Xiaomi Note Launch 15 January 2015

Its not everyday I tune in to launch events but its good that one of the biggest smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi does their launch events in the same timezone that I stay in.
So todays event in Beijing is about their Mi Note. It was a long wait as their CEO slowly unveiled feature by feature until he finally showed off the phone. And he unveiled not one but 2 versions of it!

So what are some of the key takeaways?

Xiaomi Note Standard Edition
1. 2.5D front curve glass display - the sides are chamfered
2. 3D back glass - Now this is a first. The whole back housing is a single piece of curved glass! Xiaomi really up the game here as this is really a premium design. Can't wait to see a sample.
3. 13Megapixel rear camera with OIS (Optical Image Stabilization)
4. 4Megapixel selfie camera which uses the sensor from HTC's camera which has 2micron pixels (this gives very good low light performance)
6. 5.7" 1080p JDI display with 95% NTSC color gamut
7. 4.4V 3000mAh high capacity battery from LG
8. Its only 6.96mm thick and weighs only 161grams
9. CPU is Snapdragon 801 and comes with 3Gb LPDDR3 RAM
10. Uses high quality audio components to have claimed HiFi quality sound

And the price is RMB2299 for the 16GB version and RMB2799 for the 64GB version

But the big surprise is the Xiaomi Note Special Edition or "Plus"
Major difference to the standard edition is
1. 5.7" 2K display (this is really cool!)
2. CPU upgraded to Snapdragon 810 and 4Gb LPDDR4 RAM - take note that its LPDDR4
3. Comes with 64GB of ROM (standard onboard storage)

And the price is RMB3299 which is just RMB500 over the 64GB Standard Edition which is actually quite a good value considering we now get the better CPU and display!

What a launch. They also launch a pro headphone set (RMB499) and also a miniaturize Mi Box(RMB199). Overall, I guess Xiaomi is now targeting the big display crowd with their very premium handset! Its good to see Xiaomi entering with a premium product with such high quality finishing. Now lets see if their supply chain can deliver enough of it to sell!
Available in China from the 27th January 2015 so good luck grabbing one.

Bao Shen Steamboat at Luzhou, New Taipei City, Taiwan

Located along Changrong Road (I think its at 399) in Luzhou, there is a steamboat buffet place that is not high end but serve some decent selection for a reasonable price. The place is called Bao Shen and its a bright colored shop with a really large seating capacity. 

The shop is restaurant is open from 11am to 11pm and they have different pricing depending on the time you dine there. Another moot point is that one is limited to eating for only 2 hours only. But for the price of less than TWD300 per pax (children is half price), you get what you pay for I guess. I would say the highlights here would be the meat section where they have the pork, lamb and beef slices. During winter months, they also have venison meat too. 

Besides that, there are no options for soup base and its only a clear stock which is available. On the other hand, they also serve a selection of cold and hot dishes as well as drinks. All in all, pretty decent for the price that we pay for and gobble as much as you can eat in 2 hours. Enjoy.

The entrance with the pricing stated based on the time. Do note the finer print of 10% service charge