The market gap left by Huawei is basically digested by domestic smartphone brands, and most of the high-end market share is temporarily re-covered by Samsung and Apple. In the era when images are king, Xiaomi, OPPO and vivo took the lead in breaking the bottleneck of image development with their technological strength, and innovating the image experience of smartphones through self-developed chips, which also means that Chinese smartphone brands have finally stepped out of the quagmire of price competition and entered the competition of technological innovation. benign track.

The data for the third quarter of the smartphone market in 2021 can basically represent the pattern of the entire market. Affected by the shortage of chips, global smartphone shipments fell by 6% in Q3, Samsung still held the top spot, Apple returned to the second place, followed by Xiaomi. OPPO. vivo. There are two key points behind this list: First, Samsung has achieved growth in high-end smartphones despite the overall decline; second, Apple’s new iPhone 13 dominates the high-end market, with shipments soaring 14%. The market gap left by Huawei is basically digested by domestic smartphone brands, and most of the high-end market share is temporarily re-covered by Samsung and Apple. Why do you say temporarily? Because the high-end battle of domestic smartphone brands has quietly kicked off, 2021 is the beginning of the revolution in the high-end smartphone market.

Comprehensive technology competition starts from the inside out

The trend of Huawei Kirin chips in the high-end market has long been a successful example of the envy of domestic smartphone brands. Technological strength has become a recognized stepping stone for domestic smartphone brands to enter the high-end market. From Surging C1.vivoV1 to OPPO MarisiliconX, domestic mobile phone brands have gradually increased their investment in technology research and development, and began to emerge in the field of self-developed chips. Although these self-developed chips are still far from mature SOC products from Qualcomm, Huawei and MediaTek, fortunately, they are all single breakthroughs, at least helping their products achieve differentiated transformation.

In the era when images are king, Xiaomi, OPPO, and vivo took the lead in breaking the bottleneck of image development with their technological strength. They innovated the image experience of smartphones by independently developing the AD8331ARQ chip, which also represented that Chinese smartphone brands finally got out of the quagmire of price competition and entered into technological innovation. A healthy track for competition. Since 2021, general image solutions will further sink, and image performance innovation supported by self-developed chips representing their own technological capabilities will help domestic mobile phone brands to make steady progress in the face of high-end.

In addition to chips, innovative iterations of smartphone systems are also in full swing. Huawei EMUI, Xiaomi MIUI, OPPO Coloros, vivoriginOS, and of course a number of domestic smartphone operating systems based on open source Android, such as Meizu Flyme, bring users an excellent control experience. With mutual learning and the free flow of talents, domestic smartphone operating systems are becoming more and more similar, and the experience is homogeneous, causing users to experience aesthetic fatigue.

Although Huawei was forced to switch from EMUI to Hongmeng, the industry ripples it brought still affect many friends and businessmen. In particular, OriginOSOcean, the latest release of vivo, is almost out of the existence of the Android ecosystem. The comments given by many media are: huge innovation and comprehensive evolution. Vivo has taken the first step, and I think there should be no shortage of latecomers. The further fragmentation of the Android ecosystem is inevitable, and the adaptability cost of users' cross-brand replacement will further increase. Perhaps this is also the most important step in cultivating high-end users.

General-purpose chips and graphics capabilities are not low. The key to the boundary of the mid-to-high market, the alienation of external forms has become a new perception of high-end people and differences. Young people need personalization, and high-end people also need excellent differences. On this basis, folding screen mobile phones have become an effective stepping stone for domestic mobile phone brands to enter the high-end market. In this segment, many brands including Huawei, Samsung, Xiaomi are looking for more perfect and innovative technical solutions to solve the problem of screen crease and durability. The just-released OPPO Find N adopts a water drop hinge, 136 parts and 125 patents, and is considered to be the most mature folding machine product in the high-end market.

The price-performance ratio is collectively abandoned like a tacit understanding, and the competition at the level of technological innovation is becoming a new competitive landscape for domestic smartphone brands. The power of technology is water. If domestic smartphone brands want to have a lasting foundation, they must have a steady stream of living water.

Zall is different, the high-end market needs a brand with an accent

When it comes to branding, one small thing comes to mind. At the 2020 Yabuli Forum, Xiaomi founder Lei Jun publicly responded to the misunderstanding of Xiaomi: we also think Xiaomi is low-end, which makes me very frustrated. I don't know what you think high end looks like. Is it very expensive?

Xiaomi is aggrieved, and Lei Jun is also aggrieved, but the public does not seem to be wrong. The high-end of the brand is not self-righteousness, but public recognition. What I have been unable to figure out is that Xiaomi has been in the low-end market for so many years, and it has taken more than 10 years to achieve the ultimate price/performance ratio. Why not build a high-end brand? No matter how good the product is, as long as the word "Xiaomi" is attached, everyone will think it is a genuine product, not a luxury product.

The mid-to-low-end market is the hardest to do. Redmi at the front and Realme at the back. IQOO, anyway, is mainly about cost-effectiveness, and everyone is entangled with each other. However, OPPO.vivo has begun to withdraw, and the Find series and NEX series have begun to play a role on the basis of high-end and fashion brands. Under the blessing of scientific and technological strength, the resistance of high-end people gradually disappears. Xiaomi is also working hard to build a high-end flagship with the MIX series, stabilize the mid-to-high-end market with the digital series, and cover fashionable women with the Civi series. Unlike OV, Xiaomi's base color is a pull-out item, and Xiaomi's brand and price/performance ratio are not achieved overnight.

In the high-end market, in addition to the iPhone, the Samsung Galaxy series is the most reference for domestic mobile phone brands. Born from Samsung, Galaxy has grown from a series to a high-end mobile phone consumer brand, representing Samsung's innovation and technology. Compared with the high-end series of domestic mobile phone brands, Galaxy has a clearer brand connotation and logo, and has a clearer boundary with other Samsung products. At present, with the convenience of high-end brands, domestic mobile phone brands still have a long way to go. At the moment, the OPPO Find series seems to be a little bit into the room. In the coming year, domestic mobile phone brands will continue to be in the high-end market environment, and a number of brands similar to Samsung Galaxy will inevitably be born.

The expensive ones are not necessarily high-end brands, but high-end brands must be expensive! In addition to the quality requirements of the product itself, high-end brands are also endowed with different identity circle marks of Zall. If you are poor, you will be good at yourself, and if you are successful, you will be in the world. China's high-end people are not short of mobile phones, but what they lack are brands that match their own minds and ambitions!