Emir BardakçıWang Teng, Deputy General Manager of Xiaomi China Marketing Department and General Manager of the Redmi brand, explained today in his Weibo post why flagships have risen in price this year. According to Wang, there are two factors contributing majorly to pushing the cost up: using the latest 3nm process in flagship processors and the continuous increase in memory pricing.
Key Drivers of Price Increases
- 3nm Processor Technology: While flagships have moved to the ultra-modern 3nm process, there’s increased performance linked with this process. All that was balanced, however, by the notably higher manufacturing costs of this jump in chip technology. Since the 3nm process is the most advanced, it requires more investments in production, hence raising the overall price of flagship devices.
- Skyrocketing Memory Prices: Wang said the price of memory has become very high as there was a whole year of continuous growth in prices. Because of this, the price for versions with larger memory configurations surged even higher, thereby affecting the price of flagship models.
Wang Teng’s Response to Concerns
Wang also addressed the concerns with these fast-increasing prices, saying that by the end of the year, it was already becoming increasingly difficult to set reasonable prices for flagship phones.
He said, “It is rather tough to fix flagship prices at the end of this year. Every good product deserves encouragement.” Wang, however, managed to reassure the users of Xiaomi’s commitment to offering “reasonable prices.” In the comments section of his Weibo post, he wrote, “Be patient and I will not let you down.”
Upcoming Flagship Releases
Wang also teased new Redmi flagships that come later this year. For one, he says that the Redmi K80 series, expected on October 10, has a huge upgrade in terms of not only performance but also in other aspects.
Both are to feature in the Redmi K80 series: K80 and K80 Pro.
Just recently, both devices snatched a network access license from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in China. Model number 24122RKC7C and 24117RK2CC, respectively. Previous reports indicated that the launch would happen before the close of the year.
While Xiaomi is about to launch its new series of flagships, among them the highly-anticipated Redmi K80 series, the latest flagship confronts cost increases in at least two majors: processor and memory. Reassurances by Wang Teng* reveal that attention is paid even when market conditions start worsening. At the tail-end of this year, when one is planning to change his phone, according to Wang, patience is needed, as the latest series of Xiaomi products will have much value despite the rise in cost.
