Photo: Xiaomi
Chinese company Xiaomi will unveil their all-new smart bicycle on June 23, which is tomorrow, but has been quite secretive as to how it will stack against the existing QiCycle R1 two-wheeler that went for crowdfunding earlier.
Why is this comparison so important, you might ask. Well, it's always the money, as they say. The QiCycle R1 is already overfunded and slated for production, with the first units expecting to start shipping in May 2016.
The retail price of the QiCycle R1 will be around $3,000 (€2,660) which is steep enough for such a two-wheeler, and especially one arriving from a manufacturer that has no tradition of product excellence or bicycles, for that matter.
There's no info about how will the new machine be, other than the fact that it will sport the Mijia badge. Mijia, or MI, is a sub-brand launched by Xiaomi to bring all their smart products under the same umbrella, and it looks like we're going to see more of these if Xiaomi's recent foray into the e-bike realm proves lucrative.
So far, the QiCycle R1 looked pretty impressive spec-wise, with a Mitsubishi T800 carbon fiber frame tipping the scales at only 7 kg (15.5 lb), Shimano Ultegra Di2 transmission and shifters, a battery integrated into the frame and heat-resistant brakes. Of course, the Bluetooth communication ensures the interfacing with a smartphone via a dedicated app, which is also expected from the new bike.
So far, Mijia only showed two photos, one showing an LED tail light and what appears to be a dual-sport tire, plus a small dash color LCD screen offering info on the ride. We just hope that the electric bicycles Xiaomi plans to bring to the market will not behave as some of their smartphones, whose operating system appears to be ultra sensitive when installing common Google Play apps. That is crashing a lot...
The retail price of the QiCycle R1 will be around $3,000 (€2,660) which is steep enough for such a two-wheeler, and especially one arriving from a manufacturer that has no tradition of product excellence or bicycles, for that matter.
There's no info about how will the new machine be, other than the fact that it will sport the Mijia badge. Mijia, or MI, is a sub-brand launched by Xiaomi to bring all their smart products under the same umbrella, and it looks like we're going to see more of these if Xiaomi's recent foray into the e-bike realm proves lucrative.
So far, the QiCycle R1 looked pretty impressive spec-wise, with a Mitsubishi T800 carbon fiber frame tipping the scales at only 7 kg (15.5 lb), Shimano Ultegra Di2 transmission and shifters, a battery integrated into the frame and heat-resistant brakes. Of course, the Bluetooth communication ensures the interfacing with a smartphone via a dedicated app, which is also expected from the new bike.
So far, Mijia only showed two photos, one showing an LED tail light and what appears to be a dual-sport tire, plus a small dash color LCD screen offering info on the ride. We just hope that the electric bicycles Xiaomi plans to bring to the market will not behave as some of their smartphones, whose operating system appears to be ultra sensitive when installing common Google Play apps. That is crashing a lot...
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