Lower-than-expected prices could turbocharge 5G handset sales

Zhang Wentao was wowed by Chinese smartphone maker Vivo when the latter announced the price of its first 5G handset at a product launch in late August in Beijing.

The 27-year-old electronics fan has been tracking 5G news for a long time. He is one of a growing number of Chinese consumers who are eager to see how the superfast mobile telephony technology "performs" in reality as the public expectation of 5G is sky high.

Vivo iQOO Pro is priced 3,798 yuan ($536) upward, the most affordable 5G smartphone so far. The price is about 2,000 yuan to 3,000 yuan lower than 5G alternatives unveiled by domestic rivals such as Huawei Technologies Co and foreign competitors such as Samsung Electronics Co, and falls in the same price range as some of the 4G handsets currently selling in the market.