Nearly two-and-a-half years after gadget maker Xiaomi first unveiled a bunch of smart home gizmos, the Chinese firm is selling them outside its home country for the first time.
The first one to venture overseas is the Mi Air Purifier, which Xiaomi first debuted at the end of 2014 in China. The smart air filter is now for sale in Singapore, a Xiaomi spokesperson tells Tech in Asia, in an official tie-up with a retailer in the city-state. The Mi Air Purifier is now added to Xiaomi’s Singapore website, though it’s not available to buy online.
The Mi Air Purifier in action.
While Xiaomi mainly focuses on smartphones (it’s China’s top seller in 2014 and last year), it also has a growing repository of web-connected home gadgets and appliances, such as its wifi router, plug, home security camera and sensor, ambient lamp, and LED bulb. These connect to the Xiaomi Smart Home app for Android and iOS.
XIaomi’s smart lamp is made by a startup partner called Yeelight, hence the name.
A lot more of Xiaomi’s internet of things (IoT) gizmos will hit other countries in due course. Xiaomi yesterday updated its Smart Home app in readiness for going global. “Now our IoT devices debut oversea [sic], and according to local laws, the data between different countries have to be standalone, so the data won’t migrate when you choose to switch your area out of China,” notes the iOS App Store description written by Xiaomi for the app’s latest update.
The Xiaomi Smart Home app shown running on an iPhone, with a Mi Air Purifier in the background.
Editing by Michael Tegos
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