ASUS and Vivo are the fastest growing smartphone brands, says Counterpoint
2015 has already been an eventful year for the smartphone industry. Major bands, such as Samsung, HTC and Sony, have struggled to rebuild their profitability, while India has quickly become one of the most competitive markets in the world. There’s a lot to mull over, but fortunately Counterpoint Research has published its data for Q2 2015 which neatly summarised how the smartphone market is looking this year so far.
Globally, smartphone shipments shipments are up again and there has been a big growth in LTE adoption. Half of all handsets shipped this year are LTE capable, with China seeing a fourfold increase and India witnessing 12 fold growth in LTE shipments this year.
In terms of market share, Samsung remains the top player, despite a year of struggling profits. The Korean giant holds 21 percent of the global smartphone market, followed by Apple on 14 percent. Huawei has been one of the big winners in the past twelve months and company now sits comfortably in third place with 9 percent of the market. Xiaomi and ZTE make up the fourth and fifth spots with a five percent share each.
Although brands like Huawei and Xiaomi are grabbing lots of headlines for pinching market share, ASUS is actually the fastest growing smartphone brand, having seen its shipment increase by 500 percent compared with one year ago. The Zenfone 2 has been particularly popular in a number of markets. Vivo has seen similar gains, with shipments growing fourfold over last year, although neither of these companies make it into the top 5.
Regional markets look quite a bit different than the global picture, although Samsung remains the dominant brand in most of the markets. Europe and Latin America remain firmly in Samsung’s camp, while in the US, Apple is the largest manufacturer with a third of the share, followed by Samsung, LG and ZTE. Speaking of Apple, the company now apparently generates more revenue that all other smartphone manufacturers combined, as long as you exclude Samsung.
Asia remains by far the most diverse market in the world, with four major manufacturers all capturing between 10 and 15 percent of the market each. As we have seen before, growing demand in the Indian and Chinese markets is drawing in a large number of manufacturers all looking to secure themselves a share.
Compared with last year, Samsung has certainly taken a hit in a few of its previously dominant regions, which has been reflected in the company’s poor financial performance. Apple has overtaken Samsung in the US and a range of companies have managed to close the gap in Asia and also slightly in the Middle East too. However, smaller brands are having a mixed time globally. While Huawei, ASUS and Vivo are doing well, Lenovo/Motorola, LG and Sony are struggling to break out into larger market shares.
You can check out the full infographic at the source link below.
Huawei Mate S goes up for pre-order for £469
Huawei’s latest flagship smartphone, the Mate S, has gone up for pre-order in Europe ahead of its launch in the coming weeks. Huawei’s own VMall store – which launched last month and bought the Honor 7 to Europe – is offering the Mate S unlocked at a cost of €649 in Europe (or £469 if you’re in the UK).
The store has listed the 32GB Mate S in two colours – Titanium Grey or Mystic Champagne – with a delivery date of 4-5 weeks and it doesn’t look like Europe will get any of the higher storage options. Neither the 64GB or the Force Touch-enabled 128GB Luxury Edition are listed on the website, suggesting that European customers will miss out.
To recap the specs, the Mate S comes equipped with a 5.5-inch Full HD AMOLED display, Kirin 935 octa-core SoC and 3GB RAM. On the back is a 13MP rear camera with optical image stabilisation and a one-touch fingerprint sensor beneath it, that has been updated with a range of new features, while the front snapper is an 8MP sensor and comes with an LED flash.
See also: Xperia Z5 and Mate S vs the competition
Huawei claim the Mate S is just 2.65mm thin at its thinnest point along the curved edges and rear back but at its thickest point, the handset measures 7.2mm and weighs in at a respectable 156 grams. Running Android 5.1.1 Lollipop, the Mate S also comes with Huawei’s Emotion UI v3.1 and the latest updates addresses some of the software issues that affected the Huawei P8 and Honor 7.
The full metal handset comes with a tray that allows you to use either a microSD card to expand the storage or a secondary SIM to use two SIMs at once, while the handset also houses a non-removable 2,700 mAh battery and the Mate S is the first Huawei smartphone to come with quick charging.
