QiKU is yet another Chinese company that wants a slice of the smartphone market. However, we’re not talking about any small or unknown brand. QiKU is a joint venture between Qihoo 360, a Chinese security company, and Coolpad, the third largest smartphone manufacturer in China. Qihoo 360’s Chairman and CEO, Zhou Hongyi, believes that QiKU has what it takes to take on Xiaomi, which is a pretty bold claim.
He further emphasised that QiKU’s devices will surpass Xiaomi’s smartphones in terms of quality and price, although no devices have been announced yet at this point in time. Zhou did say that QiKU will be launching three smartphones in the entry-level, mid-range and high-end markets. Interestingly, it is reported that these devices will have a metal case, with the cheapest model priced at only 1,000 Chinese yuan (about RM580).
Despite not having any device in the market yet, Zhou claims that QiKU’s device can “easily” sell at 5,000 Chinese yuan, which is about RM2,900. That being said, Zhou mentioned that QiKU’s devices will be sold at almost cost price, which can only be a good thing for consumers.
Whether or not QiKU can take on Xiaomi still remains to be seen. After all, it hasn’t even launched any device yet. In such a crowded market, a price war isn’t necessarily enough to take on such a big industry player such as Xiaomi.
(Source: South China Morning Post, AsiaOne Digital, GizmoChina)
