Monica Chen, Taipei; Jackie Chang, DIGITIMES [Friday 22 March 2013]
The line between smartphones and tablets have been
blurred and firms such as Huawei, Asustek Computer, and Samsung
Electronics hope to capture the new business opporutnity by introducing
large-size smartphones and tablets with call functions.
China-based
Huawei introduced the new 6.1-inch quad-core Android smartphone, Ascend
Mate, on March 21. The retail price is set at a lower-than-expected
CNY2,688/unit (US$432/unit). The thickness of the product is 9.9mm.
According to Huawei, Ascend Mate adopts a 6.1-inch 720p touch screen and
a 1.5GHz HiSilicon K3V2 quad-core processor.
Taiwan-based
Asustek has introduced the 7-inch FonePad by adding the 3G call
function. Consumers can insert the SIM card and use the tablet as a
smartphone. The retail price of the product is NT$8,990/unit
(US$301/unit).
South Korea-based Samsung Electronics
recently launched the 8-inch Galaxy Note 8.0 with Exynos 4412 (1.6GHz)
quad-core processor and 2GB RAM. Consumers have a choice of 16GB or 32GB
ROM. The product has call functions and 4G LTE networking features,
representing a cross-over between smartphones and tablets.
Market
observers have been divided on the impact of large-size smartphones on
tablets. Handset makers believe the 5.5-inch screen is the limit for
handsets and any smartphone/tablet product larger than that belongs to a
niche market.
Handset makers added that in the past,
consumers distinguished handset and tablet as two different product
lines and the main differences were the screen sizes and call functions.
However, Samsung broke the barrier and introduced the 5- and 5.5-inch
products. In addition, sales of these products have been strong.
www.digitimes.com
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