Are you planning to buy the Mate S? Let us know your views in the comments below and for more information on Huawei’s latest smartphone, check out our Mate S unboxing and first impressions.
Report: Huawei is planning a stylus-equipped smartphone
According to the Korean media, Huawei has been mulling over development of a new super-size smartphone, complete with its own stylus technology. Huawei is said to have been in talks with a couple of digital stylus manufacturers in the country, implying that the growing Chinese smartphone company could launch a competitor to Samsung’s world renowned Galaxy Note series in the future.
Apparently, Huawei originally approached Wacom, the company that developed the S Pen in conjunction with Samsung. However, the two were unable to reach an agreement, as there is presumably some exclusivity deal regarding S Pen technology. Huawei has now managed to find a competitor that can produce a digitizer with a price and performance that will “compete with Wacom’s products”.
We don’t have any other information about who is said to be producing the stylus, the type of features that Huawei may have planned, or what the smartphone’s hardware could be like. Huawei has previously considered adding a stylus to its Ascend Mate products, so the feature will most likely be implemented one of Huawei’s higher-end models.
If the rumor turns out to be true, we still don’t know for certain if Huawei will end up putting a stylus into a future product. Although, such a feature might make a nice companion to the Force Touch technology that Huawei unveiled just a few weeks ago. The company has also recently been rumored to be picking up some of Samsung’s curved AMOLED display technology, possibly to use in a smartphone due for release in early 2016.
Are you still waiting for a real competitor to Samsung’s Galaxy Note range and could Huawei pull off such a phone?
Huawei Nexus said to feature 128GB of storage space
This year we are expecting to be treated to not one but two new Nexus smartphones, a high end refresh from LG and an even more powerful variant from Huawei. According to the latest leak, the Huawei Nexus will also be the first Nexus smartphone to ship in a 128GB storage variant.
Given that Google doesn’t seem too committed to supporting the much loved microSD card slot these days, it is unlikely that these new Nexus phones will come with expandable storage, despite Android Marshmallow’s friendlier stance on microSD. Larger amounts of internal memory should help to satisfy the heavy media consumers out there, although we will have to accept a moderate mark up on the price tag for the extra storage space. We can probably expect 32GB, 64GB and 128GB options from Huawei.
Read on: Google Nexus 2015 rumor roundup (updated on September 19)
The source doesn’t mention anything about the new LG Nexus’ storage capacities. Given the slightly lower processing power rumor, we can probably expect the more typical 16GB and 32GB memory options here. A 64GB model would be nice too.
The new Nexus phones from Huawei and LG are expected to be unveiled in a little over on weeks’ time, at a Google event taking place on September 29th in San Francisco. Do you need as much storage space as possible in your smartphone?
Huawei Nexus 6P reportedly will be the first Nexus device to have 128GB of storage
A new report by way of Android Police says that a few of its trusted sources indicates that the new Huawei Nexus 6P will come in 32GB, 64GB, and 128GB storage options.
Smartphones traditionally come in 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB storage options, but interestingly, last year’s Nexus 6 was only available in 32GB and 64GB variants. 16GB is slowly going the way of the dinosaur, as it doesn’t offer enough storage to meet a user’s standard needs.
This news would make the Huawei Nexus 6P the first Nexus device to offer a massive 128GB model. However, it does come with its caveats. It is unlikely that Huawei will include microSD support in this upcoming device, according to sources close to Android Police. Those interested in a 128GB variant can expect to pay a $50-100 premium for this larger storage capacity.
It’d be expected that LG would provide the Nexus 5X in similar storage options, however, it’s highly possible we’ll only see the device in 32GB and 64GB storage options.
Google has scheduled an event for September 29 in San Francisco, where we expect all to be revealed. Only a few more weeks to go before we see the next big thing from Google!
source: Android Police
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Google’s next phones will reportedly be the Nexus 5X and 6P
We’ve seen a few snapshots of the upcoming Nexus phones and now we may have an idea what they’ll be called. Droid Life reports that the pair of Google phones, one made by LG and the other by Huawei, will carry the labels of Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P (yes, six pee), respectively. The LG device is said to house a 5.2-inch display while the Huawei handset is rumored to carry a 5.7-inch inch screen, hence the 5 and 6 designations. We won’t have to wait too long to find out, though, as reports indicate that Google is hosting event on September 29th where the duo is expected to be revealed alongside a new Chromecast. And, of course, a look at the latest version of Android Marshmallow. Hopefully we’ll also find out what Huawei has tucked under that camera hump, too.
