The Xiaomi Redmi 4A. Let’s talk about the most affordable smartphone from the company in India, so far. Not so much lesser in price when you compare it with the Redmi 3s but still, priced lesser and that is what matters. Ever since we’ve talked about the launch of the phone, several users had an opinion about the phone being not so good in comparison to the company’s Redmi 3s. A thousand bucks is what differs these two, and that’s what is making people wonder about the reason behind the launch of this affordable phone when even their already-popular phone is doing so well in the market.
The budget segment in the smartphone market in India has a lot of offerings, from several brands, especially knowing the fact that the vast market that India is, there will be many first-time smartphone users who’d want to understand the use case and see if smartphones are a right fit for them. These users wouldn’t want to spend a lot for the first purchase and thus, they end up with a confusion as to what might be the best bet in the tight budget that they hold.
This isn’t like the segment where you extend your budget from Rs. 25000 to Rs. 28000 to get a better phone, or even extend it a bit further if there’s something that gives an issue-free experience for a couple of years, at the least. We’re talking of a price point where adding even a thousand rupees is going to change the equation by about 20% and that is important for many. Let’s check out why. A smartphone user would not end their purchase list with the smartphone itself. They might go on to buy a screen protector, a case or cover, and even a storage card if they see that the provided storage isn’t enough for them. This would, collectively, add about Rs. 1000 to the total cost being spent on the phone.
If the same user thinks of freeing up a bit with the budget, getting the Redmi 3s would not end their purchase, just as said above. The final amount spent might be Rs. 8000. Now, a user who’s able to spend that much amount, should not be able to increase the budget a little further to get proper extra storage? This keeps on going, and the fact remains that there is a whole lot of potential smartphone buyers who look at the best phones for the lowest possible price points.
Better battery, a metallic body, and a better processor is what they are getting if they spend a little more. But remember, the storage capacity isn’t changing, and it still would make them put more from their pocket to buy the expandable storage.
Opinions do matter and there are several Xiaomi smartphone users who’ve already put out there verdict saying that the company wasted an opportunity and should have rather launched the entire series of Redmi 4 devices already in India. But, the fact remains the same – In a price sensitive market and a segment where users don’t make choices based on what is offered but based on what they can spend, the Redmi 4A is perfectly welcome and is an obvious choice with the availability of features like VoLTE, IR Blaster, and the full functionality of the MIUI 8 interface.
Who knows, it could probably be an indication from the brand that the upcoming Redmi 4 series phones that will succeed the Redmi 3s could be priced a little higher and then, the pricing of Redmi 4A could be completely understandable, but we’re just firing the gun in the air and might be completely off-target with this prediction.
For now, the Xiaomi Redmi 4A is here and is to stay. If, as a consumer looking to buy a phone in a similar segment feels like the Redmi 3s is well in the budget, there’s absolutely no need to take a look at the Redmi 4A. It is just that Xiaomi is targeting a set of consumers who have tighter budgets in their hand.
