OnePlus plans to launch a foldable-screen smartphone as competition heats up.
A foldable smartphone will add a level of prestige attached to the brand, which is exactly what OnePlus needs to better compete with Samsung and Apple.
OnePlus will debut its first foldable smartphone in the second half of the year, as the brand is finally ready to take a leap of faith in the folding phone form factor. The foldable phone was confirmed in Barcelona on Tuesday at the annual Mobile World Congress.
“It will be a flagship phone that doesn’t settle because of its folding form, whether it’s industrial design, mechanical technology or other aspects,” Kinder Liu, President, and COO of OnePlus told media at MWC. “It will be a phone with great performance, offering the ultimate OnePlus classic experience,” he added.
The Chinese smartphone brand hasn’t shared many details about the phone yet but promised that the device will deliver the same level of performance the brand is known for.
OnePlus, which is now a sub-brand of BBK-owned Oppo, has high ambitions to dominate the high-end smartphone segment. A foldable smartphone will add a level of prestige attached to the brand, which is exactly what OnePlus needs to better compete with Samsung and Apple, two of its biggest players in the top-end of the phone segment. Right now, OnePlus’ portfolio lacks an ultra-premium smartphone that can compete for neck-to-neck with the likes of the Galaxy Z Fold 4
At the Mobile World Congress trade show, Chinese smartphone brands are showcasing foldable phones for the first time outside of China as the market shifts towards high-end smartphones in key territories like Europe. Huawei spinoff brand Honor, China’s second-largest phone maker, launched the Magic Vs foldable smartphone which will go on sale in Europe for 1,599 euros (or approx $1690). Oppo, the world’s fourth largest smartphone player, is also bringing a clam-shell style foldable phone to international markets. Xiaomi, the world’s third-largest smartphone player globally, after Samsung and Apple, has yet to launch a foldable phone internationally. Apple, meanwhile, has no flagship phone in its portfolio
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