China Smartphone Maker Xiaomi Enters Japan, Looks To IoT Service

Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi Corp. entered the Japanese market Monday looking to offer an internet of things service with 5G wireless networks expected to launch next year.

The world’s fourth-largest smartphone maker by volume said it began taking orders in Japan for its Mi Note 10 series models, equipped with 108-megapixel camera sensors and 5 rear lenses, ahead of sales starting Dec. 16.

Xiaomi, established in 2010, is aiming to compete with Apple Inc., which grabbed a 44 percent share of the Japanese market with its iPhones in fiscal 2018. Sharp Corp. and Sony Mobile Communications Inc. also remain major smartphone makers in Japan.

Following smartphones, Xiaomi said it will introduce its Mi Smart Band 4 smartwatch as well as rice cookers and other products that can be remotely connected and controlled via smartphones.

“The Japanese market…is very receptive to new technologies. We can bring big changes,” Steven Wang, general manager in charge of East Asia, said at a press conference in Tokyo.

Commercial 5G services, which can deliver data transmission speeds around 100 times faster than 4G, are set to be launched in Japan next spring.

The technology is expected to promote the exchange of data with devices and systems ranging from household products to industrial machinery. – The Mainichi