Competition in emerging markets continued to be the focus of the global smartphone industry in June 2014, according to Digitimes Research.
In China, the race for price/performance ratios was keener for models sold through the Internet compared to those sold in physical retail stores where price reductions were limited in June.
Huawei has continued to strengthen online sales of its Honor-brand smartphones with the release of upgraded versions of the Honor 3C and 3X as well as the high-end Honor 6, aiming to compete more effectively against rival Xiaomi Technology in terms of pricing and the pace of introducing new models, said Digitimes Research.
While Microsoft has launched the Android-based Nokia X in order to shore up its dwindling market share, Google's launch of its Android One platform for low-cost smartphones with India-based vendors will dwarf the prospects for the Nokia X.
Meanwhile, the new flagship models launched by vendors have fewer significant differences as compared to their previous generations, indicating that competition in differentiation for high-end smartphones will gradually be shifting to applications instead of hardware specifications, Digitimes Research commented.
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