Introduction
Naming a new product sounds easy but tech companies often make things complicated and sometimes confusing for no reason. For example, skipping numbers seems to be a trend in recent years, and the Samsung's Galaxy Note 7 is a great examples. What is the point of skipping Note 6? Not only does this move create confusion among consumers, it gives them the impression that the Galaxy Note 5 is a year older than it actually is. Samsung is not the only company making silly naming mistakes like this. Razer's naming scheme for their line of gaming laptops is baffling. OPPO released the R9 and F1 Plus last year, identical phones sold in different markets. However, the tech company I would like to rant on today is Xiaomi, whose product naming scheme is getting on my nerves.
Product #1: Mi In-Ear Headphones Pro
"Naming two Pro"
Known globally as Mi In-Ear Headphones Pro, the 小米圈铁耳机 receives a very different treatment back in China. Over there, the "Pro" moniker goes to its succesor, the aptly named 小米圈铁耳机 Pro. Here comes the issue: if the 小米圈铁耳机 is already known as the Mi In-Ear Headphones Pro, what do you call the 小米圈铁耳机 Pro? Mi In-Ear Headphones Pro Pro or Mi In-Ear Headphones Pro^2? What about Mi In-Ear Headphones Pro 2 for simplisity sake? Nope. Xiaomi named it the Mi In-Ear Headphones Pro HD when they launched it in India. While it makes sense as the Pro HD trades the Pro's bass for clearer, better balanced sound, there is a major flaw to this naming approach. Both headphones have "HD Audio" written on them. If both of them produce HD audio, why is it that only one of them has "HD" in the name? Very confusing.
(Top - Pro, Bottom - Pro HD)
Product #2: Redmi Note 4
"Too many variants!"
If you thought the Mi In-Ear Headphones Pro's naming was bad, the Redmi Note 4 is worst. We shall begin with the China version of Redmi Note 4, which is powered by the MediaTek Helio X20 processor. This was the first variant released and is only exclusive to China. After the China Redmi Note 4 came the Global Redmi Note 4, aka Snapdragon Edition, in 3/32GB and 4/64GB configuration. This version replaces the X20 with a Snapdragon 625 processor but takes a cut in build quality. This version was released in China under the name Redmi Note 4X, available in 3/32GB configuration. Confused yet? Get ready to get your mind blown. Just months after releasing the 4X with Snapdragon 625, Xiaomi launched a Helio X20 version of the Redmi Note 4X with 4GB RAM and 64GB ROM. This version is only ¥100 less than its China Redmi Note 4 equivalent.
(Global Redmi Note 4 aka Redmi Note 4X)
In my opinion, redesigning the Redmi Note 4 to create the Redmi Note 4X is completely redundant. Instead of releasing the Redmi Note 4X, Xiaomi should have released a Snapdragon edition of the China Redmi Note 4. Most people will not mind paying the extra SG$20 for better build quality and doing so will also prevent the case confusion mentioned in my RMN4 review.
Product #3: Mi Max
"The undeserving Mi"
What is the difference between a Mi phone and a Redmi phone? If you are a long-time Mi Fan, your answer would be Redmi devices are budget-oriented devices, while Mi devices packs great specs and the latest innovation Xiaomi can offer. However, Xiaomi's announcement of the Mi Max last year left everyone confused. To put it bluntly, the Mi Max is just an oversized Redmi Note 3 with slightly better build quality. So why is it classified as a Mi device while its smaller brother is a Redmi device? Even if you consider the Mi Max's large display as an "innovation", than why isn't the Redmi Pro (and its dual camera setup) a Mi device?
(Mi Max)
Conclusion
Xiaomi, if you are reading this, please do something about the way you name your products. Like the design of UI on smartphones, simplicity and consistency is always better when it comes to namng of products. Without them, consumers can get really confused, and that may prevent them from upgrading from their current devices and accessories. Here are two ways Xiaomi can improve their product naming scheme: Stay consistent when translating product names from Chinese to English and release fewer variants of the same product, which will simplify the product naming process.