VietNamNet Bridge – Phablet, or the smart phone with large screens – 5 inches or bigger, which was an unfamiliar concept to Vietnamese in the first half of 2013, has become so popular.

Available on the Vietnamese market in the first half of 2013, phablet has become so popular. A lot of models have been launched into the market, while the selling prices have been decreasing continuously towards the year end.

In the first half of 2013, phablet buyers only had several choices, either Galaxy Note series of Samsung, Xperia Z Ultra of Sony, or G Pro of LG. And the prices were very high.

However, the number of phablet models, both high-class and medium-class, available on the market increased sharply in the second half of the year.

Having realized the increasingly high demand in the market, manufacturers, from the big guys like Samsung, Nokia, Sony, LG, HTC and ASUS, to the unfamiliar brands like Oppo, Lenovo and Alcatel, all have continuously launched new models into the market to give more choices to customers.

Samsung and Nokia are the two manufacturers which make both medium class and high class phablets. Samsung, for example, offers Galaxy Note 3 priced at VND17 million, and Galaxy Mega Duos 5.8 at VND9 million. Meanwhile, Nokia has Lumia 1520 priced at VND16 million and Lumia 1320 at VND7.5 million only.

With the prices at below VND10 million, Galaxy Mega Duos 5.8 and Lumia 1320 are believed to be the two products with the best prices for now.

Meanwhile, Sony’s, HTC’s, LG’s products, despite the sharp price decreases, are still expensive. Sony’s Xperia Z Ultra, for example, which hit the shelves with the price of VND18 million, now is selling at VND14 million – a relatively high price level.

Especially, One Max of HTC is still selling at VND18 million, which is higher than most of the other smart phone models available on the market.

According to Nguyen Anh Van, the owner of CellphoneS, a well-known mobile phone distribution chain, Galaxy Note 3 and Xperia Z Ultra are the two best sellers in the high end market segment.

Meanwhile, the Sony model was only sold well at the time when it first appeared on the market. The products have been selling more slowly recently due to the high prices.

In order to compete with the big guys, which always set high prices for their products as a proof of their high class, other manufacturers target the medium class market segment.

Lenovo, for example, has cut the price of Lenovo K900 from VND11 million to VND8.9 million. Asus Fonepad Note 6 is selling at VND9.9 million, Oppo Find Way S VND8.7 million.

Analysts believe that the products all have good prices if compared with their configurations and features. However, they are not the choices of the people who like branded goods.

The phablets carried to Vietnam across the border gates or imported through unofficial channels have lower selling prices than the products provided by the manufacturers.

LG G Pro version, for example, has the official retail price at VND10 million. However, buyers can buy it at mobile phone shops at VND7.5 million only.

Especially, the original models such as Samsung Galaxy Round and LG G Flex with curved screens, which are only officially distributed in South Korea, have also been available at private run shops.

T. Mai