Xiaomi to sell smartphones in India

Beijing-based mobile phone maker Xiaomi will start selling its smartphones in India next week, domestic news portal cankaoxiaoxi.com reported Wednesday.

The Mi 3 model will reportedly be available on July 15 on flipkart.com, an Indian e-commerce giant. The model will be sold for 15,000 rupees ($251), much lower than other smartphones with similar specifications sold in India, according to the report.

In India, cellphones are generally bought via retail stores while Xiaomi decided to sell online, so it may face difficulty in overtaking local cellphone market leaders, said the report.