Via: The Verge
Source: Droid Life
Google will reportedly launch new phones as Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P
There have been plenty of leaks of the new Huawei and LG manufactured Nexus devices and now we seemingly have a solid name to put towards the leaks. According to a source, the new Nexus devices will be called the Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P.
We’ve heard the Nexus 5X before, and it was thought to just be an internal codename, but it would appear that it is actually the final name for the LG Nexus. As for the Huawei variant, which is to be the bigger of the two devices, it will be known as the Nexus 6P.
Pre-release leaks are always to be taken with a pinch of salt, but with an announcement date pegged to be at the end of the month (September 29), we probably won’t have much time to wait until we see the new Nexus devices for sure.
Check out everything we know about the Nexus 5 (2015) thus far and then catch up with everything we know about the Nexus 6 (2015), too.
Source: DroidLife
The post Google will reportedly launch new phones as Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Google’s upcoming smartphones from LG and Huawei will be the Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P
Google’s upcoming smartphones will be dubbed the LG Nexus 5X and the Huawei Nexus 6P, according to a source close to Droid-Life. Past leaks have indicated that the smartphone provided by LG will be called the Nexus 5X, but now we know the option from Huawei will be the Nexus 6P.
Past rumors have indicated that both devices will feature some very premium specifications, and a more recent leak has shown that we could see these devices become official before the end of September. And that could turn out to be true, with Google scheduling an event in San Francisco for September 29.
As we get closer to an official unveiling, more and more leaks will no doubt begin to surface. While they may have some credibility, it’s always good to take things like this with a grain of salt until we hear the official word from Google.
source: Droid-Life
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You can now pre-order the Huawei Watch in Europe
Starting today, residents in Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Portugal and the Netherlands can pre-order Huawei’s first ever smartwatch. The device is listed on the Chinese company’s online store for €399 ($455) for the leather strap variant.
However, if you’re after something a little more elegant, you could always opt for an all-black or stainless steel model. Both come with a €449 ($511) price tags and are available with a link or mesh strap design.
The Huawei Watch is the latest Android Wear device on the market, which is compatible with both Android and iOS. It packs a 1.4-inch 400×400 AMOLED touchscreen, sapphire crystal protection, a heart rate monitor and a 300 mAh battery.
If you’re based in any of the above regions and would like to reserve yourself a Huawei Watch — hit the source link below. It is worth noting, though, that shipments won’t leave the warehouse for another two-to-three weeks.
Source: Huawei
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Huawei Watch has finally arrived, starts shipping out pre-orders as well
At the beginning of the month the Huawei Watch arrived to the Google Store, though shipping wasn’t projected to begin for at least 2 to 4 weeks. Now the watch is finally here for immediate purchase, both through Google and other channels as well.
For those who want as many configuration choices as possible, the best place to buy is directly from Huawei. There you’ll find the stainless steel model, the rose gold model, and at least a few different band combinations. The next best choice is Amazon, which offers the stainless steal with a black leather band, a black stainless with blank band, or stainless steel with a steel link band. Those buying from Google will only have one choice: stainless steel with a stainless mesh band.
As a refresher, the Huawei Watch comes with a 1.4-inch full circle AMOLED display with a 400 x 400 resolution, with its resulting pixel density of 286 ppi, one of the highest seen with a wearable right now. Under the hood is a 1.2 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, 512 MB of RAM, 4 GB of on-board storage, and a 300 mAh battery. The Huawei Watch is also the first Android Wear device to offer support, albeit basic in nature, for iOS, helping to start bridging the gap between Android and iOS for the wearable game.
Pricing for the Huawei Watch begins at $349 and goes up as high as $400. While it is an attractive looking timepiece, the reality is that there are a number of comparable options out there that cost less. For those that don’t mind straying outside of the Android Wear camp, the Gear S2 is also a great option and works with just about any Android device.
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