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China handset makers keen to launch 5G phones

Sean Lin, DIGITIMES Research, Taipei

Undeterred by the coronavirus impacts and the cancellation of MWC 2020, China-based smartphone vendors were keen to launch their flagship 5G-enabled models online in the first quarter of 2020 in order to make preemptive presence in the segment, according to Digitimes Research.

In spite of their high specs, including Qualcomm's latest mobile CPUs, high resolution displays with a refresh rate of over 90Hz and a touch sampling rate of over 120Hz, LPDDR 5 memory and UFS 3.0 flash, those 5G phones are mostly priced between CNY3,500 (US$494) and CNY4,500, as vendors are aiming at ramping up market share initially, Digitimes Research has found.

China's handset players are expected to roll out diverse 5G models for the mid-range segment in the second quarter as mobile chip vendors have released more mid-tier 5G solutions for handset makers to choose from, helping them reduce overall production cost.

Digitimes Research believes that there is the possibility of seeing China's handset makers launch 5G models priced below CNY2,000 in the third quarter of 2020.