On the evening of September 1, Beijing time, ZTE officially released the world’s first mass-produced new phone with under-screen camera technology, the ZTE Axon 20 5G. In fact, as early as the preheating period, this model has been eagerly anticipated by netizens. With the official release of the phone, the competition landscape of full-screen mobile phones has also entered a new stage. Before the press conference, we had the honor of interviewing Ni Fei, President of ZTE Terminal, and Zhang Lei, General Manager of ZTE Terminal Axon Products, to hear their plans for this phone and ZTE’s future mobile field.
“Shipment expectations are good”
As ZTE’s first model to use under-screen camera technology, it has both risks and opportunities. As the first person to try it out in the industry, Ni Fei is optimistic about the shipments of ZTE Axon 20 5G. Ni Fei said that the shipments are expected to be good, but the specific number is not easy to judge now, and it depends on the user’s acceptance and the situation of the entire market. But it is undeniable that in today’s highly homogenized mobile phone industry, those who dare to take the first step will definitely gain more attention and expectations.
Ni Fei also admitted that the current supply chain is very transparent. The rapid development of the mobile phone industry in some aspects is because each manufacturer stands on the shoulders of other manufacturers and moves forward step by step. When a manufacturer breaks through a technology first, other manufacturers will continue to follow up. The specific technical details still depend on the technical capabilities of each manufacturer and their grasp of technology.
Not only that, Ni Fei also said that in the future, the under-screen camera technology will continue to be developed to make it more complete and mature. It should also be adopted in other ZTE product lines in the future. As for the high-power fast charging technology that everyone is very concerned about, Ni Fei gave us a positive answer: there will definitely be one. In the next generation of products, we will keep up with the industry’s top fast charging technology.
“Entering the first-tier brand in 5 years”
As a domestic veteran, ZTE’s accumulation of technical strength is obvious to all. Terminals have always been a very important business for ZTE, and Ni Fei has a clear plan for ZTE’s next five years. Ni Fei believes that there are many ways to success, both online and offline. “ZTE is relatively low-key in China. From a time perspective, it usually takes 2-3 years to enter everyone’s field of vision. Maybe in 5 years, we can see some relatively large developments,” said Ni Fei.
Regarding future plans, Ni Fei believes that products, brands and channels are the key issues that need to be addressed and they need to go hand in hand. ZTE is currently constantly innovating while waiting for market opportunities. Ni Fei hopes that ZTE will be able to return to the public eye in China in three years, and will see small success in becoming a first-tier brand in five years, and there is no upper limit to big success. As for the sub-brand Nubia, Ni Fei clearly stated that Nubia has a clear positioning, and I believe everyone is already very familiar with it. It mainly focuses on the e-sports gaming field and imaging flagship products, and is positioned as individual. ZTE’s terminal products are positioned as mass products, and there will be no conflict between the products of the two brands.
“Get closer to users”
When it comes to technology reserves and R&D capabilities, ZTE’s strength is obvious to all. However, in the field of smartphones, Ni Fei believes that “in the past we were too close to technology and too far away from users,” and did not make some innovations that were easily perceived by users.
In fact, ZTE is very strong in both the communication and imaging fields, but lacks the ability to grasp user application scenarios. What ZTE needs is to transform abstract functions and technical principles into a form that is easy for consumers to understand, remember and spread. Ni Fei frankly said that the publicity of competitors in certain aspects is worth learning and drawing lessons from, as it contains deep insight and technical practice.
Precisely because of this, the ZTE Axon 20 5G released this time uses the world’s first mass-produced under-screen camera as its main selling point, which not only enhances its spreadability, but also brings technological leadership one step closer to consumer application scenarios.
“Application scenarios drive 5G advancement”
In fact, the concept of “5G” has been extremely popular since last year. Users and the industry are looking forward to the changes this new technology will bring to our lives. But a year later, with the large-scale deployment of 5G networks, users’ perception has not improved significantly. Faced with this situation, Ni Fei said that he always believes that there needs to be some better application scenarios to bring about a large improvement in 5G.
5G is just a medium. If you want to bring an unprecedented user experience, you still need clear usage scenarios to carry it. This year, ZTE has launched several “5G video phones” one after another, which is obviously aimed at the role of 5G in promoting the short video industry. In addition to video, low latency in games, high bandwidth in videos, and driving for IoT. Ni Fei is still optimistic about the application scenarios of 5G. He believes that one is the gradual improvement of applications, and the other is the promotion of the business logic of operators themselves. These two angles will greatly drive the development of 5G terminals.
“1+2+N” Strategy
With the continuous development of 5G, IoT and smart home industries have also ushered in a new spring. ZTE has proposed the “1+2+N” strategy, which is mobile phone terminals + personal health data and family data + a variety of brand peripheral products. ZTE’s terminal product form is not limited to smartphones, and smart wearable products are also in the planning stage.
Talking about ZTE’s future strategy in the IoT field, Ni Fei said: First, find benchmark customers. The top four companies in the industry, Xiaomi, Huami, and OV, have already cultivated a large number of user habits. ZTE needs to sort out what needs to be learned and what needs to be supplemented; second, on this basis, provide innovative products; third, for ecological products, both appearance and good categories are important.
“Imaging and 5G”
When talking about ZTE’s future plans, Zhang Lei made it clear that video and 5G communications are important technology development directions. At the same time, these two points are also a very unified understanding within ZTE.
Zhang Lei frankly said that ZTE will continue to move forward in imaging and 5G, and has made long-term preparations. In terms of products, the brand transformation direction of “youth, technology, and fashion” is also combined with the evolution trend of these two technologies, so ZTE’s product positioning will be clearer in the future.
