On the technology stage, the competition between Apple and Huawei has never ceased.
On September 10th, both Apple and Huawei, the two giants, held new product launches on the same day, marking the grand opening of a highly anticipated technology feast.
At 1am on the same day, Apple launched a special event online, commonly known as the "Autumn New Product Launch". Overall, Apple has updated its three main hardware products, the Apple Watch, AirPods, and iPhone. However, due to the delayed release of Apple Intelligence and the lack of innovative highlights in the new device, the market response to this has been relatively flat.
On the other hand, Huawei held a hot new product launch event at 2:30 pm that day. On the eve of the press conference, the number of pre orders for Huawei's new three fold screen phone exceeded 3.65 million.
Why do the two have completely different market reactions? Why do Huawei and Apple release new products on the same day? What kind of sparks will they collide with again?
The delayed Apple AI and the popular Huawei triple fold screen
Although the newly released Apple phone is equipped with numerous artificial intelligence technologies, such as an upgraded version of Siri and a range of AI driven tools, the market response has surprisingly been lackluster due to the delayed release of Apple Intelligence and the lack of creativity in the product. Data shows that Apple's stock price fell during the event period and slightly rebounded in the late trading session, ultimately rising slightly by 0.04%.
It is reported that Apple once topped the "King of Smartphones" throne in 2023, with annual phone sales exceeding 234 million units. However, since 2024, Apple's main business has been struggling with weak growth. According to the financial report, iPhone revenue in the first quarter of this year was $45.963 billion, a significant year-on-year decline of 10.5%; In the second quarter of this year, although the decline in iPhone revenue narrowed slightly, it still decreased by 0.94% year-on-year, to only 39.296 billion US dollars.
Or perhaps hoping that Apple Intelligence can tell a brand new product story. Apple CEO Cook has previously stated that Apple Intelligence will provide users with another compelling reason to upgrade. However, the Chinese version of Apple Intelligence has been delayed and is expected to be released only in 2025. In other words, domestic iPhone 16 series users will temporarily be unable to fully utilize the relevant features of Apple Intelligence within this year.
As for the reasons for the above situation, on the one hand, it may be due to insufficient technology. It is understood that Apple has been quite slow in introducing AI features, and Apple Intelligence has repeatedly delayed its release time. At that time, some industry insiders believed that Apple was at least 2 to 3 years behind Google in AI technology.
On the other hand, Chinese data needs to be collected and annotated. It is understood that training an accurate Chinese language model requires a large amount of high-quality Chinese data. In the Chinese market, data collection must comply with strict privacy and legal regulations to ensure user information security. Meanwhile, accurately annotating the collected data is also a challenging task that requires professional Chinese language experts and annotators to ensure the quality and accuracy of the data.
Looking at Huawei's three fold screen again, it received a warm response even before the press conference was held. According to Huawei's official website, as of around 14:00 on September 10th, the Huawei Mall shows that the number of pre orders for this product has exceeded 3.65 million.
In fact, behind the booming pre order volume of Huawei's three fold screen smartphones, there are multiple intertwined factors.
Firstly, with the popularization of 5G networks and the increasing demand for mobile office, users' demand for larger screens and more efficient mobile devices is growing day by day, and Huawei's three fold screen phones perfectly meet this market demand. According to a research report, the shipment volume of foldable screen smartphones in China increased by 125% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2024, with Huawei's market share reaching 35.2%.
Secondly, technological innovation is another important factor. According to Huawei's press conference, the first three fold screen has a unique three fold design, breaking through the limitations of traditional foldable screen phones and demonstrating Huawei's leading position in foldable screen technology. The application of double hinge technology makes screen folding more flexible and smooth, while reducing the occurrence of creases, improving the durability and display effect of the screen. In addition, the use of advanced UTG glass material further optimizes the performance of the screen, bringing users a better visual experience.
Peak showdown is both a coincidence and a 'tough' one
As is well known, Huawei and Apple are both masters of the technology industry, and the simultaneous release of new products by both is both a coincidence and a 'hard work'.
Generally speaking, the consumer electronics industry likes to release new products at the beginning of the third quarter, which coincides with shopping festivals such as "Double 11" and "Double 12", as well as sales peak seasons such as Black Friday and Christmas in overseas markets. If released too early, the popularity is likely to fade; If released later, there won't be enough time for the topic to ferment, so the early third quarter is a more suitable release time for manufacturers. As industry giants, Huawei and Apple are well aware of this and have chosen to release new products on September 10th, which is in line with industry tradition and market pace.
At the same time, releasing new products on the same day can concentrate market attention on that day, creating a huge topic effect and thus gaining higher exposure and influence. For both companies, this is a rare marketing opportunity to better promote their new products and stimulate consumers' desire to purchase.
However, the other side of coincidence is' hardness'.
Data shows that the global smartphone market is fiercely competitive, with Apple and Huawei having their own advantages and market share in different regions and markets. By releasing new products on the same day, both parties hope to take the initiative in the competition for market share. Apple hopes to attract more users, especially in the high-end market, by launching new products and features. Huawei hopes to further expand its market share and enhance its brand influence through innovative products and technologies, especially in achieving better results in the domestic and emerging markets.
More importantly, the competition between the two new products on the same day is also in line with tradition. In the past few years, there have been multiple instances of "clash" between Apple and Huawei in terms of new product release times, which seems to have become a tradition of competition.
Frontal collision, new opportunity born
Apple and Huawei released new products on the same day, which not only brings consumers more choices and better products, but also promotes the development and progress of the entire industry.
From the perspective of the industry chain, as industry giants, Apple and Huawei's new product releases have a huge impact on the industry chain. Among them, upstream component suppliers, chip manufacturers, etc. will adjust their production and research and development plans according to the needs of the two companies, while downstream sales channels, after-sales services, etc. will also make corresponding layouts and optimizations around new products. Therefore, the two press conferences not only affect the development of the two companies themselves, but also have a significant impact on the development of the entire industry chain.
With the addition of Apple's AI capabilities, it will bring about upgrades to components such as processors, storage, batteries, fast charging, and heat dissipation in smart hardware, bringing new opportunities for key enterprises.
Ping An Securities pointed out that compared to traditional smartphones, SoC and storage are the main hardware upgrade directions for AI smartphones to achieve smooth operation of AI applications. On the one hand, the computing power of SoC plays a decisive role in the parameter scale of locally deployed large models, and directly affects the generative AI function of AI phones; On the other hand, accessing and loading large models requires higher capacity and performance storage. In addition, the high-frequency and high-density characteristics of AI tasks also set higher standards for components such as phone cooling, batteries, cameras, PCBs, etc.
The release of Huawei's triple fold screen will also attract more attention to future products related to the industry chain. The head of a Huawei mobile phone supply chain company revealed to the media that the company has started bulk supply of components for Z-shaped folding phones to Huawei.
Lin Zhi, chief analyst of research firm Wit Display, believes that Huawei has once again raised its sales target for high-end smartphones this year, which to some extent puts pressure on supply chain manufacturers such as high-end chips and hinges. Industry chain companies need to continue collaborative innovation in cost reduction and efficiency improvement.
In addition, the technological innovation and product design of Apple and Huawei have always been the compass of the technology industry, and their new product releases often lead the development direction of the technology industry. At this press conference, both parties will showcase their latest technologies and applications in fields such as artificial intelligence, foldable screens, and chips, which will have a profound impact on future smartphones and technology products.