Apple’s iPhone lineup already has some competition from the Nothing Phone (1) but it’s aimed at the budget end of the market – that’s about to change.
Competing with the budget iPhone SE is one thing, but Nothing’s Carl Pei says that the next step is to compete with Apple at the top end of its market. A flagship phone could be on the way and, importantly, Pei says that Nothing is ready to take it to Apple’s front doorstep. Nothing is ready to sell a phone in the United States.
“Now we are in discussions with some carriers in the U.S. to potentially launch a future product there”, said OnePlus co-founder told CNBC in an interview.
The Nothing Phone (1) isn’t available in the United States with Pei pointing to the complications that local carriers add to proceedings. However, he now thinks that OnePlus is ready to dip its toes into that market, and going up against Apple is on the agenda. If it doesn’t happen now, Pei thinks it will be increasingly difficult for Nothing and other companies to compete.
“There might be a time where Apple is like 80% of the overall market and that just does not leave enough space for Android-based manufacturers to keep playing,” Pei is reported as saying. Whether Nothing can truly compete with Apple remains to be seen, but more competition is always a good thing for a market that at various times has felt like being sewn up by Apple and Samsung.
Google’s Pixel line has become a go-to for many people and the Android maker has finally started to up its game in terms of quality and advertising. But with so many huge Android OEMs fading into obscurity, all eyes will be on Nothing to see if it can avoid doing the same.