Former Google employee and current VP of International for Xiaomi, Hugo Barra stated at the WSJD Live conference in Laguna Beach, California that the Apple iPhone 6 is one of the most beautiful smartphones ever built.
Barra's comments were in response to accusations of design theft from Apple's Jony Ive. John Ive had earlier alleged that the 4-year-old Xiaomi's rise has been fueled by blatant copying of designs from Apple and others. Barra responded to the issue by saying, "Our designers, our engineers are inspired by great products — and frankly, in today's world, who isn't? Point me to a product in our industry that has completely unique design language. You're not going to be able to find one."
He stated that while the Apple iPhone 6 is the "most beautiful smartphone ever built," it "carries design that's very HTC-like. Of course, with an astonishing twist … but it is somewhat familiar design language." He also referred to the quick settings feature on iOS 8 and stated, "Quick settings on iOS is much better on Android, but it was on Android (long before)," Barra said.
Barra stated that the concept of building upon great ideas is something that companies share. He suggested that Xiaomi's phones and software sometimes resemble existing products because the company is young. "It's a fight, but I think we're learning and we're progressing," he said. "when you look at the stuff that's coming next from us, you're going to see some unique new twists. People who accuse us of theft need to take a closer look at what we do." Read: Xiaomi aims to sell 100,000 smartphones during Diwali season
Source: The Verge