Dubai
Dubai-headquartered smartphone manufacturer Xtouch launched four rugged mobile phones on Wednesday, targeting both businesses and consumers sectors.
“We are targeting construction, oil companies and outdoor activity companies who need rugged phones with water, dust and drop proof. In the Middle East, there are no other brands which are ready yet to provide local service,” Tim Chen, Founder and Managing Director, Xtouch, told Gulf News after the launch.
The company displayed basic phones (XBot Champ, which retails for Dh111, and XBot Swimmer for Dh199) and two smartphones (XBot Senior for Dh1,234 and XBot Junior for Dh999).
Chen said that the phones have 5,000mAh battery, almost twice that of an iPhone X, and can be used as a power bank to charge other phones.
Land Rover and Caterpillar have launched rugged smartphones in the market but Chen said that XTouch phones are about 40 per cent smaller, slimmer and offer two — year warranty.
“Our rugged phones are more consumer centric and design oriented,” he said. “Our focus is to differentiate from the crowded mobile phone industry and it took more than a year to develop the new phones.”
He said that Xtouch sold 1.5 million units in more than 25 countries and this year expects to sell 1.8 million units.
“In the first quarter, we grew 12 per cent and 18 per cent in the second quarter. The second half is very important for the smartphone industry due to the holidays. The industry is very tough and facing stiff competition. In China, there were more than 200 brands five years ago but now we than six to seven brands. Our go-to-market strategy is selecting the niche markets and niche categories,” he said.
Xtouch is spreading its wings to France next month after exploring Spain and Italy.
