After a couple of teasers, Xiaomi has finally unveiled its new TV. It isn’t a brand new model to replace the current Mi TV2 but an affordable option with a 40″ screen that pushes Full HD 1080p resolution at only 1,999 CNY (about RM1,175). As comparison, its 49″ Mi TV2 that does 4K resolution is priced at 3,999 CNY (about RM2,350) and it comes with a soundbar along with a wireless subwoofer.
The new 40 incher uses a Sharp SDP X-Gen panel which offers a faster 6ms response time and a 5000:1 static contrast ratio. Internally, it runs a Quad-Core 1.45GHz processor that’s mated to 1.5GB (instead of 2GB on the 49″ MiTV 2) RAM. Since it is a smart TV, it also runs as a media hub and gaming platform with Android 4.4 KitKat on board.
For storage it gets a similar 8GB capacity but this time it lacks a microSD slot that was available with its 49″ variant. If you need to connect to external media, there’s a high speed USB 3.0 port as well as support for WiFi 802.11n. In terms of playback, it has support for H.265 10-bit hardware decoding along with H.264, MPEG4, REAL in RM, FLV, MOV, AVI, MKV,TS and MP4 formats. To navigate around, the bundled remote uses a simplified 11 button design but surprisingly they choose to opt for an infrared remote instead of the bluetooth version. The 40″ Mi TV2 is 14.5mm thick at the thinnest point and weighs 9.79kg.
For 1,400CNY more (RM822), you can actually get the standalone Mi TV2 (3,399CNY) without the sound bar + subwoofer accessory, which probably is more worth while if you’re looking for a brand new TV. You can compare the specs for both 40″ and 49″ models over here.
The biggest question of course is whether it will be made available outside of China. The reality is that the Mi TV is highly sought after in their local market and the biggest hurdle is having a local content partner overseas. Xiaomi isn’t just selling the TV as a standalone hardware and they are pushing it as a content box with a wide variety of videos and games at your disposal. Perhaps our local direct importers such as DirectD would soon find a way to bring a couple units in.
For more info, check out Xiaomi’s 40″ Mi TV2 product page.
