Xiaomi and Huawei, major Chinese smartphone manufacturers, are set to launch a series of new premium phone models, intensifying competition for Samsung Electronics, which is already contending with Apple’s iPhone. The Xiaomi 14 series will be globally released this month, featuring the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, the same application processor used in the Galaxy S24 Ultra. It boasts 16 gigabytes of RAM, double that of the S24, and a high-performance camera developed in collaboration with Leica.
Huawei is also expected to unveil a new compact foldable phone this month, codenamed Lem, equipped with its proprietary Kirin application processor series, following the successful launch of the Mate 60, which reaffirmed Huawei’s presence in the smartphone market.
Samsung Electronics faces challenging times, having to compete not only with Apple but also with the aggressive push from Chinese manufacturers. Last year, smartphone shipments increased by 8% from the previous year, with iPhone surpassing Galaxy for the first time. In China, a market of 1.5 billion people, Xiaomi and Huawei dominate, leaving Samsung with a mere 1% market share. Analysts attribute this to the influence of MediaTek, a Taiwanese semiconductor design company that supplies application processors.
Amid increasing competition, the key question for Samsung, as it ventures into the AI phone market with the Galaxy S24S, is how it will outpace its growing number of rivals.