Hong Kong/Shenzhen/Shanghai. Chinese tech giant Huawei on Thursday began selling two models of its long-awaited Pura 70 series of high-end smartphones, which many analysts expect to contain an advanced Chinese-made chip like its Mate 60 phone.
The Pura series, developed by the Shenzhen-based company, features advanced cameras and is known for its sleek design, while the Mate series emphasizes performance and business features.
Chinese state media last year hailed the launch of Huawei’s Mate 60 series as a triumph over sanctions imposed by the United States on the company, as the phones contain an advanced Chinese-made chip whose computing power, according to Analysts say it is only a few generations behind the chips used by Western tech giants Apple AAPL.O and Google GOOGL.O.
Eric Xu, acting president of Huawei, said Wednesday at a forum in Shenzhen that the company also plans to launch a Mate 70 smartphone this year.
The Pro and Ultra versions of the Pura 70 were available this Thursday, while the Plus and basic versions will begin selling on April 22. The phones were sold out in Huawei’s official online store just a minute after sales began, and hundreds of fans of the brand lined up at Huawei stores in Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen.
Lucas Zhuang, a customer, tested the Pura 70’s network speed and said it was on par with 5G. Washington has banned the licensing of 5G chips to China, but Huawei’s Mate 60 phones were already capable of reaching 5G speeds in many cases, despite Huawei not calling it 5G.
“We didn’t know what chip the Pura 70 has inside. We will only know after we buy it,” Zhuang, who already owns the Mate 60, told Reuters after waiting in line at Huawei’s flagship store in Shanghai.
“But we believe… the chip you have will certainly meet people’s needs.”
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– 2024-04-25 03:33:29
