14 DAY TRIAL // Huawei is one of the world's largest smartphone makers, but the Chinese company's high-end products are not available in all markets. Just like many other companies in the smartphone business, Huawei chooses carefully its battlegrounds, and until recently, South Korea wasn't a priority when it comes to premium phones.
However, the company is now looking to take advantage of the Galaxy Note 7 fiasco and enter new markets where Samsung is known to dominate the high-end tier. According to a new report, Huawei has decided, for the first time, to introduce its premium P9 smartphones in South Korea.
Both the P9 and P9 Plus have recently been approved by the National Radio Research Agency and are likely to be made available in South Korea in December.
Huawei's premium phones will compete with Samsung's Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge during the holiday season's sales, something that the Chinese company is not afraid of.
But aside from Samsung's slightly older flagships, Huawei will also compete against dangerous opponents like Apple's iPhone 7 and the newly launched LG V20, an industry source claims.
“Huawei appears to deem that it is worth competing with LG’s V20 and Apple’s iPhone 7 in the local high-end market after the Galaxy Note 7 left.”
For those interested, the P9 and P9 Plus will be available in South Korea at LG Plus, a Huawei local partner. One of the phones will be priced at $615, but the source does not specify which one. It's also worth mentioning that the exact launch date of these phones will be set by mobile carriers, not by Huawei.
Also, the decision will be based on market demand, so there's a chance that the P9 and P9 Plus won't be the only premium phones Huawei will launch in South Korea.
In the meantime, Huawei is readying a major launch event, which is scheduled to take place in Munich, Germany, on November 3. The Chinese company is expected to launch its new phablet, the Mate 9, which has already been teased in a few videos.