Xiaomi 17 Series Shipments Below Expectations? Xiaomi Executive: No Plans to Cut Orders

The initial shipments of the Xiaomi 17 series have stirred debate. On September 29, TF International analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported that the series' total shipments were cut by 20% from the original 10 million unit target. Without proactive measures, shipments may fall below the 8 million units of the Xiaomi 15 series. The main reason for the reduction is lower-than-expected demand for the standard Xiaomi 17, initially projected to account for 50%-55% of sales but actually only 15%-20%. Increased orders for the Pro Max and Pro models couldn’t offset the standard model’s order cuts, and the series also faces competitive pressure from iPhone and Huawei.

That same afternoon, Xiaomi Group President Weibing Lu responded, stating that the Xiaomi 17 series performed strongly in its first two days of sales, with the Pro Max being the top seller, followed by the Pro, comfortably breaking the 6,000+ RMB price segment. He expressed confidence that sales would surpass the previous 15 series. Simultaneously, PR General Manager Wang Hua stated there were no plans to reduce orders, citing the addition of a new 16GB+1TB version of the standard Xiaomi 17 and increased orders for the 17 Pro series, with overall orders expected to exceed the previous generation.

Looking back, Xiaomi launched the 17 series on September 25, with the standard 17 starting at 4,499 RMB (633 USD), the 17 Pro at 4,999 RMB (703 USD), and the 17 Pro Max at 5,999 RMB (844 USD). On September 27, the series went on sale, and Xiaomi claimed it set a new sales record for Chinese smartphones across all price segments within the first five minutes of 2025 (no specific data disclosed). On the same day, CEO Lei Jun noted that the 17 Pro Max alone broke records, accounting for over 50% of the series’ sales. Earlier, on September 15, Xiaomi announced it would skip the 16 series to launch the 17 series, with Lei Jun stating it was positioned to compete with iPhone.

Market data shows global smartphone shipments in Q2 reached 289 million units (flat year-over-year). Apple ranked second (iPhone shipments of 44.8 million units, down 2%), while Xiaomi ranked third (42.4 million units, driven by Latin America and Africa markets). Xiaomi Group’s Q2 total revenue was 116 billion RMB (up 30.5%), with adjusted net profit of 10.8 billion RMB (up 75.4%). Its smartphone business revenue was 45.5 billion RMB (gross margin 11.5%), with global shipments up 0.6% year-over-year.