Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi has launched its first electric vehicle (EV) and started taking orders. At the event the technology giant's chief executive Lei Jun said the standard SU7 model would be priced at 215,900 yuan ($29,872; £23,663) and the Max version would cost 299,900 yuan. The firm says it got over 50,000 orders within the first 27 minutes of sales. Xiaomi's entry into the electric car market comes as sales growth has slowed globally, triggering a price war. The move sees the technology giant taking on EV rivals including Tesla and BYD. The starting price in China for Tesla's Model 3 is 245,900 yuan. Mr Lei also said the SU7 would have a minimum range of 700km (435 miles), beating the Tesla Model 3's 567km. The firm is hoping that the SU7's shared operating system with its phones, laptops and other devices will appeal to existing customers. Xiaomi is the third-largest seller of smartphones worldwide with a market share of about 12%, according to research firm Counterpoint. In an indication of the challenges facing technology firms who want to make electric cars, iPhone maker Apple last month reportedly cancelled its plans to build an EV. Screen grabs on Chinese social media show the firm advising buyers it could take 27 weeks to deliver the SU7 Max. The company previously said pre-orders had hit 88,898 within 24 hours of it starting to take orders on Thursday.
