A roundup of trends in budget smartphones. Xiaomi announced price increases for some models, FCNT unveiled the arrows Alpha2, and a new Xperia 10 model was announced. Here are the key developments from this week.
Xiaomi Japan has finally announced price increases for some smartphones and tablets. The increases will take effect from 1 to 4 September. The affected models include the Leica-camera-equipped Xperia 17T Pro, whose price will rise to ¥139,800, and the POCO X8 Pro, with upgraded CPU and display, starting at ¥79,800.
FCNT has announced the arrows Alpha2, the successor model. The SIM-free version is priced at ¥94,900 for the 8GB + 256GB model and ¥118,800 for the 12GB + 512GB model, and it comes in 4 colors. While its specifications have not changed substantially from the previous model, its durability has been improved and the design has been changed to make both the rear and front flat. Device prices are trending higher because of rising component costs, but the model is reportedly likely to remain popular thanks to its moderate size and price range.
Xperia has announced plans to unveil a new product at 11:00 on 25 August. Given that the Xperia 10 VII was released in September last year, the announcement has raised the possibility that a successor model will appear. It has also been suggested that the background image may show the new product's color variations, drawing attention.