Mi TV stick with Full-HD streaming, Android TV 9 launched in India

Mi TV Stick by Xiaomi has been launched in India on August 5 after its debut in Europe in July. It will compete with the Amazon Fire TV Stick and offers the same functionality of allowing users to stream content from Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ Hotstar, Netflix, and others directly on the TV. It can connect to TV using the HDMI port and turn it into a smart TV. The Mi TV Stick runs on Android TV 9, allowing access to the Google Play store, and apps made specifically for the big screen.

This is the second streaming device from Xiaomi after the Mi Box 4K. While Xiaomi’s own Smart TV uses a custom interface called Patchwall, the Mi TV Stick and the Mi Box 4K do not.

The Mi TV Stick is priced at Rs. 2,799 in India. Its first sale is scheduled for August 7 at 12pm (noon) and the device will be available for purchase from Mi.com, Flipkart, and Mi Home stores. It will also soon be available via Mi partner stores across the country. The Mi TV Stick comes in a black colour option.

Its main competitor, the Amazon Fire TV Stick is priced at Rs. 3,999. Xiaomi’s own Mi Box 4K is priced at Rs. 3,499.

The Mi TV Stick by Xiaomi is a compact device that is powered by a quad-core Cortex-A53 CPU and an ARM Mali-450 GPU. It comes with 1GB of RAM and 8GB of onboard storage. The Mi TV Stick runs on Android 9 and supports dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, as well as Bluetooth v4.2. It is powered via a Micro-USB port and connects to the TV with the HDMI input. Mi TV Stick measures 92.4×30.2×15.2mm and weighs just 28.5 grams.

It supports video decoding for VP9-10, H.265, H.264, VC-1, MPEG1/2/4, and Real8/9/10 and audio decoding for Dolby and DTS. It can stream at up to 1,920×1,080 pixels at 60fps. The Mi TV Stick comes with support for apps like Netflix, YouTube, Prime Video, Disney+ Hotstar, HBO, Spotify, and more. Bring an Android device, it has access to the Google Play store, which has over 5,000 apps available on the platform. The device comes with a remote that supports Google Assistant voice controls, as well as Chromecast for supported devices.

Xiaomi says the Mi TV Stick also comes pre-loaded with Google’s Data Saver that keeps a track of your data usage so that you know exactly how much of it has been consumed, if you have a cap on your internet plan. It also allows users to stream more content, up to three times more, compared to regular or non-data saver mode. NDTV