Xiaomi launches super-thin smartphone

Xiaomi has unveiled a new flagship smartphone - the Xiaomi Note, on Jan15, 2015. [Photo: Xiaomi]

Xiaomi has unveiled a new flagship smartphone today, the Xiaomi Note.

The new phone is a thinner, lighter but larger than the iPhone 6 Plus. It is thinner than the iPhone 6 Plus by 0.15mm, and lighter by 11g.

The iPhone 6 Plus uses a 7.1 mm screen, while Xiaomi's new model has 6.95 mm.

To make a better phone, the R&D team said it has made strenuous efforts to overcome a technical difficulty and make the back camera flat, leading to a smooth shape for the phone.

The new Xiaomi Note has a smoother shape compared to the protruding iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus camera. [Photo: Xiaomi]

The team has successfully applied 2318 patents in 2014, of which, 665 are registered in overseas countries.

Dubbed the "Apple of China", Xiaomi has generated a huge fan base in the mainland and is gaining growing in popularity elsewhere in Asia.

+ From Smart Phone to Smart Home

Xiaomi launched a line of living room gadgets, a blood pressure monitor, and a wristband activity tracker in 2014.

A newly launched application will make it possible to link all these products together using a cloud service.

Lei Jun, founder of Xiaomi, indroducing the newly launched application that will make it possible to link all these products together using a cloud service at the launch event on Jan. 15, 2014. [Photo: Xiaomi]

Owners of the Mi Air Purifier can control the purifier's fan speed and check air quality through the mobile app.

Xiaomi's air purifier is just one of many devices the company is releasing in order to expand beyond its flagship smartphones and tablets.

Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi announced a 1.26 billion yuan ($204 million) share purchase in Midea on December last year to boost its presence in the market for internet-connected home electronics.