Games and eSports to fuel sluggish smartphone market

Chinese smartphone vendors expect mobile games to stimulate a sluggish market, thanks to improved imaging and calculating features, faster networks and rich mobile game portfolios.

Nubia, a startup Chinese smartphone brand, expects the mobile player user base in China to hit 776 million.

“With good performance by Chinese eSports players and recognition by Asian and Olympic events, eSports and mobile games represent a trend,” said Ni Fei, general manager of Nubia.

It has launched its latest MARS-brand game in Shanghai.

Besides Nubia, firms like Xiaomi, 360 and ASUS have all launched game models.

In the fourth quarter, global smartphone sales will reach 380 million units, unchanged compared with the third quarter, said researcher TrendForce.

Nubia said game fans will bring “fresh air” to the market  by buying the latest smartphones. 

Its new phone, which will be released on December 7 with prices from 2,699 yuan (US$391), features Qualcomm’s latest processor, 10 Gigabyte memory, a cooling system and headphones specifically for mobile game fans. 

On a broader level, Shanghai is going to establish itself as a center for eSports.