The Future of Cheap Smartphones: The Pocophone F1

-

There always are new smartphones launched each year, but most of them don't get as much attention that the new iPhone or the Galaxy/Note receives. Sure, there are other successful and reputable smartphone brands such as Huawei, OnePlus, and the Pixel, but Apple and Samsung consistently steal the show. With their premium build and software, the iPhone and Galaxy dominate the smartphone market with advanced features that distinguish them from their competitors, such as Face ID and the Infinity Display. However, that does come at an expensive price as it appears that smartphones are starting to embrace the $1000 selling point, with the iPhone X initiating this new era and the Note 9 being the latest to join that trend. That doesn't hint a desirable future as other smartphone makers may eventually pursue that same route. However, the best way to appeal to the majority is through affordable phones that still house some of the best features of the premium phone. Apple hopes to accomplish this through their iPhone 9 (who knows what it will be called), which will be the budget model for the iPhone X that will reportedly include an LCD display and single-lens camera. It accordingly will cost around $700-$750. Considering its lower cost but bezel-less design, most analysts are predicting that this iPhone will drive most of Apple's revenue for the next year. But for the average consumer, a $750 smartphone may still be expensive. So what can replace that?

The OnePlus 6 is notorious for offering the best deal in terms of abundant features and an attractive price of $500. But recently, another smartphone maker wants to imitate the OnePlus 6's business model for its own success. Recently, Chinese electronic company Xiaomi unveiled the Pocophone F1, a phone with the features of most modern smartphones such as Snapdragon 845 chip, a massive 4000mAh battery, a large 6.18 inch LCD display with a dual rear 12-megapixel and 5-megapixel cameras. All of these, including 6GB RAM and 64GB internal storage, come with the phone at the base price of $300! Yes, that's practically one-third the price of the iPhone X but includes many of the standards and quality specs that users want. As of now, the Pocophone F1 is exclusively available and has been a huge success in India, a country targeted by many smartphone makers due to its large population, but failed by companies such as Apple.

This is signaling a new route that smartphone companies are pursuing. While the higher-end phones that store many advanced features, such as an OLED display, are becoming more expensive each year, there still exist cheaper-end phones that fortunately have evolved from their previous generations to appropriately be perceived as a smartphone of the modern era. Even high-end companies such as Apple want to release a cheaper phone to infiltrate more markets, especially India. But that could also be the result of saturating smartphone demand, revealed by Apple's stabilizing volume of the iPhone X in the past few quarters. That could potentially jeopardize the distant future of smartphones. Nonetheless, smartphones remain in steady demand, especially ones that fit in the consumer's budget. And it seems that Xiaomi's newest Pocophone brand, beginning with the F1, will lead that revolution to maintain phones that are affordable to everyone.

Related Articles:







Comments

Post a Comment