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How blatant? Xiaomi announces ‘Mi Pad’ iPad mini clone [Video]

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVp34KQbAqk]

Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi, the company which specialises in imitating Apple’s marketing for its Android handsets, has launched its first tablet, reports Reuters – and it’s an iPad mini clone. The company has even named it the Mi Pad.

The Mi Pad is essentially a colorful plastic version of the iPad mini with Retina display design, and even has an identical screen resolution of 2048×1536. The tablet has a 2.2GHz Nvidia K1 processor, 2GB RAM and a choice of 16GB or 64GB storage. A heavily-forked version of Android attempts to complete the iPad emulation with an iOS-like look to it.

Xiaomi started life making low-cost, low-spec Android handsets for the Chinese market, but has gradually upped its game to higher-end phones. Last August, Google’s former VP of Hugo Barra joined the company in August of last year (amidst a certain amount of gossip).

Xiaomi has long blatantly copied Apple’s marketing approach, down to its CEO Lei Jun copying Steve Jobs’ trademark blue jeans and black turtleneck shirt at Apple-like product launches.

The $240 Mi Pad will initially be sold only in China, but it’s believed the company plans to expand later into other developing markets, with India, Brazil and Mexico among those suggested. The Mi Pad is said to begin “public testing” in June. No date has yet been given for it to go on public sale.

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Comments

  1. Ansar Arif - 10 years ago

    iPad mini with Retina display C

  2. I live in China and I was waiting to buy a decent tablet for testing and programming on Android. Looks like I got a Winner! I will said that Apple has nothing to fear, iOS and their ecosystem are the key. But Samsung… This will hurt their sales badly.

  3. Apple is setting themselves up for a fall. While competitors are starting to bring high end handsets to market at 64GB for $300-400 subsidized price points apple continues on their 64gb for $849. Once carriers all switch to subsidized plans consumers are going to see this 2x the price premium more directly. The same thing is true with tablets, they continue to charge prices for hardware that isn’t significantly better than the competition yet double the price. The only saving grace is everyone with Apple products is heavily invested in the iOS ecosystem.

    On a side note if I could get this tablet in the U.S. I would bite the bullet. The styling is excellent, specs are good and expandable storage is nice….only negative is Android.

    • Steffen Jobbs - 10 years ago

      Now that you mention it, Apple is really worried about going out of business because of all the cheapskates in the world… NOT!

      Get real. No matter how badly you want Apple’s business to fail, it’s not going anywhere. In a sense, you could say a Cartier watch doesn’t tell time better than a Casio, but Cartier is still in business and doing quite well.

    • Alex (@Metascover) - 10 years ago

      “Apple is setting themselves up for a fall.”

      Yes. So much that if Apple wasn’t here, this tablet wouldn’t exist in its current form.
      That’s Apple design here.

  4. iPadCary - 10 years ago

    I’d always hoped Apple’d release something like this on thier own: a “MyPad” aimed at kids with multicolred, hardened plastic shells & for 250 bucks. I’d snap one up in a second. But this? “Heavily forked, iOS-like Android”. Eh …. As much as I despise Android, I,ll give this MiiPad thing a looksee, and, provided it’s light/thin enough, will probably end up buying one just eff around with. Something for the toilet rack, mayhaps ….

    • iPadCary - 10 years ago

      Websie doesn’t have physical specs. Hmmm …..

      • observer1959 - 10 years ago

        They’re still waiting for their shipment of iPad minis to arrive for re painting and badging. They’ll have the specs shortly.

    • herb02135go - 10 years ago

      The words “I” and “mi” are very different.
      How can I get one of these? Paying less than crApple for a product that’s better? Great!

  5. rettun1 - 10 years ago

    This is just… How can they…? I don’t understand how they can do that, but maybe everybody doesn’t see it…

    For some weird reason, I want one

  6. Sacha James Bascombe - 10 years ago

    If Apple want to battle this ,then lower the prices ! But we all know that will never happen, so prepare to fail.
    Apple products are premium , no dispute, but I can’t understand why people say Apple this and Apple that. You pay through the nose for Apple products and with only a suspected life span of 3 years ish the app updating and with hardware advancements renders them useless ( iphone 3G and ipad 1),and the same with other manufactures also.
    If Apple comes up with the innovation that made them in 2007 for the iphone and 2010 with the ipad ,they can’t lose but if not then………… Fail to prepare, Prepare to fail!

    • Cal - 9 years ago

      At least 3 YEARS later they still offer updates…unlike most androids, which get none after 3 MONTHS…if you’re lucky.

  7. Cal - 9 years ago

    they look more like Lumia copycats, not iPad!

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Avatar for Ben Lovejoy Ben Lovejoy

Ben Lovejoy is a British technology writer and EU Editor for 9to5Mac. He’s known for his op-eds and diary pieces, exploring his experience of Apple products over time, for a more rounded review. He also writes fiction, with two technothriller novels, a couple of SF shorts and a rom-com!


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