China's Huawei launches smartphone to conquer Europe

Chinese brand had already made it big last year , organizing the global launch of its smartphone Ascend P6 in London, in the heart of the European market where Huawei, a leading Chinese telecommunications seeks to develop. So far, the Chinese produced input phones and midrange . But the situation has changed .

This year, Huawei has chosen to launch the Ascend P7 in Paris. The manufacturer submitted Wednesday, May 7 smartphone with stylish design and functionality developed to satisfy a clientele fond of sophisticated devices. Performance , very thin ( 6.5 mm thick ) designed for 4G , with 2 gigabytes of RAM, the Ascend P7 allows to make beautiful selfies with its 8-megapixel front camera . Its features include a power-saving mode that extends the life of the laptop twenty-four hours when battery reaches 10% , and software to navigate perfectly between 3G and 4G according to the network status. The smartphone , which works with a customized version of Android will be available for purchase at the beginning of June.

Huawei is far from being a beginner on French soil . This giant telecommunications network built 40% of mobile phone antennas in the world. But Huawei wants more: builder and manufacturer, it wants to become a brand, and has to do this on the seductive power of Ascend. "We want to be known for our phones said Andrew Connell , marketing director , responsible for developing devices for Western Europe , and offer the best technology. " A 449 euros - in the case of a non-subsidized purchase - the Ascend P7 indeed offers functionality and a design worthy of the iPhone ( Apple) or Galaxy (Samsung).

SE NAME AND BUILD AN IMAGE

Third largest manufacturer of phones , Huawei still has some way to go to position against its competitors , " the gap between us is still important ," admits Mr. Connell , who was in Paris for the launch of the smartphone. But it must be the spearhead of the transition. Huawei plans to sell 10 million devices Ascend P7, against 5 million for its predecessor, the Ascend P6 .

To build a name and image in Europe , Huawei not only boasts the excellence of its technology ; it also wants to occupy the land by other means . The brand has partnered with Paris Saint -Germain , like many other football clubs in Europe, to promote the growth of its recognition by the public. "The use of this type of platform has worked very well in Spain ," says Connell .

In France , the brand begins to awaken interest : the recognition rate increased from 10 % to 27% in one year. If its products are still confidential , the brand is a major player in the industry: it filed 20% of world patents on 4G technology. A huge share of world research in this area , when compared with Huawei's market share in the mobile phone in the world, which did not exceed 5 % in the first quarter, according to figures from TrendForce cabinet.