Huawei unveiled its flagship Mate X foldable 5G mobile device in February.
Huawei is targeting to win 50% of the Chinese smartphone market by the end of this year as it seeks to wrest the global sales crown from South Korea’s Samsung. Under siege by the US over its 5G-enabled telecommunications network equipment, the Shenzhen-based company is looking to extend its lead in China’s smartphone market, in which it currently has a 34 per cent share. Huawei is on track to ship 250 million to 260 million smartphones globally this year, which would make it approach the No 1 position, its mobile chief, Richard Yu Chengdong, said during a conference in Shanghai on Thursday. “We’ve dedicated to building Huawei’s smartphone brands for six to seven years and we will become the world’s largest smartphone brand no later than next year,” he said.
Chinese mobile phone brands have largely succeeded in smashing people’s perception that domestic suppliers are only good for inexpensive, low-quality products. That stereotype has beset many Chinese brands in the home appliances, consumer electronics, personal computer, car and mobile phone markets, where products from more established brands in the US, Japan or Europe were preferred by mainland consumers for many years. But brands like Haier, Lenovo and, more recently, Huawei, have expanded their operations, increased research and development, and made advanced products to change that impression around the world.
The larger, deep-pocketed Chinese smartphone suppliers have won a big chunk of the domestic market through aggressive promotions, advanced designs and features, and offering a wide array of models in a range of prices to entice both younger and affluent buyers. China is now home to some of the most successful smartphone brands, including Vivo and Oppo, which rival the likes of Samsung, Apple and LG Electronics. Currently the third largest smartphone vendor worldwide behind Samsung and Apple, Huawei increased its global smartphone market share to 14.7 per cent last year, compared with Apple’s 14.9 per cent and Samsung at 20.9 per cent, according to a report by industry researcher IDC in January.
Huawei unveiled its flagship Mate X foldable 5G mobile device in February.
Chinese mobile phone brands have largely succeeded in smashing people’s perception that domestic suppliers are only good for inexpensive, low-quality products. That stereotype has beset many Chinese brands in the home appliances, consumer electronics, personal computer, car and mobile phone markets, where products from more established brands in the US, Japan or Europe were preferred by mainland consumers for many years. But brands like Haier, Lenovo and, more recently, Huawei, have expanded their operations, increased research and development, and made advanced products to change that impression around the world.
The larger, deep-pocketed Chinese smartphone suppliers have won a big chunk of the domestic market through aggressive promotions, advanced designs and features, and offering a wide array of models in a range of prices to entice both younger and affluent buyers. China is now home to some of the most successful smartphone brands, including Vivo and Oppo, which rival the likes of Samsung, Apple and LG Electronics. Currently the third largest smartphone vendor worldwide behind Samsung and Apple, Huawei increased its global smartphone market share to 14.7 per cent last year, compared with Apple’s 14.9 per cent and Samsung at 20.9 per cent, according to a report by industry researcher IDC in January.
