China's top smartphone makers are in talks with US wireless carriers

[Shawn Knight]

Huawei and Xiaomi, two of China’s largest smartphone makers, are looking to take on Apple on its home turf.

Sources familiar with the matter tell Bloomberg the two companies are in talks with wireless carriers in the US with regard to selling their handsets to American consumers in 2018. AT&T and Verizon were mentioned specifically in the report although sources claim the talks are still “fluid” and it’s possible that things could fall through entirely.

Data from Strategy Analytics shows that Apple’s US smartphone market share sat at 30.4 percent in the third quarter followed closely by Samsung at 25.1 percent and LG at 17.2 percent.

As Bloomberg highlights, Huawei already sells at least one phone (the Mate 9) in the US via e-commerce sites like Amazon. By working directly with wireless carriers to get into retail stores, however, the company would gain exposure to US consumers that might not otherwise be familiar with the brand (the same goes for Xiaomi).

The Chinese smartphone manufacturers have a solid shot at making a dent in the US market. Whereas most new flagships from companies like Apple and Samsung now start around the $1,000 mark, the aforementioned Mate 9 is available on Amazon for under $400 (that’s a solid price for a quality phone).

Apple, meanwhile, has struggled in China as of late and given the iPhone X’s hefty price tag, things may not improve any time soon.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/72344-china-top-smartphone-makers-talks-us-wireless-carriers.html

 

[OortCloud]

About time. I have a Redmi Note 4 and they are fantastic handsets for the money.

 

[p51d007]

GOOD!
I've had the Huawei Mate 2,8,9. Great phones, good value, excellent battery life.

 

[OutlawCecil]

Actually just ordered a Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 a week ago for somebody after reading lots of good reviews. It was a great price for the specs so we'll see how it turns out. I support US major carriers having cheaper options either way! OnePlus definitely needs to be available here locally.

 

[Nobina]

Never owned Huawei or Xiaomi phones but on paper they look really good for the price which I am a fan of, they also get a lot of praise. The only thing I really dislike with both of these manufacturers is the heavily modded Android they use. It is absolutely horrid. I love what Xiaomi did to Mi A1 and hope they continue that tradition especially if they plan on competing against Apple.

 

[JaredTheDragon]

I find it almost amusing that these Chinese companies can do what Microsoft failed to do, with their lovely WinPhones. Almost. #Jaded

 

[OortCloud]

I just wish they would ship these devices with Stock Android and not always feel the need to stick their own UIs on top. If the RedMi Note 4 had come with stock android and shipped globally it would have been a world beater.

 

[Uncle Al]

I'm just hopping they are truing to figure out the "end game" .... there has to be one, but it's very well hidden .....

 

[Greg S]

More competition would be good. Being primarily CDMA makes Verizon horrible for those that want a OnePlus or other cheaper phone more difficult to find one that works. Not to mention their LTE bands are not supported by a lot of good cheaper phones.

 

[psycros]

If the carriers can insure than the Chinese government won't be spying on these devices, find and dandy.

 

[Someone8MyPosts]

Nope. Keep your bogus copy bullcrap out. If you can't come up with your own designs and can't stop feeding the world problem of NK, then you don't deserve to be on the world stage.

 

[Someone8MyPosts]

If the carriers can insure than the Chinese government won't be spying on these devices, find and dandy.

And how and why do you think they'll bother? None of these companies have shown any real concern for the customer. The almighty dollar is more important to them.

 

[Someone8MyPosts]

I find it almost amusing that these Chinese companies can do what Microsoft failed to do, with their lovely WinPhones. Almost. #Jaded

I'm no MS defender, but it's not saying much when all they've done is take someone else's work and ingenuity and copy it.

 

[JaredTheDragon]

I'm no MS defender, but it's not saying much when all they've done is take someone else's work and ingenuity and copy it.

Do you mean squares? Using squares as an interface?

 

[Someone8MyPosts]

Do you mean squares? Using squares as an interface?

Are you serious with this? All anyone has to do is put just about any of those competitors' phones side by side to an iPhone to see that they're trying to copy the phone in just about every way. Squares?....really.