Huawei was wise to seize the moment and stand out with physical hardware innovation at a time when most other industry players are showboating unproven AI updates.
And years of brutal United States-led sanctions have turned its comeback into the underdog story of the decade among patriotic Chinese consumers. The Shenzhen-based company cheekily unveiled its Mate 60 Pro smartphone, featuring a made-in-China chip that the US had tried so hard to stop, during US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo’s visit to the country last year.
SPLASHY SHOW MASKS HUAWEI’S WEAKNESSES
But the latest splashy debut of the Mate XT masks broader weaknesses. For starters, it’s priced from a jaw-dropping 19,999 yuan (US$2,800) at a time when Chinese consumers are pulling back on spending.
Many news outlets are highlighting that millions of people have pre-ordered the Mate XT on Huawei’s official e-commerce site (as of Wednesday, this tallies 4.8 million registering to purchase the phone). But these figures are misleading; the reservation system doesn’t require a down payment, and simply alerts those who sign up on how to purchase the device when it does go on sale later this month – on the same day as the iPhone 16.
Bloomberg Intelligence analysts, meanwhile, forecast shipments could be capped at 1 million units. Its high price and niche appeal likely mean it may have less impact on China’s premium smartphone segment than the Mate 60 did, the analysts added.
