Huawei’s 5G phone – for under £500

CHINA’S Huawei claims it will be able to sell a next-generation 5G smartphone for less than £500.

In a major challenge to rivals Apple and Samsung, the telecoms giant said it would bring a 5G-capable handset out for just £461 – around half of what analysts had predicted such devices would sell for.

Peter Zhou, the marketing boss of Huawei’s wireless division, told the Financial Times: ‘Next year, some people say we may see 5G smartphones at $300 (£230) and I think that’s very much possible.’ Next-generation 5G mobile internet will bring much faster speeds, and is expected to lead to a flood of internet-connected devices being brought out, with users controlling them with their smartphones.

However some analysts have warned the take-up of 5G by customers could be slow if the handsets capable of using it are too expensive. Samsung launched its first 5G phone last month in South Korea, with prices starting at around £945. In the UK, the cheapest version of Apple’s current generation of phones is £499.