Projecting a bright future for smart world

Chengdu-based XGIMI's intelligent products seek to extend success beyond Japan

In Japan, a market that boasts plenty of world-famous tech brands including gaming leader Nintendo Switch, a lamp made by a Chinese firm has turned popular overnight.

The product, called PopIn Aladdin, however, is much more than a mere dome-shamed light. It has a built-in projector and embeds a Bluetooth-enabled speaker.

In that sense, it is like the magic lamp in the story of Aladdin. And it sold out as soon as it launched in Japan at the end of last year.

For Chinese intelligent projector firm XGIMI, manufacturer of PopIn Aladdin, success in Japan heralds its broader ambition to go global.

"We aim to become the world's largest intelligent projector company over the next two to three years," said Zhong Bo, chairman of XGIMI, in an exclusive interview with China Daily.

"It is not difficult to develop a good product, yet it is difficult to make something that not only meets the basic demand but also creates surprises and offers relief to consumers," said Zhong, adding it is one of the reasons why PopIn Aladdin proved popular in Japan.

Users find multiple uses in the product that serves as a lamp, voice-regulated projector whose high-resolution images are comparable to content in a movie theater, e-book reader, still image viewer and music player.

"It is a product we specifically designed for the Japanese market as most apartments in the country have limited living space and local people prefer space-saving products," said Zhong.

To date, the company has sold more than 20,000 units of PopIn Aladdin in Japan and has topped other Japanese projectors with a market share of 25 percent.

"The go-global plan is one of our top priorities as we notice that China is about three to four years ahead of developed economies, including the United States and Europe, in terms of intelligent projectors," he said.

"Europe will be one of our focus markets this year. We are looking to gain a lead in the European market by unveiling a new product toward the end of this year."

Zhong said the planned new product will be made in partnership with tech giant Google Inc, and will incorporate new functionalities specifically designed for European users.

"One of our strategies abroad is to customize our products to suit preferences of consumers in different countries," Zhong said.

Founded in 2013, XGIMI ranked first in the projector market in China last year, according to IDC. To date, the Chengdu, Sichuan province-based company has sold its products in more than 127 markets including the United States, Singapore and India.

While beefing up its presence abroad, the company chose to start from developed countries like the US and then expanded to markets such as Southeast Asia, Zhong said.

"If our products find consumer acceptance and become a hit in markets that are strong in technologies, it would mean we need not worry about entering other markets across the world."

In recent years, consumers in advanced economies have been increasingly using screen-free televisions in the form of high-end projectors that are capable of beaming very high-resolution pictures.

In China, more than 2.6 million intelligent projectors were sold last year, up 102 percent year-on-year, according to smart home data provider All View Cloud. The figure is expected to reach 4.2 million this year.

In overseas markets, major electronics equipment makers including LG and Sony have been gearing up to promote intelligent projectors in order to gain lead in this emerging segment.

Faced with fierce competition both at home and globally, XGIMI has intensified research and development of core technologies, Zhong said.

"We don't set a limit on our R&D budget," he said, adding the company's R&D team accounted for more than half of the staff.

"XGIMI hopes to gain more users by offering high-end tech experience instead of simply lowering prices to attract more customers," he said.

Zhu Yuanyuan, head of consumer electronics at AVC, said the segment of intelligent projectors is heating up on the back of China's consumption upgrade as more and more consumers pursue a high-quality life.

"However, smart projector manufacturers should make more breakthroughs to improve brightness and sharpness (of images). Also, more products that can be used outdoors should be explored," Zhu said.