On March 7, 2023, OnePlus officially brought an epoch-making mid-range model at the press conference-OnePlus Ace 2V. At this press conference, OnePlus announced that starting from OnePlus Ace 2V, it will cancel the screen plastic bracket of the Ace series models.
(Source: Digital Chat Station)
The digital blogger “Digital Chat Station” broke the news on Weibo that manufacturers such as OnePlus, Redmi and Zhenwo plan to cancel the screen plastic bracket on this year’s mid-range models. As soon as the news was exposed, it immediately aroused heated discussions among netizens.
Some netizens believe that mid-range models have finally ushered in a new spring.
Nevertheless, why “cancel the plastic screen bracket” will become an iconic symbol of “standing up” for mid-range models? What the hell is this spurned plastic screen stand?
Mid-range machine, but also “volumetric” appearance
Can an ordinary consumer distinguish the gap between the flagship model and the mid-range model through naked eye observation? The answer is absolutely yes. There is no mystery in this. The price of the flagship model is high, and the shape design and materials are selected and expensive. Naturally, this is not comparable to the “economical and applicable” mid-range functions.
(Source: OnePlus Mobile)
But if there is a way to give mid-range models “full capacity” while controlling the price budget, that’s still possible.
OnePlus Ace 2V actually provides a good idea. Remove the ugly plastic screen bracket and show people with the extremely narrow front frame. In fact, this “plastic screen bracket” is not a magical thing. It is commonly found in mid-range straight-screen models. It is located between the screen panel and the middle frame, and is usually glued together.
The biggest disadvantage of the plastic screen bracket is that it visually enlarges the size of the front frame, and some models do not make a smooth cut surface for the bracket, resulting in the feeling of cutting your hand when you slide your finger from the screen to the frame. But plastic screen mounts also have a very important advantage – drop protection.
Considering the cost issue, the panel glass of mid-end models is often not top-level material, and the protective performance of these glass is slightly poor, and this small bracket located between the panel and the frame can form a buffer when it is dropped, reducing broken screen risk.
(Source: Redmi)
Since removing this ugly middle frame can make the mid-range models look better, why didn’t manufacturers do it until this year? There are two main reasons. On the one hand, it is a trend that the front frame becomes narrower and narrower. This kind of visual impact can play a key factor when consumers choose; on the other hand, the price of flexible panels is naturally A little loose. On balance, the cost has not changed much, but it can make the mid-range models more competitive in the market, which is a good thing that kills two birds with one stone.
Of course, the audience of mid-range models is actually very concerned about the experience of using mobile phones. Like OnePlus Ace 2V, there is a broken screen insurance for an additional 14.9 yuan during the first release. “, “Back Cover Hardening”, “Corning Gorilla Glass”, etc., in order to alleviate consumers’ concerns about purchasing.
With an extremely narrow panel on the front, a right-angle frame, and a no-frills rear camera module design, the mid-range models that are moving towards a simple style are indeed getting better and better.
The internal roll-up of mid-range machines is a disguised way to benefit consumers
In the past, the value of appearance was indeed a visible gap between mid-range models and flagship models, and making mid-range phones look better was only the first step in its rise.
The mid-range models don’t have to worry too much about performance. For example, the first-generation magic machine Redmi K30 Pro can win the current flagship chip Snapdragon 865 at a price of 2,999 yuan, which is the same as the flagship model Mi 10. The price/performance ratio is still very high. The price of flagship chips has been rising continuously in the past two years. Digital blogger Acid Digital once broke the news that a Snapdragon 8 chip will sell for 1,100 yuan. Say, it’s stressful.
(Source: True Me)
It is not difficult to find that the Redmi K40, K50, and realme Neo series basically choose the Snapdragon 870, a mid-range chip released in 2021, as the main performance. How to say, the flagship core is sold for less than 2,500 yuan. And OnePlus Ace 2V uses Dimensity 9000, which is a good start.
According to the news, both realme GT Neo5 SE and Redmi Note12 Tubro will be equipped with the Snapdragon 7+ Gen2 mobile platform just released by Qualcomm. Although this chip belongs to the 7 series, its performance is comparable to that of Snapdragon 8+. In other words, the flagship core of around 2,000 yuan is really back.
