Redmi 8 price in India hiked for a fourth time in less than a year as Xiaomi milks its popularity

Another price hike for the Redmi 8 in India has been spotted, which means the device from Xiaomi has now seen its price rise on four occasions since it was launched less than a year ago. The Redmi 8 series has sold at a massive scale, with over 19 million devices shipped around the world to eager buyers. While one of the Redmi 8 price hikes can be attributed to a change in Indian GST, the other three hikes point to Xiaomi milking its Redmi cash cow.

When the Redmi 8 was launched it was priced at ₹7,999 (US$107). Unsurprisingly, customers in India snapped up the budget device that boasted of an octa-core SoC, efficient dual-camera setup, and 5,000-mAh battery all wrapped up in an attractive form. GST took the price to ₹8,999 (US$120) and a price rise in early May pushed the amount to ₹9,299 (US$125). Another hike in May left the Redmi 8 costing ₹9,499 (US$127) and this current fourth increase has put the price at ₹9,799 (US$131). This current July price is 22.5% more than the launch price.

In typical Xiaomi style (as with other smartphone OEMs in fairness), the manufacturer claims buyers in India are still getting a deal as the Redmi 8 is “reduced” from a maximum retail price of ₹10,999 (US$147). It’s not just the Redmi 8 (4 GB/64 GB) that has been hit with multiple price hikes; the same thing has been happening to the Redmi Note 8 (4 GB/64 GB) as well, with that popular device going from ₹9,999 (US$134) at launch time to currently ₹11,999 (US$167).