Apple, despite maintaining its position as the best-selling smartphone brand in China in 2023, is currently resorting to drastic measures to boost sales. An unusual promotional campaign featuring significant price reductions has surfaced on the official Chinese Apple website.

Customers using specific payment methods to purchase select Apple products can enjoy discounts of up to 800 Chinese yuan. This promotion includes the latest iPhone 15 series, Macs, AirPods, and Apple Watch.

According to an announcement on Apple China’s official website on the 15th of the month, Apple China is set to launch the “Welcome the Spring Festival Limited-Time Offer” from January 18th to January 21st. Customers who meet certain payment criteria will be eligible for varying discounts.

Taking the iPhone as an example, models like the iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, and iPhone 13 are all part of this promotion, with potential savings of up to 500 Chinese yuan.

For those interested in purchasing the 13-inch or 15-inch MacBook Air (M2), or the 13-inch MacBook Air (M1), the discounts can reach up to 800 Chinese yuan. Other products such as the iPad series, Apple Watch SE, AirPods, and Apple Pencil-related models are also covered under this special offer.

It’s worth noting that this move by Apple is quite unusual, as they rarely introduce such significant price reductions for new products in the same year. For instance, during last year’s Chinese New Year event, only the previous generation models, iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini, were included in the promotion.

This is seen as Apple’s effort to boost sales in response to increasing competition, particularly from Huawei, which made a comeback in 2023 with flagship smartphones dominating the high-end Chinese smartphone market.

As Huawei plans to expand its market share in the high-end flagship category this year, targeting the domestic demand in China, coupled with geopolitical factors, this could directly compete with Apple and potentially exert significant pressure on Apple’s production performance in the this year.

Recent reports from Jefferies analysts cited by Bloomberg highlight the impact of the Huawei Mate 60 Pro’s presence and the Chinese government’s ban on iPhones for officials. It is estimated that the sales volume of Apple’s latest products in China in 2024 could decline significantly by 30% compared to the previous year, potentially resulting in a double-digit decline in sales for the entire year.

(Image: Apple)

According to a report from IJIWEI, there are recent indications that Huawei’s P70 series and smartphones with smaller foldable screens are set to be launched in the first half of this year, with the Kirin 5G chip making a comprehensive return.

Citing information from a blogger, Huawei’s return to the top spot in China’s market in the first week of 2024 is attributed to the outstanding performance of the Nova 12 series. In addition to this success, the first half of this year will witness the release of new models such as the P70 series flagship for imaging and compact foldable screen devices. The Kirin 5G platform is expected to make a full comeback.

In the first half of 2024, Huawei plans to unveil the P70 series and devices with smaller foldable screens, all powered by the Kirin 5G platform. It is reported that the P70 series will feature the Kirin 9010 chip. Looking at Huawei’s recent releases, the Kirin 5G platform is set to cover a broad spectrum, including the Mate series, P series, and nova series, among other mid-to-high-end product lines.

Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo from TF International Securities revealed that Huawei’s smartphone shipments are expected to reach 60 million units in 2024, making it the fastest-growing brand in the industry. Kuo also mentioned that due to Huawei adopting the new Kirin 5G platform, Qualcomm’s System-on-Chip (SoC) shipments to Chinese smartphone brands are anticipated to decrease by 50-60 million units in 2024 compared to 2023.

(Image: Huawei)

In a strong push for foldable smartphones, reportedly, Huawei has issued rush orders to its supply chain lately. The shipment target for foldable smartphones this year is set at ten million units, marking a nearly threefold increase from the 2.6 million units shipped last year.

Previous rumors suggested that Huawei was considering lowering its foldable smartphone shipment targets for this year. However, the industry sources from related supply chain emphasizes that not only did Huawei refrain from reducing orders, but it significantly increased them.

According to Economic Daily News cited from supply chain sources, Huawei has set very ambitious goals for foldable smartphone shipments this year, aiming to increase from last year’s 2.6 million units to a range of 7 to 10 million units. This represents a nearly threefold increase, requiring additional support from various components.

Among them, the critical mobile phone component CIS, due to a rebound from the market downturn, has seen prices starting to surge. Main CIS supplier, Samsung, has raised prices by 25% to 30% this quarter.

To avoid the risk of escalating prices, CIS has become Huawei’s top priority for stocking up, primarily supplied by the Chinese CIS supplier, OmniVision. The substantial increase in overall shipment targets for foldable smartphone has driven a several-fold growth in CIS stockpiles.

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(Photo credit: Huawei)

In 2019, the U.S. Commerce Department blacklisted Huawei and over 70 of its subsidiaries, restricting China’s advancement in advanced chip development.

However, in August 2023, Huawei unexpectedly launched its new flagship smartphone, the Mate 60 Pro, featuring its self-developed 5G chip, hinting at Huawei’s breakthrough in the U.S. 5G chip restriction.

The release of this new smartphone swiftly dominated the high-end smartphone market in China, with Apple being the primary target. As Huawei plans to expand the market share of its high-end flagship series in 2024, targeting the domestic market in China, the product is poised for direct competition with Apple.

The performance of Apple’s smartphones in the Chinese market next year will be a focal point of industry attention.

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(Photo credit: Huawei)

Amid ongoing rumors about Huawei potentially establishing its own wafer fab, the company has remained relatively discreet, especially in light of the U.S. restrictions on the exportation of semiconductor technologies to China. However, recent developments suggest that there may be some truth to these rumors. According to a patent announcement from the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA), Huawei has applied for a patent related to wafer processing.

According to a report from Chinese media outlet JRJ on December 12th, Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. has filed a patent application titled “Wafer Processing Device and Wafer Processing Method” under the public number CN117219552A with the CNIPA. The application date is listed as June 2022.

The patent abstract shows the embodiments disclosure related to devices and methods for wafer processing. The wafer processing device comprises a wafer stage rotated along a rotation axis, a mechanical arm with a robotic hand for handling wafers and placing them on the wafer stage, a controller, and a calibration component. The calibration component includes a grating plate, fixed relative to the wafer stage; a light source, fixed relative to the grating plate; and an imaging element, fixedly provided on the mechanical arm, and adapted to receive light emitted from the light source and transmitted through the grating plate; wherein , the controller is configured to control the mechanical arm or the adjustment device on the mechanical arm to adjust the position of the wafer based on the detection of the received light by the imaging element;wherein, when the wafer stage carries the wafer, the grating plate and the imaging element are respectively located on opposite sides of the table where the upper surface of the wafer stage is located, and the upper surface is used to carry the wafer. The devices and methods provided by embodiments of the present disclosure can improve wafer alignment efficiency and alignment accuracy.

Earlier reports have suggested that Huawei is involved in the construction of wafer fabs in China. According to a news report from Bloomberg, Huawei is actively contributing to the expansion of at least three wafer fabs in the country. In its pursuit of building a self-sustaining semiconductor network, Huawei has acquired manufacturing facilities from Jinhua Integrated Circuit (JHICC) and Qingdao Aristocrat (Suppoly). Additionally, the company has assisted in the establishment of production facilities operated by Pengxinwei (PXW) and Shenzhen Pengsheng Technology (PST). It is worth noting that JHICC and PXW face challenges in selling their products to multinational corporations and encounter difficulties in procuring advanced wafer manufacturing equipment due to being blacklisted by the U.S. government.

(Image: Huawei)

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