Xiaomi’s first laptop is expected to launch sometime next year

We can add this report from the Taipei Times to the ever-growing list of rumors that Xiaomi is working on its own laptop. The report quotes Richard Lee, the chairman of one of Xiaomi’s smartphone manufacturers and one of the largest laptop makers in Taiwan, who expects Xiaomi to launch its first laptop sometime next year. Lee also expects it to shakeup China’s laptop market in much the same way Xiaomi shook up the country’s smartphone market, though he admits that he’s “not sure if the smartphone approach will be applicable to notebooks.”

A Taiwan-based news report has claimed that Xiaomi is working on its first notebook computer which is being manufactured by Inventec. Taipei Times quotes Inventec chairman Richard Lee who claimed that the first laptop from Xiaomi’s stables can be expected to start shipping in the first or second half of 2016. “I am upbeat about the business outlook for Xiaomi’s notebook computers, as the firm has more than 200 million registered smartphone users,” said Lee. Lee expects Xiaomi to shakeup the laptop market the same way it did with smartphones. “I am not sure if the smartphone approach will be applicable to notebooks, but I expect Xiaomi’s entry into the notebook industry to bring something new to the market. We will start shipping Xiaomi’s notebook computers in the first or second quarter of next year,” he added. Inventec, which has assembly lines for Xiaomi smartphones, is said to design and manufacture Xiaomi’s first notebook products in its own plants in China. Gadgets 360 reached out Xiaomi for a response on the report, but the company refused to comment. In an emailed response, Xiaomi said “We would not like to comment on the speculation.”