Mi 11 Ultra is set to launch in India with a starting price of over Rs. 70,000, Gadgets 360 has learnt. The new smartphone debuted in China alongside the Mi 11 Pro, Mi 11 Pro, and the Mi 11 Lite 5G earlier this week. The Mi 11 Ultra also received a global announcement shortly after its China debut. Xiaomi has offered features including a 50-megapixel primary Samsung GN2 camera sensor, 2K AMOLED display, secondary display at the back, and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 888 SoC on the Mi 11 Ultra to make a compelling flagship.
A person familiar with the development told Gadgets 360 that the Mi 11 Ultra will be available for purchase in the Indian market with an initial price tag of over Rs. 70,000. This will be the most expensive price tag that Xiaomi has put on a smartphone since its arrival in the country back in July 2014.
The Chinese company has already started promoting the launch of the Mi 11 Ultra as a ‘Superphone’ debut to set the pitch ahead of its official announcement.
Gadgets 360 has learnt that similar to other flagship phones under its Mi series, Xiaomi will not locally produce the Mi 11 Ultra initially and will import its early units from China. This would result in some import duty burden on the pricing of the smartphone.
To give some perspective, the Mi 11 Ultra was launched in China with a starting price of CNY 5,999 (roughly Rs. 67,000) for the 8GB RAM + 256GB storage configuration. It also comes in 12GB RAM + 256GB storage option at CNY 6,499 (roughly Rs. 72,600) and the top-end 12GB RAM + 512GB storage model at CNY 6,999 (roughly Rs. 78,200). The Mi 11 Ultra is also making its way to Europe with a price tag of EUR 1,199 (roughly Rs. 1,03,400) for the 12GB RAM + 256GB storage option.
Xiaomi has offered high-end specifications including a 6.81-inch 2K WQHD+ E4 AMOLED quad-curved primary display, Snapdragon 888 SoC, and a triple rear camera setup with the 50-megapixel Samsung GN2 primary sensor. The phone also has a 1.1-inch AMOLED display at the back to easily capture selfies from the rear cameras. Further, there are features such as 5G support, 67W wired and wireless charging, and an IP68-certified build to attract customers.
The Mi 11 Ultra could be projected as a strong competitor against the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S21 and the OnePlus 9 Pro. At the same time, it will also help Xiaomi get an understanding of the premium segment that it did try to reach in the past with the Mi 10 that was launched at a starting price of Rs. 49,999. It, however, failed to mark any major success with that model.
Prabhu Ram, Head of Industry Intelligence Group at market research firm CyberMedia Research (CMR) said that Xiaomi would need to ramp-up its brand awareness and leverage its value-for-money appeal in the hyper-competitive premium smartphone segment to move ahead with a model like the Mi 11 Ultra.
“Xiaomi has packed all the attractive top-of-the-line flagship specs, including the camera, in its upcoming Mi 11 Ultra,” he told Gadgets 360. “While It is a strong premium product offering, Xiaomi needs to back it with attractive pricing, coupled with strong go-to-market and channel strategy.”
Xiaomi has partnered with Amazon for selling the Mi 11 Ultra online — alongside its own Mi.com site — shortly after its official India launch, which is planned for April 23. The company is also expected to soon kick off some offline and online campaigns to create some hype for the new smartphone.
Although Xiaomi has continued to lead the smartphone market in India for the last few quarters, the company has so far gained popularity for its affordable smartphones.
The data shared with Gadgets 360 by analyst firm Counterpoint Research shows that in the fourth quarter of 2020, Xiaomi was at three percent share in the premium segment that comprises phones between Rs. 30,000–Rs. 45,000. In contrast, Apple led the segment with 49 percent share followed by OnePlus at around 21 percent.
Is Mi 10i a OnePlus Nord killer? We discussed this on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you get your podcasts.
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