Xiaomi is no stranger to the mobile and tech market. The company has built an empire spanning smartphones to smart home items and it achieved this in a relatively short time. The company emerged and grew in the span of a little over a decade. In fact, Malaysia’s first Xiaomi device was the popular Mi 3. It’s been nearly a decade since – and it looks like things are about to change.
According to a statement to XDA Developers, it looks like Xiaomi will be streamlining its branding. As part of the move, it looks like the “Mi” branding that we know and love is going to be retired. In its statement, the company highlighted that the recently announced MIX 4 was the first device to have its new, streamlined branding.
The move to retire their “MI” branding marks a close in a very important chapter in Xiaomi’s history as it moves to be a more international company from its humble beginnings. Xiaomi’s first product wasn’t a smartphone – it was MIUI, the Android fork that is now a hallmark feature of all its products. Today, the company has become one of the largest smartphone manufacturers in the world with a smartphone literally built for everyone.
With the retirement of the “Mi” brand, new flagships will come under their “Xiaomi” name. This should bolster the recognition of their brand worldwide. However, Xiaomi now has the task of differentiating itself in a market saturated by so many. In addition, it also has POCO and Redmi under its belt. The two brands are wildly popular in their segments but do little when it comes to Xiaomi’s branding.
Xiaomi now has the behemoth task of maintaining its dominance in the mobile space. The market has always been ruled by big guns like Apple and Samsung. However, just recently, Xiaomi dethroned the companies as the largest OEM in the world.
