Xiaomi's Apple TV rival streams 4K HDR video and runs on Android TV
Chinese tech juggernaut Xiaomi may be best known for making high-quality smartphones like the new Mi 5 and selling them at low prices, but the company has made it very clear it wants to become a household electronics giant that can rumble with the likes of Samsung and Apple on a global scale.
At Google's annual I/O developer conference, Xiaomi announced plans to bring its Mi Box media streaming box to the U.S. first and to other regions afterwards. The Mi Box was previously a China-only device.
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The Mi Box runs Android TV 6.0 and and is positioned to compete directly with the Apple TV, Fire TV and other set-top boxes.
Xiaomi's streaming box supports 4K playback, like the Fire TV, but it does it one better with HDR (High Dynamic Range) for picture quality with more colors, higher brightness and increased contrast. HDR will be enabled via an Android N update.
The Mi Box is powered by a quad-core Arm Cortex-A53 processor, Malia 450 graphics chip, 2GB of RAM and has 8GB of internal storage. There's an ethernet and HDMI port on the back. Users can also connect USB storage via the USB port for local playback.
The set-top box has access to a full range of apps available in the Google Play store including YouTube, Netflix, Vudu and more.
"This is a significant milestone for Xiaomi and I am really excited to be working closely with Google to bring such a great product to our fans in the US. I believe US consumers will truly enjoy the Android TV experience on Mi Box, which brings stunning 4K HDR video and a wide variety of content to your living room," Xiaomi vice president of international Hugo Barra said in a press release.
The Mi Box comes with a standard set-top box remote control (below), but it'll also work with Bluetooth gamepads for playing more advanced games.
Here's a look at the Mi Box gamepad:
Pricing and availability weren't announced and will come at a later date.
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Raymond Wong is Mashable's Senior Tech Correspondent. He reviews gadgets and tech toys and analyzes the tech industry. Raymond's also a bit of a camera geek, gamer, and fine chocolate lover. Before arriving at Mashable, he was the Deputy Editor of NBC Universal's tech publication DVICE. His writing has appeared on G4TV, BGR, Yahoo and Ubergizmo, to name a few. You can follow Raymond on Twitter @raywongy or Instagram @sourlemons.
