April 19, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Display is currently testing a 6.9-inch OLED screen, the largest it has produced for a smartphone, to supply it for Huawei’s upcoming new phone, according to The Bell on June 12.

The report said the panel shipments are expected to start in the third quarter this year, which means the phone launch could come later this year or early next year.

The new phone is likely to be featured for Huawei’s flagship Mate series or come in a separate model. It would become the largest-screen smartphone in the market, which compared to its bigger rivals Samsung Electronics and Apple’s new bigger-screen phones later this year. 

Huawei Mate 10

Samsung’s Galaxy Note 9 is expected to come with a 6.38-inch screen, while one of the three new iPhones later this year is rumored to feature a 6.46-inch screen.

The report said Huawei, China’s largest smartphone maker with more than 20 percent market share, may have decided to play it bigger with aims to take an edge in the burgeoning premium market at home where consumers prefer bigger-screen phones to scribble complicated Chinese characters. Rumors say Apple’s 6.46-inch iPhone is also targeting the Chinese market.

According to market tracker Strategic Analytics, Huawei is the third-largest smartphone maker globally with 11.4 percent market share after Samsung with 22.6 percent and Apple with 15.1 percent.

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldcorp.com)