Xiaomi Boss Reveals Reason for Not Releasing iPhone Air Rival
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Xiaomi President Lu Weibing revealed the reason why his company decided at the last minute not to release a rival to Apple’s thin phone, the iPhone Air, even though it had already been developed and was almost in the mass production stage.
Lu Weibing mentioned in his live broadcast that the company deliberately cancelled the launch of the smartphone because it was based on user experience.
As reported by Gizmochina on Saturday (17/5), Xiaomi found that very thin and light phones require too many compromises in many areas, such as battery life and performance.
The design may indeed look attractive, but for Xiaomi, the product does not meet the standards of the experience it wants to provide to users.
In fact, the thinner a device is, the more difficult it is to include a large battery, adequate cooling system, and high-performance hardware without affecting daily usability.
Therefore, Lu said that instead of launching a product that looks unique in terms of design but sacrifices ease of use in the real world, Xiaomi decided to abandon the idea completely.
Rather than presenting a thin phone with the ‘Air’ label, Lu said his company prefers to add the term ‘Max’ to its devices in the future, starting with the Xiaomi 17 Max.
The reason why the Xiaomi 17 Max was not given the name of a Plus model is because the two categories are considered by the company to have different meanings.
In general, the term Plus is added to gadgets because there is an offering of a larger screen compared to the regular variant.
However, in the case of Xiaomi, the ‘Max’ designation is presented because the phone offered not only brings the advantage of a wider screen.
The name Max is expected to represent the company’s design that brings more improvements in many areas such as camera performance, phone performance, and battery life in addition to a larger screen on the regular variant.
Xiaomi’s decision shows that the company is taking a different industry approach from most competitors.
When many smartphone brands are experimenting with thinner and lighter gadgets after a pioneer started, Xiaomi chooses to believe that today’s consumers prioritize battery life and consistent performance over ultra-thin designs.
This is also in line with Xiaomi’s latest message about flagship devices, where the company emphasizes larger batteries, advanced camera systems, and top-of-the-line hardware rather than pursuing the thinnest possible form factor.
Translator: Livia Kristianti