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As expected, Samsung Mobile profits slump 31 percent as Chinese competition bites

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Samsung has announced a 31 percent drop in for its mobile division, broadly in line with its earlier guidance, when almost 200 managers “voluntarily” handed back 25 percent of their bonuses. Year-on-year operating profits fell from 6.43T won ($6.28B) to 4.42T won ($4.32B).

Chinese competition in low- and mid-range handsets was cited as one of the key reasons for the slump, with Samsung Mobile’s SVP Kim Hyun-Joon promising that the company would address this.

We will respond more aggressively to meet demand in the Chinese market […] in the latter half of this year by introducing more products with better specification as well as better price competitiveness …


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ZTE’s latest low-cost handset drops MiFlavor overlay in favor of pure Google goodness

While those buying high-end handsets often get the option of Google Play editions that are free from manufacturer overlays, the same isn’t generally true of low-end ones, where manufacturer overlays rule. ZTE’s new Blade Vec 4G handset, though, is being supplied with the Google Now Launcher as the default interface, reports the WSJ.

“Some consumers may prefer Google Now Launcher,” said Zeng Xuezhong, ZTE’s head of mobile device business, in an interview Thursday. “We are trying to give users more options.”

The Chinese manufacturer says that it expects to sell around 20M smartphones in its home market this year, with a similar number in the US.

ZTE says that it plans to launch further Google edition handsets in future, but that it will continue to use the MiFlavor overlay on others. Its high-end Nubia Z7 was announced earlier this month, but it’s not yet clear whether it will make it to the USA.

ZTE Nubia Z7 gets official, but don’t count on it coming to your neighborhood

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Last week we got a glimpse of a device rumored to be ZTE’s Nubia Z7 and while it doesn’t look exactly like the handset that ZTE revealed today, there are definitely some similarities. So now that it’s here, what does the Chinese manufacturer’s new flagship smartphone bring to the table? How about a 5.5-inch Quad HD display, a Snapdragon 801 processor, 3GB of RAM, a 13-megapixel rear-facing camera and Android 4.4.


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House Intelligence Committee advises US companies to stop doing business with Huawei and ZTE, says ‘cannot be trusted’

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The U.S. House of Representatives’ Select Committee on Intelligence just published a report that deemed two Chinese manufacturers of routers, switches, and telecoms equipment as a possible threat to national security, and it subsequently warned American companies to purchase their hardware elsewhere.

According to the committee’s press release:

The Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Intelligence Committee, Mike Rogers (R-MI) and C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD), today released a report recommending to U.S. companies considering doing business with Chinese telecommunications companies Huawei and ZTE to find another vendor.  The report encourages U.S. companies to take into account the long-term security risks associated with either company providing equipment or services to our telecommunications infrastructure.  Additionally, the report recommends that U.S. government systems, particularly sensitive systems, exclude Huawei or ZTE equipment or component parts.

Reuters reported that Huawei and ZTE are the world’s second- and fifth-largest manufacturers, respectively, of telecom equipment by revenue. ZTE ranks fourth in the global mobile smartphone sector, however, while Huawei sits in sixth. The majority of both companies’ U.S. sales come from devices sold through U.S. carriers like Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile USA.


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Android price of entry just fell to $30: Best Buy has contract-free ZTE Score for $29.99

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If you still do not own an Android phone and cannot afford one of them high-end superphones, this is one of the best deals we have seen to date. Over at Best Buy, the Muve ZTE Score smartphone from Cricket Wireless can be yours in exchange for only $29.99. How sweet is that? That’s your fully unsubsidized price for a contract-free Android handset—down from its regular $69.99 price point. Keep in mind that $30 is what people pay to AT&T each month for their 3GB smartphone tethering plan.

