Chinese Big Tech firmXiaomi Corphas unveiled its latest 12S-series flagshipsmartphones, highlighting advanced imaging systems co-engineered withGermany's Leica Camerathat could help set them apart from other majorAndroidhandsets andApple'siPhonein ashrinking global market.
Xiaomi's three new Android models, including the top-of-the-line 12S Ultra, combine Leica's in-depth understanding of optics, image processing and image quality with the 12-year-old Chinese firm's experience in smartphone computing photography, according to a joint statement released in Beijing on Monday.
Lei Jun, Xiaomi's founder and chief executive, said at the launch that the cost of these photographer-friendly smartphones might be "disappointing" for consumers, who expect affordable price tags, because "it's very difficult to make a high-end model because the investment is huge".
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Xiaomi's new 12S Ultra, which the company touts as the first Android device to support Hollywood-style Dolby Vision high-definition video recording and playback, starts from 5,999 yuan (US$895). Prices for the 12S Pro and 12S start from 4,699 yuan and 3,999, respectively.
The 12S Ultra, which will initially get a China-only release, is built with a sizeable main camera on the back. It features a 50.3-megapixel, 1-inch Sony IMX989 image sensor and Leica Summicron lens, with a zoom range of 13 to 120 millimetres. Xiaomi shouldered half of the US$15 million cost to develop that sensor withSony Corp.
Shares of Xiaomi in Hong Kong closed down 3.47 per cent to HK$13.36 on Tuesday.
Leica and Xiaomiannounced their strategic cooperation in Mayafter the German company's much-publicised partnership withHuawei Technologies Co- which started in 2015 and led to their initial collaboration, thepremium P9 smartphone, in 2016 - ended in March this year. Shenzhen-based Huawei hascontinued to struggle under US trade sanctions.
"For almost a decade now, we have been successfully incorporating our know-how into camera systems in the smartphone segment," said Matthias Harsch, Leica's chief executive, in a separate statement released on Monday in the firm's home city of Wetzlar, Germany. "Today, we and Xiaomi have come together to present the beginning of a new era in the world of smartphone photography."
Xiaomi's new flagship smartphone launch reflects founder Lei's commitment earlier this year to ratchet up the firm's challenge to Apple byfocusing on the high-end segment of the smartphone market.
In August last year, Lei said Xiaomi aims to become theworld's largest smartphone vendor in three years' time.
Competition, however, remains tough for Xiaomi. The company ranked third behindSamsung Electronicsand Apple in the first quarter, whenglobal smartphone shipments saw the steepest declinesince theCovid-19 outbreakin 2020 amid economic headwinds and sluggish seasonal demand, according to research firm Canalys.
Xiaomi, in the same quarter, reported weak sales and flagging profit, as China's strictzero-Covid-19 measuresdampened demand and disrupted supply chains across the country.
Apple's iPhone also continued to lead the world's premium smartphone market segment, covering handsets priced from US$400, with a 62 per cent share in the first quarter this year, according to data released by Counterpoint Research on June 23. It said the iPhone 13 has been the world's bestselling premium smartphone since October last year.
China smartphone sales in May fell to 19.12 million units, down 19.7 per cent from a year earlier, according to data from Cinno Research. Xiaomi recorded sales of 2.7 million units that month, behind those ofHonor,Oppo,Vivoand Apple.
While the jury is still out on the potential global demand for Xiaomi and Leica's initial co-engineered devices, Huawei had an auspicious run with the German firm beforeUS sanctions were tightenedin August 2020. In the second quarter that year,Huawei unseated Samsung for the first timeto top the world in smartphone shipments.$XIAOMI-W(01810)$
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