OnePlus to make affordable smartphones once again to compete with Xiaomi – it will make up for the margins with its high-end Smart TVs

• OnePlus is known for its high-end smartphones that come with an affordable price tag, however that has changed with the OnePlus 8 series which cost as much as ₹59,999.
  
• To get back the customers it has lost due to the consistent price increases, OnePlus says that it will make affordable smartphones once again, competing with the likes of Xiaomi.
  
• In order to make up for the lost margins due to this strategy, OnePlus says it is looking beyond smartphones and wants to create an ecosystem.
  
• Essentially, this would mean OnePlus would compete with Xiaomi in the smartphone segment, and with Samsung in the premium Smart TVs segment.
  

Chinese smartphone maker OnePlus is looking to take on Xiaomi with new affordable smartphones while also butting heads with Samsung in the high-end Smart TV segment. It could mark a ‘return to roots’ of sorts for the company which launched its first device, the OnePlus One in India with the tagline ‘flagship killer’ due to its competitive pricing.

The company has been increasing the features that it has to offer on smartphones, along with its prices gradually over the past few years. It hit a new record with the OnePlus 8 series pricing it at up to ₹59,999 – making it the most expensive device that the company has launched in India till date.


In an interview with Fast Company, OnePlus CEO Pete Lau revealed that his company has plans to launch an affordable smartphone in India again, followed by Europe and North America.

“We can look at it as having a more affordable product offering,” Lau told Fast Company, “But all products that still remain up to the OnePlus standard, and through this enabling more people to have access to OnePlus products.”

OnePlus will take on Xiaomi in the affordable smartphone segment

While OnePlus has become one of the top companies in the premium segment in India, Xiaomi continues to dominate the affordable smartphones segment.

As the new OnePlus 8 series starts at ₹41,999, there is room for an affordable smartphone from the company between the ₹30,000 to ₹35,000 mark. Xiaomi subsidiary POCO is expected to announce the Poco F2 Pro, its latest flagship smartphone at around ₹35,000.

While OnePlus has not revealed what its new strategy will be in India, Lau mentioned in a tweet that the company has ‘big plans’ for the future.

It’s also expected to announce the OnePlus Z smartphone soon, which was leaked earlier this month. The smartphone is expected to be launched in July and as Lau mentioned, it would ‘remain up to the OnePlus standard’, we expect it to offer high-end specifications and a premium build at a competitive price like the good-old-days.

OnePlus will make up for the margins with premium Smart TVs

After the success of its smartphones, OnePlus launched its Smart TVs in India in September last year and now also offers wireless headphones. With its high-end Smart TVs, the company is taking on Samsung, which is among the top Smart TV makers in the country.

Now that OnePlus has plans to launch more affordable smartphones, its strategy to create an ecosystem could be how it makes up for the margins akin to what Xiaomi is trying to do with its slew of Smart TVs and accessories.

Lau mentioned that OnePlus wants to create an entire ecosystem around the company’s products and not just offer smartphones. “We indeed have come from background and roots as a hardware company, but from what we see looking forward, building an ecosystem is a forward trend,” Lau says.

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