Xiaomi to launch lesser phones in India in 2019: Manu Kumar Jain

Xiaomi will launch fewer smartphones in India this year than it did in 2018. The company will also refresh its existing across series. It may discontinue a couple of series but at the same time introduce new ones this year.

Xiaomi Global Vice President Manu Kumar Jain said, "You will be surprised to hear this. We plan to launch lesser number of products this year than we did in last year. It's okay to have lesser number of phones but every single phone has to be really great product that consumers are very happy about."

"We will definitely refresh all our key series we have in India. We have about six or seven series including entry-level Redmi A, Redmi Y and premium Poco. We will probably refresh all of the main series in India. We may discontinue one or two series and we may add new series. Every year we end up adding one or two new series in India. Two years ago we launched Redmi Y series. Last year, we launched Poco sub-brand," he added.

Jain also said Xiaomi India will introduce a few flagship phones this year. He pointed out that Xiaomi launched a flagship phone [Poco] in India first before anywhere else.

On the new Xiaomi flagship phone, Jain said that the company's new phone will come with all the latest features that flagship phones offer but it will not be priced as steep as others.

Xiaomi is currently gearing up for the launch of Redmi Note 7, its first phone with 48-megapixel camera. He said that the phone will be available in India soon.

Apart from phones, Xiaomi is also betting big on its smart TVs. The company entered the Indian smart TV space in January last year. Since then, Xiaomi has raced to the top in the smart TV segment, according to a recent IDC report. The company reportedly tripled its shipments in the second quarter of 2018.

"We are hoping to refresh our TV series and add a few more new sizes. We started with three screen sizes - 32-inch, 43-inch, and 55-inch. Right now, we offer four sizes including a 49-inch TV. We also plan to launch a few products around smart TVs. For instance, we launched Mi Soundbar this year," Jain said.

The Internet of Things (IoT) is another segment which Xiaomi wants to aggressively pursue this year. The company expanded its portfolio last year with new smart air purifier and a portable CCTV camera. This also includes products such as shoes and sunglasses among others.

"This year we're thinking of launching one or two big new category from IoT perspective. Last year the big category was smart TVs in India," he added.

From business' point of view, Jain said the company is going to increase the number of its service centers from the current over 1,000. While Xiaomi already has local manufacturing for phones and TVs, the company is going to open new factories for newer categories.