Xiaomi sticks to 'affordable' theme with new products

The second-generation air purifier from Xiaomi is likely to receive more market attention compared to the new tablet.

Xiaomi's first air purifier, introduced more than a year ago, has received fairly positive reviews from users and climbed to top 10 in terms of shipments in the first quarter after its release, according to zol.com, a website that monitors sales of consumer electronics.

After debuting the products, Lei made a surprise speech to more than 1,000 Xiaomi enthusiasts and reporters about how difficult it was to build the company from scratch five years ago.

"Xiaomi and the smartphone market have seen a dramatic growth in the past five years ... but the building Xiaomi is constructing is not high enough right now," Lei said, with tears in his eyes.

Lei, who barely shared stories of his early days in public in the past, recalled the hardship he experienced two decades ago when trying to set up his own business in Beijing.

"That was a hard time for me ... and all I wanted to do was to bring the best products to the market," he said.