Xiaomi, “Apple of China,” debuts its own smartwatch

Xiaomi Technology Company has received the nickname “The Apple of China” for its popular smartphones and other electronics. Now, the company plans to take on Apple in a new market by creating their own smartwatch.

A Chinese-language technology website called 36 Krypton was the first to announce that Xiaomi was developing a smartwatch. The report says that the watch will have a round face and a blood-pressure monitor. Its brushed metal design can be compared to the back of the HTC One m9. In another move to elbow out its competitor, 36 Krypton claims there will be a built-in NFC to allow for mobile payments — similar to Apple Pay.

Xiaomi products use Google’s mobile operating system, but the smartwatch is rumored to be different. Allegedly, the company plans to develop its own OS, similar to Pebble smartwatches. By doing this, the Xiaomi smartwatch could have both Samsung and Apple connectivity, allowing the watch to compete directly with Apple’s.

This isn’t Xiaomi’s first venture into wearables. In fact, the company is said to be developing a new version of their Mi Band activity tracker. Xiaomi shipped one million Mi Bands in the first three months of availability. They also recently started selling the Yi Action Camera, a cheap alternative to a GoPro.

No other details about the smartwatch have been reported. Xiaomi is known for creating technology products at an affordable price; its low prices are part of the reason why Xiaomi is now the third-largest smartphone maker in the world. We can safely assume the smartwatch’s price point will be no different.

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