Just because it is cheap does not mean it is worthless. Quite the contrary, the Muve ZTE Score runs Android 2.3 and has a 3.2-megapixel camera, 3.5-inch HVGA capacitive touchscreen, 4GB microSD card, and a little QWERTY keyboard with that nice clicking feel to it. It also does Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and 3G connectivity. It is your most affordable ticket into the Android world, even if you only intend on using it as a machine to run Android apps. Moreover, it is only 4-months-old.

 


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ZTE vies for No. 3 vendor spot in global handset market, hopes new devices will lead the charge

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jsk-_Jycx1E]

ZTE Corporation wants one of the top three vendor spots in the global handset market by 2015, and the firm is challenging leaders in the market with a range of handsets and tablets announced at the “Mobile World Congress 2012” event in Barcelona.

According to a recent study, industry analyst Gartner ranked ZTE as No. 4 for world handset shipments in Q4 2011, and ZTE smartphone sales are accelerating faster than any other vendor—aside from Apple, of course.

“Our long-term goal for the Terminals Division is to achieve a compound growth rate of above 40 percent per year for five consecutive years from 2010, and to become one of the top three vendors in the global handset market by 2015,” said ZTE EVP and Head of the Terminals Division Mr. He Shiyou in a press release


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Affordable prepaid Android phones reduce iPhone to single-digit share in countries without carrier subsidies

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Entry-level prepaid Android phones sell for as low as $50.

Last year, the iPhone was the best-selling smartphone in the world, and Apple re-captured the crown for top smartphone maker in the United States last quarter with an estimated one-fifth of the market. While the original arrived at $499 (remember Ballmer’s reaction?), Apple would not hit the ground running until switching to the subsidized model with the second-generation iPhone 3G. Nowadays, U.S. carriers subsidize the full price of the device with an estimated $400, so those willing to commit to a two-year contract end up paying just $199 upfront for the hardware.

The trick worked and the iPhone went on the become an iconic device, but sales numbers did not replicate in various Southern European countries where carriers steer away from paying billions in upfront subsidies. As a result, prepaid Android phones are now undercutting Apple’s device and selling like crazy. Take Portugal or Greece, for example, where the iPhone last quarter accounted for 9 percent and 5 percent of all smartphones sold, respectively, according to the Wall Street Journal.

In the U.S., where contract plans and phone subsidies dominate, IDC says that around 90% of smartphone shipments over the past four years were for devices that cost more than $300 — despite the recession and uncertain recovery. In Italy, where prepaid plans dominate, that proportion was 67% last year, and in crisis-hit Greece and Portugal, only about 40% of the smartphones shipped in 2011 cost more than $300.

The article author Anton Troianovski said some European carriers are considering eliminating subsidies in favor of the more affordable pay-as-you-go plans. This includes major carriers, such as Spain’s Telefónica SA and Denmark’s Telenor ASA.


The price matrix of the unlocked, contract-free iPhone 4S.


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No contract price of entry to Android is now $50 (ZTE Score)

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We’re not exactly sure how this happens, but the ZTE Score, which we covered last week when it was at a “hefty” $80, just dropped to $49.99 at Amazon.  Seriously, how do they do this?

You can buy the score as an ‘iPod touch” type of device and be on your way with a nice little music, video, wifi player with an older iPhone like 480-320 3.5 inch display.  or you can sign up for Cricket’s very capable service.

Seriously, at $50, you’ve got little to lose.
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The cheapest little Android you can Score in the US ($70 ZTE X500)

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Cheap Android devices aren’t just for the Third World.  The ZTE X500 Score, a prepaid handset available on Cricket, has become available for purchase on Amazon for $69.88 without a contract.

The Score packs a 3.5-inch display, 3.2-megapixel camera, 4GB of storage, and Android 2.3, Gingerbread. While we haven’t experienced Cricket firsthand, it is a subsidiary of Sprint so you should see some good speeds. This device seems ideal for youngsters or a new smartphone user with that low price tag and cheaper prepaid plan through Cricket. Or maybe you want to pick up a VoIP app and use that Wifi zone that you spend 98% of your life inside anyway.

Check it out on Amazon.  Video review below:


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