Chinese telecom brand Huawei is, simply put, making a name for itself as of late. Over the past years, the company has been able to roll out note-worthy devices such as the Mate 8. As a followup, Huawei recently unveiled the Mate 9, which is again set to be an instant hit among its followers and those who wants to try something new.
Huawei's success was not one of those fly-by-night stories. It took them years and countless hours in research and development to be the third biggest Smartphone maker. Now, Huawei wants to climb another rung in the seemingly shortening handset ladder, but it will have to dodge Apple first.
In an interview with Reuters, Huawei Consumer Business Group Chief Executive Richard Yu said that they want to be the "world's second-largest" producer of Smartphones by 2018. It's no shallow dream since Huawei needs to get past 2nd place Apple. South Korean giant Samsung is still on top despite the nasty predicament brought about by the Galaxy Note 7.
In a recent report by Strategy Analytics, global Smartphone sales improved to 6 percent this third quarter with 375.4 million devices as compared to last year's 354.2 million ceiling. According to the firm's Director Woody Oh, Huawei "maintained third position" with 33.6 million units sold, or 9 percent in the global Smartphone marketshare this quarter. Apple meanwhile shipped a "lackluster" 45.5 million devices (12.1 percent marketshare), but it fell 5 percent annually.
Samsung on the other hand shipped 75.3 million Smartphones (20.1 percent) this third quarter, although its digit fell 10 percent annually. This also marked the company's "slowest growth rate" for two years.
Yu said that Huawei is, little by little, "winnig the trust and loyalty" of its consumers. The Mate 9 will be one of the devices Huawei will have to boost, especially since they are now planning to enter the European market. But as far as Apple is concerned, Yu confidently added that they will match them "step-by-step, innovation-by-innovation."
