Ascend P7 headlines Huawei’s LTE-ready devices

MANILA, Philippines - Huawei hit a homerun with its Ascend P6. According to Huawei Technologies Philippines consumer business group head Charles Wu, the smartphone has already breached sales of four million units in more than 100 countries.

The information and communications technology solutions provider founded in 1987 and based in Shenzhen, Guangdong, China is the largest telecommunications equipment maker in the world. It boasts expertise across a wide swath of products and services in the consumer market such as mobile broadband, home Internet, media devices, accessories, and M2M solutions. Huawei also has a considerable portfolio and capability to meet enterprise-level and carrier network demands.

Banking on this considerable end-to-end experience makes perfect sense, of course, so Huawei firmly plants its flag in the realm of smartphones, tablets, and mobile broadband devices. At the end of 2013, Huawei ranked third in global smartphone shipments. Today, it is a truly global brand with research and development centers in the United States, Germany, Sweden, Russia, India, and, of course, China.

Recently, Huawei locally launched five mobile products that all capitalize on a growing LTE pervasiveness in the country. “We want to showcase Huawei’s LTE strength,” said Al Dimapilis, marketing manager for Huawei Technologies Philippines device business.

Introduced were the MediaPad X1 “phablet” with seven-inch, full-high-definition screen, the MediaPad M1 tablet (eight-inch FHD screen), the LTE version of the Ascend G6 smartphone, a mobile Wi-Fi device, and its top-shelf smartphone: the Ascend P7 LTE (to retail for P22,990).

Dimapilis revealed that the local launch of the Ascend P7 follows the global reveal of the product in London last May. As a true multinational firm, P7 research and engineering was done in China, the user interface in the US, and design and branding in the United Kingdom. Dimapilis continued that the P7 has a “Filipino touch” as a Filipino-American was involved in the London design team.

At the local launch, Wu presented the features of the Ascend P7 to members of the media and dealers. Touting it “the best (in its) class,” Wu listed the unique value propositions that Huawei will use to market its new smartphone. The P7, he said, redefines craftsmanship, camera experience, and connectivity.

Its slim 6.5-millimeter profile is marked by an ergonomic, “water-drop” curve. Measuring 139.8 by 68.8 millimeters in height and width, respectively, the phone fits snugly in the hand. The five-inch, full HD display represents a best-in-segment 72.16 percent screen-to-body ratio, finished off by Corning Gorilla Glass 3 in the front and back.

Coming in black and white finish, the Ascend P7 also boasts a host of sensors: G-sensor, accelerometer, proximity and light sensor, ambient light sensor, and compass. The whole affair is driven by a quad-core Hisilicon Kirin 910T good for 1.8GHz. RAM musters 2GB; ROM measures 16GB.

Of note is the Ascend P7’s ability to take “groupies” or group selfies — courtesy of an 8MP 5P non-spherical-lens, front-facing camera equipped with a panoramic selfie shooting mode. Users can capture more of the background with themselves in photo, of course.

Meanwhile, at the back is a 13MP AF BSI that can open up to f2 for greater abilities in low light. Its 2,500mAH lithium polymer battery, continued Wu, can supply a whole day of standby power even when down to the last 10 percent of charge as it goes into an “ultra power-saving mode” enabled by a proprietary technology.

Huawei said in a release that the P7’s unique dual antenna greatly improves signal reception and allows users to enjoy unlimited media viewing. “This high-power combination gives the unit capability to download at speeds of up to 150Mbps.” The smartphone also boasts “networking switching technology that stabilizes the connection even during weak signal reception to minimize battery drainage.”

Truly, Huawei is justified in its confidence that its consumer products — packed with all the bells, whistles, and practical ability borne of the firm’s substantial end-to-end expertise and experience — will resonate among more tech-, budget-, and, well, selfie-savvy Filipinos.

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For more information, visit consumer.huawei.com/en. Huawei is on facebook.com/huaweidevice, twitter.com/HuaweiDevice, plus.google.com/+HuaweiDevice, youtube.com/user/HuaweiDeviceCo, and flicker.com/photos/huaweidevice.