Xiaomi president blames storage costs for K90 price hike
Xiaomi’s president defended the higher prices of the company’s new Redmi K90 smartphones, citing higher costs for memory components. Lu Weibing stated on Weibo that global supply chain pressures have driven storage costs beyond projections and will continue to rise. Major flash memory producers cut output by 10 percent to 15 percent through the first half of 2025, pushing prices upward.
However, Lu announced a 300 yuan discount on the 12GB plus 512GB model for the first month of sales, bringing its price to 2,899 yuan. The markdown suggests the company built substantial profit margins into its original pricing. Critics note the phone’s Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 processor, costing between $240 and $280, represents a larger expense than storage components.
