The Smartphone market has seen a sea change in the last decade. However the sea is only just beginning its churn. From the days of one dominating force reigning over all of mobile landscape, today it seems the markets are sharply divided across regions and loyalties. While United States still remain the last bastion of Apple. Samsung is making inroads in just about every market. The biggest challengers however come from the Chinese heartland. Gone are the days when HTC was the only recognizable name from China to feature in smartphone conversations. Today Huawei, Lenovo and even Oppo feature among the Top vendors of smartphones and are producing some of the most anticipated smartphones of 2014. It isn’t surprising then that yet another Chinese player is now entering the fray.
Gionee: The New Kids On The Block
At 5.5 mm thick, Gionee’s Elife S5.5 is a smartphone with supermodel proportions
Gionee is a typical Chinese mobile company. Very little is known of their operation and yet they manage to produce some truly spectacular products at affordable rates. Gionee was founded only in 2002 and in less than 13 years have managed to break through both the domestic market as well as new markets such as India and South East Asia. Gionee is already making waves through its innovative products just as HTC did a little over a decade ago. The Gionee Elife E7 is one of Gionee’s hottest selling smartphones in recent times. The Gionee Elife E7 price in India is just Rs 19,900 and offers a 2.2GHz quad core processor and 3GB of RAM. The phone oozes with computing power and can stand toe to toe with most flagship smartphones. Gionee has just launched the world’s slimmest smartphone the Gionee E Life S5.5. Clearly Gionee are throwing plenty of weight behind its packaging of affordable innovation.
Can Gionee be Big?
Gionee Elife: Hands-on the Thinnest Smartphone in the World
Gionee are currently one of the many smartphone vendors that are making ripples in a sea largely dominated by Samsung and Apple. However it may not be wise to overlook the potential in Gionee’s approach. Gionee has a very similar approach to its marketing as Micromax did in India. Bring out highly affordable smartphones with brilliant specs. Focus on extensive branding exercises including sponsoring popular television and sports events. These are no doubt helping the company’s foray into the Indian market. Gionee reported sales of Rs 500 crore in its first year in India. The flagship phone Gionee Elife E7 is doing well in the mid-range smartphone category. The potential is huge for Gionee however it may not be smooth sailing for them.
The Threat From Within
Gionee Elife E7 boasts most sensitive 16MP camera, 2.5GHz Snapdragon 800
Even as Gionee chips away at the mid-range and affordable range smartphones, they also have to deal with massive competition from Global giants Huawei and Lenovo. Meanwhile another new kid is making grand inroads to India. Oppo, still a little known player in the Indian market is one of the most renowned smartphone manufacturers at least among tech enthusiasts. The smartphone manufacturer has already built several firsts including the first octa-core mid-range smartphone, first 50 MP smartphone, first phone with a swivel camera and much more. Oppo has also hired the dynamic duo of Hrithik Roshan and Sonam Kapoor as its brand ambassador. The launch advertisement has also helped Oppo gain significant visibility. Chinese manufacturers are making hay while the sun shines in the booming smartphone market in India. It will take considerable branding exercises and more affordable innovation for Gionee to break through the clutter.
Conclusion
Gionee are still the new kids on the block as far as Indian mobile market is considered. However Gionee is taking the first steps in the right manner. With innovative and affordable products, the phone is managing to distance itself from the clutter of affordable mid-range smartphones. With the entry of more new players in the days to come however, Gionee may find the going tough. However there is potential for Gionee to be the next big thing at least in the Indian smartphone space.
