小米科技將發(fā)布廉價親民版無人機

Xiaomi, the Chinese smartphone maker that gaveApple a run for its money, is taking on the droneworld with a $610 product that undercuts marketleader DJI by almost 25 per cent.

曾對蘋果(Apple)構成強勁挑戰(zhàn)的中國智能手機制造商小米(Xiaomi)，將憑借一款售價610美元的產品在無人機市場展開競爭。這款產品的售價比市場領跑者大疆(DJI)低了近25%。

Drones are the latest gambit for Xiaomi, whichlaunched its first phone in 2011 and, four years later,briefly became the top-selling maker in China. But its fortunes have since faded, prompting awave of diversification spanning smart rice cookers and air purifiers.

無人機是小米下出的最新一步棋。該公司在2011年發(fā)布其首部手機，四年后便迅速成為了中國市場上銷量最高的手機制造商。但自那以來，小米的好運氣逐漸減弱，促使其實施了一連串多元化發(fā)展舉措，其產品涵蓋智能電飯煲和空氣凈化器。

Beijing-based Xiaomi said its drone would cost about Rmb4,000 ($610), versus $799 for acomparable product from Shenzhen-based DJI. It plans to unveil its first drone on May 25.

總部位于北京的小米表示，其無人機價格約為4000元人民幣(合610美元)。相比之下，總部位于深圳的大疆同類產品價格為799美元。小米計劃于5月25日發(fā)布其首款無人機。

DJI was unfazed. Spokesman Wang Fan said it commanded a strong lead over the rest of theindustry and superior value. “Price was never our greatest point of appeal,” he said. “Xiaomi’snew product, regardless of its price, will not have an impact on our sales.”

大疆對此并不感到擔憂。大疆發(fā)言人王帆表示，大疆遙遙領先于業(yè)內其他企業(yè)，品牌價值也高人一頭。他說：“價格從來都不是我們的最大賣點。小米的新產品無論價格定在多少，都不會影響我們的銷售。”

The global consumer drone market is expected to reach $4.19bn by 2024, said a new reportby US-based consultancy Grand View Research. While still largely novelty items, this year’sprojected sales of 4m are expected to quadruple to 16m by 2020, Bloomberg said.

總部位于美國的咨詢公司大觀研究(Grand View Research)發(fā)布新報告稱，到2024年，全球消費類無人機市場的規(guī)模預計將達41.9億美元。彭博社(Bloomberg)表示，盡管無人機在很大程度上還是一種新鮮事物，但到2020年時，無人機銷量預計會達到1600萬架，相對于今年400萬架的預期銷量等于是翻了兩番。

Xiaomi is just one of a number of prospective entrants looking to tap into this market andemulate DJI’s success.

小米只是考慮進軍這一市場并趕超大疆成就的眾多潛在玩家之一。

That would help it offset flagging phone sales. Xiaomi said in January it sold more than 70mphones in 2015, up from 61m the year before. But that missed both its original target of100m and its midyear revised goal of 80m.

進軍無人機市場將有助于小米抵消智能手機銷售不振的影響。今年1月，小米表示2015年它售出了逾7000萬部手機，高于上一年的6100萬部。但這一數字既未達到其最初設定的1億部的年銷售目標，也未達到其年中修訂后的8000萬部的年銷售目標。

Analysts, however, reckon drones will fail to turn around Xiaomi’s fortunes, particularly giventhe limited market size. “There are several zeros between the drone market and the marketfor smartphone,” said Bryan Ma, analyst at IT consultancy IDC in Singapore.

分析師們認為，無人機不會扭轉小米的運勢——尤其是考慮到無人機市場規(guī)模不大。IT咨詢公司IDC駐新加坡分析師馬伯遠(Bryan Ma)表示：“無人機市場比智能手機市場小好幾個數量級。”