The solvency of Xiaomi it is allowing the company to play a two-sided strategy. On the one hand, it is a signature of masses in their country of origin, with a software very dedicated to the tastes and habits of the Chinese market. On the other hand, it has become a real mine for the type of European / American user who likes to switch between ROM and carry out modifications in its terminals, thanks to a highly concentrated development scene in each of its models.
A few years ago, maybe even Nexus 5 and Nexus 7 of 2013, Google's own brand of devices had tremendous traction among the specialized public. The low price of its products (while maintaining high performance), the ease of installation Alternative ROMs or to enjoy the updates of Android on the same day of its launch, made these models a real candy for techies. However, that same year saw the light of a team that would represent the beginning of a relay. It is, of course, the Xiaomi Mi3.
Nexus 5, a terminal not only for geeks. Google boasts of sales
Year 2014: everything started with you
Google makes a radical change in its pricing policy in 2014, raising the range from 200-300 to $600, and making your Nexus 6 it will not be accessible at all for limited budgets. From our point of view, this terminal manufactured by Motorola, marked a before and after of the Mountain View product line, generating controversy not only because of the aforementioned regarding its price, but also because of its size, which did not convince many.
At the same time, from China, two jewels arrived to collect part of the essence that Google had left behind: on the one hand, the OnePlus One, with Cyanogen OS as standard and tremendous potential in terms of customization and, on the other, the Xiaomi Mi4, an unbeatable device in quality / price, capable of reaching enormous repercussions without carrying out campaigns as excessive as those of OnePlus, simply because of the good fame that his predecessor had achieved.
2015-2016: transition and consolidation
In 2015; Google tries to reissue its passion among geeks with the Nexus 5X, a device also manufactured by LG, which fails to hit the mark from the beginning: although now, once its price has stabilized around the $250, is gaining space, the initial pull was low. Too mid-range for a price around 400 euros. The OnePlus 2meanwhile, it sank from Cyanogen OS to Oxygen, raising prices and not meeting expectations in many of the product areas.
For its part, Xiaomi nailed it with the phablets (despite not having a clear flagship in that year) especially with the Redmi Note 2 and 3, having continuity in the Notes redmi 3 Pro and I Max during the first phase of 2016. In this year, in addition, the Xiaomi Mi5 rose to the category of milestone, managing to position itself in many media as the direct rival of the Galaxy S7, when appearing on the same day as the flagship from Samsung. You just had to see the staging of that machine: Hugo Barra spent almost 20 minutes explaining the operation of the optical stabilizer of his camera at the MWC, something that left technology enthusiasts absolutely in love.
A powerful community around Xiaomi
Based on a category product at a very low price and, at the same time, the need to tinker to adapt it to the international uses, Xiaomi has become the crown jewel of the public geek. It is clear that if you buy a Xiaomi Mi5, as it comes from the factory, you will have to fine-tune it by installing a ROM (either MIUI or based on AOSP) with more lenguajes and flashing Google Play. In fact, it is part of the grace of this company and although some stores offer to sell their units with the modifications made, usually fans prefer to remove the seal to the box.
For a few months I used a Redmire Xiaomi Note Pro 3 As a personal device, I participated in the odd Telegram group and forums, and there is absolute passion geek by the Chinese company. Users who tried a different ROM every day and shared impressions, autonomy measurements or benchmarks with each other, linked sales from different stores or looked for covers and other accessories among the huge catalog of AliExpress. On the other hand, it makes less and less sense to fiddle with a Nexus, especially since they are teams of 600 euros and a false step can leave the terminal useless.
Redmi Note 3 Pro: reflections after a month with Xiaomi's budget phablet