Xiaomi takes on iPhone 6 Plus with larger Mi Note

Chinese phone maker Xiaomi unveiled a new phone this afternoon at a launch event in Beijing. Departing slightly from its emphasis on budget phones in the US$130 to US$320 price range, the new Xiaomi Note is a higher-end device designed to take on the iPhone 6 Plus. (Update: The event has now ended. Xiaomi Note starts at RMB 2,299 for the 16GB model, which is US$370. In contrast, the iPhone 6 Plus starts at US$980 in China. There’s also a Xiaomi Note Pro that comes with a higher resolution 2K screen, which costs $530. Added in full specifications below.)

Speaking on stage, Xiaomi CEO and co-founder Lei Jun (pictured above) compared the new Xiaomi Note to the dimensions of the iPhone 6 Plus, saying that the new Note is 0.15mm thinner, 11g lighter, and a fraction shorter. It comes with a bigger screen than Apple’s giant phone (5.7-inch versus 5.5-inch), but manages to be only 0.2mm wider thanks to less hefty bezels. There’s also a Xiaomi Note Pro that ups the screen resolution from 1080p HD to 2K HD.

The Xiaomi Note swaps out the company’s usual plastics for an emphasis on metal and glass. The edge of the phone is a metal band, and the glass seems to curve gently downwards at the edges, like the iPhone 6. It comes in either white or black.