If Lenovo wants to try to emulate or withstand Xiaomi's fast ascension to success, not only do they need the right SoC (Intel is still obscure to mobile SoC's) but they also need the right software for it. Xiaomi's other ace up its sleeve is MIUI which was created before Xiaomi started selling smartphones. MIUI already have 70M users and is community-driven. MIUI probably have more users than stock Android users. And OnePlus went the other direction with another popular custom ROM - Cyanogen Mod. Both get updated frequently. The custom Lenovo skin without much updates just won't cut it. Lenovo has to think well beyond offering "cheaper" phones. The right services, software, and hardware have to all be there.

Cheap is good when it's actually good. Think Moto G. When it is bad is when cheap becomes synonymous with crap and poor quality. Xiaomi is in the former statement. They would be like a four-star Chinese restaurant that serves good food at a fast pace and affordable prices. I might still feel full after a few hours. Lenovo is still in the latter with me. Their phones are like bad Chinese fast food or buffet that make me go run to the restroom with a tummy ache after all that MSG and grease. And I still will get hungry after two hours! China brands still have a BAD reputation of bad quality. I hope Lenovo can help shed that label.

Xiaomi phones = like good Chinese food (fast, cheap, but still very, very GOOD)

Lenovo phones = like bad Chinese food (cheap but diarrhea BAD)