Finally, all those nagging questions about how/where/when to buy Xiaomi’s first batch of products can now be answered – well, most of them at least. Xiaomi Malaysia has released the much-anticipated buying guide for Malaysian customers eager to purchase the Mi 3 and the Mi Power Bank come May 20 next week.
Essentially, the buying guide released by Xiaomi several hours ago doesn’t tell anything new: you’ll need to be really fast. After all, there are only 4000 sets of the Mi 3 and 5000 units of the Mi Power Bank available this time round. To do so, customers are encouraged to prepare many things in advance. You’ll need to have a Xiaomi account before you can make a purchase, naturally, so it is in your best interests to set one up before the big day. It would be wise too, to set up a PayPal account and link your credit or debit card information, as you can never be too sure when that TAC code reaches your phone sometimes – which can cost you your entire order.
Next, there’s the exact time of the start of sales itself. While almost every indication so far shows that Xiaomi will be starting sales at 2pm, the buying guide announcement published on Xiaomi Malaysia’s Facebook page shows that sales will start at 12pm. Until Xiaomi Malaysia makes any changes, let’s assume that the time is now set at 12pm. After all, it’s better to be two hours early than two hours too late, right?
Finally, there’s the issue with shipping. Xiaomi has also published a shipping FAQ, which provides some very useful information. There’s a list of post codes that they will not be able to deliver to, expected delivery period and delivery hours, as well as a list of customer service centres and contact numbers should you require them. What Xiaomi did not reveal, however, is shipping costs. There’s still no word about whether the customer will be required to pay additional shipping charges with their orders. But, it is likely that it will follow the model set in Singapore, where purchases made above SG$50 will be shipped for free, and a small SG$5 is charged for orders below SG$50 for shipping. All orders in Malaysia will be shipped via FedEx and UPS.
It is likely that the remaining questions will be revealed next Monday, when Xiaomi will be holding a launch event for the Mi 3. We’ll be updating this post as and when more information arrives.
In the meantime, you can read more about how to prepare for the first Xiaomi sales in Malaysia via this MIUI Malaysia forum thread. Alternatively, you can also join the Mi 3 community in the Mi 3 owners thread in our forums.
(Source: Xiaomi Malaysia (Facebook))