136: Chapter 136 Returning to Qualcomm

After finishing the paperwork, Zhou Jianping walked out of the store with his new phone.

The sun was shining brightly outside; he held up his phone and snapped a picture of the sky.

In the photo, the sky over Beijing was so clean it looked fake. The details were also incredibly sharp—it couldn't even be compared to the photos taken by his old Nokia.

He posted on Weibo: "Got a new phone, Huawei Mate s, 2099 to get it, the large memory version is really great."

He attached the photo of the blue sky.

After posting, he tucked the phone into his pocket and headed toward the subway station, humming a little tune.

"Today is a happy day."

He didn't know that this Weibo post was just one of thousands of pieces of content related to the Mate s today; this phone had already become the featured new model in stores everywhere.

In major stores across Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen, countless consumers just like him were completing the same paperwork and buying the same phone.

...

At Huawei, Big Mouth Yu was nervously watching these figures.

After all, this was a major decision he had made: to launch directly without any prior promotion. He wasn't sure if it would impact sales...

From the looks of it, the results seemed pretty good.

It was the third day since the Mate s hit the market.

Various reviews and discussions began to appear online.

In the comments section of Xiaobai Unboxing:

"Brother Bai, Huawei has released another new phone, the Mate s, with a starting price around 2100 for the large memory version. The battery has increased to 3700mAh, charging has gone from 5W to 18W, and the screen has upgraded from 480p to 720p. There are quite a few upgrades; I feel the 300 yuan price hike is worth it, but the Mate has already dropped to 2299, which I feel is a better deal. Which one should I choose? Give me some advice."

"I went to the store to sign up for a plan. I originally wanted to buy the honor play, but the clerk recommended the Mate s, saying that for just a few hundred more, the experience is significantly better. I tried it out and decided to pay the extra money without hesitation."

"Big Mouth Yu is not playing by the rules; he launched it silently without even holding a press conference."

"Keeping a low profile is the way to go. Do you think everyone is like Lei Jun, holding a press conference in advance when there isn't even a product, only to waste the golden window of opportunity?"

Xiaobai Unboxing: "I went offline and handled the Mate s; it's a half-generation upgrade. But it addresses all the pain points. If you're in a rush to replace your phone, you can go for it. The 159 plan is too expensive; I don't recommend it. Get a plan for around 60 or 70 yuan, and you can get it for around 2500. If you really have to, haggle with the clerk more. For the plan, choose China Unicom first... I can't talk about some of the inside info, but China Unicom really needs the sales figures, so their success rate is indeed a bit higher."

"Thanks, Brother Bai!"

...

Beijing, Yingu Mansion.

Lei Jun looked at the latest report, his brows furrowing tighter and tighter.

The new Mate s. 3700mAh battery. 18W fast charging. 720p screen. 2999, starting at 1999 after carrier subsidies; China Mobile is even more shameless, driving it down to 999...

Truly, having resources means you can do whatever you want. [Big Mouth Yu: If you have resources and don't use them, wouldn't you be an idiot?]

The appearance of the Mate s made the first-generation Xiaomi look a bit like a joke.

After all, the 18W fast charging alone was enough to end the game. Even if they could swap batteries, had better processors, or more RAM... it was useless, because apart from the processor and memory, the Mate s had all those features too.

They also had carrier purchase subsidies. What was even more terrifying was that Huawei just launched this phone directly; there must be something even better behind it.

Could it be that Huawei also got the Qualcomm MSM8255 chip... Oh no!

His fit of pique seemed to have handed Big Mouth Yu an opportunity. After all, Xiaomi's launch had already begun, and Qualcomm surely wouldn't let this opportunity slip by.

"Old Lin, have you seen this Mate s?"

Lin Bin nodded. "I've seen it. The battery is bigger than ours, the charging is faster than ours, and the screen is the same as ours, but the chip is still the MediaTek MTK6573. The general plans are around 2500, and those with plans over 100 are around 2000. We don't need to be this nervous."

Lei Jun stood up and paced back and forth in his office. This matter shouldn't be that simple.

"When did they launch it?" "March 4th. No press conference, no pre-heating, just straight onto the shelves in stores and the Huawei Mall. The negotiations must have been earlier, but the confidentiality was truly well-kept."

Lei Jun stood up and walked to the window. He remembered the meal he had with Shen Fei two days ago. At the time, he had said that Transsion's main battlefield was Africa, and domestic was just an experimental field, but this experimental field was growing taller and taller crops. Sure enough, there wasn't a word of truth in his mouth. How can a person be so... [Shen Fei: I am very sincere; this is Huawei, not Transsion.]

Wait, were there any other details? He recalled Shen Fei's words again. Various important pieces of information flashed through his mind: not playing in the domestic market, mainly focusing on foreign markets; India is a market just like the domestic one. India—he specifically emphasized India and mentioned it several times. Was he really going to enter that market?

After thinking for a long time, he decided to put this matter aside for now and solve the immediate crisis first.

"Old Lei," Lin Bin walked over, "our battery is only 2000mAh, and we don't have fast charging. People online are already starting to ask why Xiaomi doesn't have fast charging."

Lei Jun didn't turn back. The matter of fast charging wasn't up to them; the design patents had already been registered by Huaxin Investment, and the appearance of flash charging and fast charging technologies had all been secured by them. If they wanted to do fast charging, they could only get authorization from China Star. But now, he didn't want to bow his head; Qualcomm should be able to solve it.

"When can the chips from Qualcomm be delivered?" Lin Bin hesitated, then sighed. "The original plan was mid-April, but I just received a call yesterday... Now it might... it might be mid-May."

"May." Lei Jun turned around and looked at Lin Bin with an anxious expression. "That's too slow." He looked at Lin Bin: "I'm going to the United States."

...

March 8th, Lei Jun went directly to Qualcomm headquarters. This time he didn't make an appointment in advance and went straight to Qualcomm headquarters. Mr. Wang was a bit surprised when he saw him. "Mr. Lei, why did you come so suddenly?"

Lei Jun didn't engage in small talk and said straightforwardly: "Mr. Wang, can the delivery of the MSM8255 be moved up?"

Rushing the order? The bit of humility on Mr. Wang's face vanished instantly. When he looked up at Lei Jun, his eyes were cold and distant, his mouth pressed tight, not even bothering to maintain a hint of polite smiling. That expression clearly said: The contract is signed; who you are doesn't matter. The previous humility had disappeared without a trace, leaving only a sense of entitlement and condescending impatience, as if the person from before wasn't him at all.

"Mr. Lei, production capacity is already fully booked. Apple, Samsung, and HTC are all waiting."

Lei Jun looked at him: "I know." He stared intently at Mr. Wang, trying to find a trace of nervousness in him, but he remained in that high-and-mighty posture. "But Xiaomi is also waiting, and we are also very anxious."

"Mr. Lei, it seems you've run into some trouble."

Lei Jun didn't hide it: "Huawei has released a new phone with a 3700mAh battery. The battery itself isn't particularly important, but the most important thing is that they have fast charging, and Qualcomm's solution doesn't."