223: Chapter 223 Redmi isn't selling hardware.

A line of text appeared on the big screen: "Let everyone be able to use a Smartphone."

There was some applause from the audience, but not much.

More people were waiting; after all that talk, they wanted to know the price.

Lei Jun smiled, then gritted his teeth inwardly and said:

"I know some people will say, hasn't our competitor already released the Enjoy? The 799 and 999 price points have already captured the hundred-yuan market."

He pressed the remote, and a photo of the first-generation Enjoy appeared on the screen.

Some general specifications were also listed, such as the MTK6573, a removable battery, and the lack of an infrared remote control...

"The 799 Enjoy is indeed a good phone. Our competitor did a good job; we should pay tribute to them."

This time, a burst of loud applause rang out from the audience. Giving a competitor a shout-out at a launch event—Lei Jun's vision was truly impressive.

Unlike the folks next door, who do nothing but attack others; they have absolutely no... vision.

But Lei Jun's expression was very serious.

"But..." his tone suddenly shifted, "is 799 still too expensive?"

This single sentence instantly piqued the interest of both the live audience and the Mi Fans in the livestream.

At a university, six roommates were gathered around a computer. Three of them, all Enjoy users, were staring intently at the big screen, eager to see Xiaomi's specifications and pricing.

"I'm telling you, Lei Jun is definitely here to flip the table."

"Third, I'm telling you, it's impossible. With the supply chain the way it is now, everyone acting like they're the boss, how could prices possibly drop?"

"Don't be so sure," the eldest roommate said, equally excited. "The price will definitely be even more outrageous."

"Price is one thing, but what about the experience? Lei Jun might take a small loss, but he definitely won't lose big. With the specifications of the Enjoy series, you'd have to pay at least 1000 from a competitor."

The eldest and third roommates wanted to instinctively retort, but they held their tongues. After all, it was better not to speak until the reveal, lest they get slapped in the face.

After all, the current market climate really isn't great...

On stage, Lei Jun paced slowly, then suddenly frowned, his expression turning serious.

"Some might say 799 is still too expensive. Well, what price do you want?"

Lei Jun stopped in his tracks again, looking at the whispering fans in the audience.

"When I visited that urban village, I chatted with the shopkeeper for a long time. She told me that for the people there, the acceptable price range for a phone is about 500 to 700. Anything over 700 makes them hesitate for a long time, or even resort to borrowing money."

"So our goal is to drive the price below 700."

Achieving that price point was quite difficult. Lei Jun's emotions were clearly running high; his voice tightened, each word ringing out with the determination of someone staking everything on a single throw.

The whispering in the audience grew significantly louder.

Below 700? Is he crazy? Even a Feature phone costs 300 these days; how could a Smartphone possibly be made for under 700?

Facing the uproar from the audience, Lei Jun smiled shyly, looking a bit awkward, and began to talk about the specifications.

No explanation is as compelling as the specifications themselves.

"The first-generation Redmi is equipped with the MediaTek MTK6574 processor."

A comparison between the MTK6573 and 6574 appeared on the big screen.

The maximum clock speed of the MTK6574 is only 502MHz. Compared to the previous generation, it looks like a step backward.

However, its manufacturing process has been upgraded from 65nm to an all-new 45nm process, allowing for better performance and more integrated transistors.

"To some non-experts, this chip must look like a regression. After all, with such a significant drop in frequency, the performance must be worse, right? But the performance of a chip isn't just determined by frequency; there are many factors. In reality, this chip offers over 20% better performance than the previous generation."

When talking about core specifications, Lei Jun's expression turned serious. His gaze grew sharp as he read out the data word by word, exuding a sense of meticulousness and professionalism.

A burst of applause rang out from the audience.

But in the barrage, some people began to question it.

"Isn't the MTK6574 just a stripped-down version of the 6573? They just slapped a new label on it and are selling it as something new."

"What's so great about 45nm? Honor is already at 28nm. That's like N generations behind!"

"Lei Jun is kind of conning people with this marketing!"

But these comments were quickly drowned out by the cheers of the Mi Fans.

"Lei Jun explained it so clearly. As expected, you can't judge a chip just by its frequency. No wonder NVIDIA's chips are so difficult to use."

"To the person above, you must be using an old model! This year's new NVIDIA chips are quite good."

"Only Xiaomi would dare to make a Smartphone under 700. After all, they're business people; they wouldn't make deals that lose money."

Soon, the introduction of the MTK6574 officially concluded. Many Mi Fans had come to accept this new-generation 45nm chip, which, despite appearing to be a step backward, actually offered significantly improved performance.

Redmi is just better than the Enjoy series...

After finishing the performance introduction, the smile in Lei Jun's eyes gradually faded, his expression becoming somber.

"In terms of memory, the first-generation Redmi is equipped with 128MB of RAM and 512MB of storage."

When he reached this point, there was no applause from the audience; instead, a chorus of boos rang out.

128MB—that number was truly pathetic in 2011.

The competing Enjoy series offered 7B+1GB, and Redmi just cut that in half?

"I know some of you are asking, is 128MB enough?" Lei Jun had clearly anticipated the audience's reaction, his speaking speed quickening. "I'm telling you all, it's enough."

"The MIUI system has been specifically optimized for Redmi. The system only takes up 64MB, leaving the remaining 64MB for applications, which is perfectly sufficient. QQ, Feixin, UC Browser—you can run all three at the same time without any issues."

The audience remained skeptical. Their expectations for this phone were no longer that high, unless… unless it came with an absolutely explosive price tag.

In terms of the battery: it adopts a large 1800mAh battery, which can last for a day and a half under normal usage.

The screen is 3.2 inches with a 320 resolution. Although the quality is average, the display performance is absolutely worth the price.

With every point Lei Jun made, the audience's enthusiasm dampened further, because everyone could see that apart from the "new" processor, all the other specifications had been cut back.

128MB of RAM, 512MB of storage, an 1800mAh battery, a 320P resolution screen—in 2011, these specifications could only be considered entry-level of the entry-level.

Lan Yangyang Assistant replied in the comments section: "To be honest, Redmi's specifications are a bit of a scam, but if the price is really pushed below 700, you can't say Lei Jun is being unfair. After all, the supply chain situation really isn't what it was six months ago..."

But in the barrage, someone immediately retorted: "What do you know? Redmi is selling the system, not the hardware..."