In 2023, the most cumbersome part of the mid-range machine will still be the storage solution. OnePlus Ace 2V with “performance winner” as its slogan, up to 16GB of LPDDR5x memory, and 512GB of UFS3.1 storage specifications, such a storage solution is quite explosive in the flagship market. Here I have to mention that some major international smartphone manufacturers are still using 6GB/8GB memory solutions on their flagship models, which is really shocking.
(Source: True Me)
Similarly, the upcoming realme GT Neo5 SE and Redmi Note12 Tubro will both use a storage solution with a maximum of 1TB. For comparison, the 1TB version of the iPhone 14 Pro Max is priced at 13,499 yuan, while the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra 1TB version is also 12,699 yuan. It is not surprising that the mid-range phone leapfrogged the “Pengci” flagship phone today.
Compared with the performance and storage solutions, the fast charging solution is the best for mid-range phones in the past two years. Realme GT Neo5 has directly done 240W super fast charging. It claims to charge for 30 seconds and talk for two hours. Such a fast charging speed, It is beyond the reach of flagship phones.
Balanced performance, large enough memory, plus good looks, who wouldn’t say “really fragrant” for such a mid-range machine?
The mid-range machine that tends to be “perfect” will become the killer of manufacturers
CINNO Research mentioned in a market report that in 2022, sales of high-end smartphones priced above 5,000 yuan in the Chinese market will account for 21%. Reversely deduced, low-end smart models below 5,000 yuan still occupy a dominant position in the entire smart phone market.
In this way, it is not incomprehensible that manufacturers attach importance to mid-range models. A report by Penguin Think Tank also pointed out that the per capita purchase price in China is roughly 3,182 yuan, and this price is just stuck on the average price of mid-range models. With a large market share and consistent consumer demand, manufacturers are focusing on the mid-end market, which is a good solution to get out of the cold winter of the consumer electronics market.
(Source: OnePlus Mobile)
Watching a launch event of a flagship mobile phone, you will find that these manufacturers focus on images, display effects and performance, especially images, and many brands can talk for half an hour. But this is not bad for manufacturers, after all, it is these parts that are the core key to widening the gap between flagship models of various brands. But mid-range models are different, balance is the nirvana of mid-range phones.
Objectively speaking, the law of “you get what you pay for” is still very useful in the smartphone market. For example, OnePlus Ace 2V uses the Dimensity 9000 mobile platform, 16GB+512GB storage solution, but its image and battery life are not outstanding; Realme GT Neo5 has 240W fast charging, but the battery capacity is only 4600 mAh. In the case of meeting the basic needs of use, maximizing the limit of a certain function is the secret of key models hitting the market.
(Source: True Me)
If you want to say what other aspects of mid-range models can “leapfrog”, it should be the screen and video. For the screen panel, the flagship model has ushered in a new era of “heap brightness”. The peak brightness of the iPhone 14 Pro soared to 2000 nits, and the OPPO Find X6 Pro even reached 2500 nits, which is quite “bright and blind”. As for the imaging part, the flagship model pursues periscope telephoto, computational photography, and multiple main camera modules. In contrast, the mid-range model has a main camera + make-up lens, and it is enough to scan the code.
But for the two parts, just shouting slogans can’t make progress.
Summarize
In the past few years, the mid-range models have gone from pursuing performance and stacking parameters to focusing on the improvement of core functions. Now they have begun to work hard on the appearance and feel. The mid-range models are becoming more and more perfect, and finally they have captured more consumers. The ability to love the heart. The “involution” of manufacturers allows consumers to have an experience similar to or beyond flagship models at a lower price, which is a good thing.
Of course, the mid-range phone is not a flagship phone after all, and its market positioning has never been an all-round powerful model. Only with willingness and willingness can these products be as brilliant as possible on this track. Redmi brand manager Lu Weibing once said at the Qualcomm Snapdragon press conference that the mid-range is not a mediocrity, but should be the mainstay of the industry. Indeed, mid-range models clearly occupy a larger market share, but in the past they were always used by manufacturers as a “price weapon” to compete with their friends, but such an era may officially die this year.
2023 is destined to be a year when mid-range models will flourish.