What is the Hammer smartphone doing with less than 1,000 units shipped on the first day?

[Abstract] This mobile phone priced at 3,000 yuan will be on sale soon, but Luo Yonghao said that the number of units shipped on the first day will not exceed 1,000.

In the fiercely competitive smartphone industry, Smartisan Technology founder Luo Yonghao has attracted people's attention to the Smartisan T1 with his unique "craftsman spirit". Now this domestically produced smartphone, priced at 3,000 yuan, is about to go on sale. However, when people saw Luo Yonghao's statement on Weibo two days ago that the first-day shipment of Smartisan T1 would not exceed 1,000 units, they were expectant and happy, but also worried.

Controversy caused by two Weibo posts

Luo said that in the next one or two weeks of mass production, as Foxconn's Smartisan T1 product line is adjusted to an ideal state, the daily production capacity will reach 1,800 units and the monthly production capacity will reach 45,000 units. If the previous models are all sold out, Foxconn will also add new production lines. As for the deep-seated reasons, Luo attributed it to Smartisan Technology's strict requirements for product workmanship. Considering the low yield rate on the current production line, they will further improve the product's process quality in the future.

Of course, Luo also publicly apologized for the problem of insufficient production capacity, and hoped that consumers could give Smartisan Technology, a new manufacturer, more time and patience. Smartisan Technology will open real machine experience centers in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and other cities. For a period of time thereafter, Smartisan phones will continue to be shipped every week except Sundays. He also pointed out that the 16GB and 32GB versions cannot be guaranteed to be shipped at the same time. As for customers with priority purchase codes, they will have priority purchase rights, and these customers will not exceed 8,000.

There is another detail that cannot be ignored. Smartisan Technology opened the pre-order method for the phone after the press conference, and the pre-order price was 300 yuan. Finally, Luo also confidently announced that their current round of financing has reached more than 200 million in cash, and they also have a good loan quota and channel funds.

Low first-day shipments are a concern

However, for consumers, Luo's remarks obviously cannot satisfy them. In summary, they are mainly reflected in the following aspects.

1. The most direct dissatisfaction that insufficient production capacity brings to consumers is the long wait. According to the number of pre-orders announced by Smartisan Technology, which has exceeded 200,000, even if 1,800 mobile phones are sold every day, it will take 111 days to actually complete the delivery. This means that users who do not have priority to purchase can only continue to endure a long wait. On the other hand, the 16GB and 32GB versions cannot be guaranteed to be shipped at the same time, which also implies that some users will receive their products later.

2. Luo Yonghao's announcement before the product goes on sale that the production capacity will not exceed 1,000 units will largely lead to a refund for some consumers who have made pre-orders, especially after a waiting period of more than three months when the iPhone 6 may be officially released. At this time, when Luo's craftsmanship meets the high loyalty of Apple fans, how much purchasing power will it be converted into?

3. When talking about Hammer phone, we have to talk about its high price of 3,000 yuan. At present, domestic smartphones are fighting fiercely in the battlefield below 1,000 yuan, and the user experience of these products can basically reach the level of smooth operation. From this point of view, although Hammer phone is a product that strives for excellence in Hammer ROM and product specifications, how many users are willing to spend such a high price to "wait to buy"? In addition, the positioning of Hammer phone will also allow it to directly communicate with many international mobile phone brands.

4. Although the hardware configuration of Hammer Phone is excellent, considering the serious homogeneity of Android phones, users do not choose Hammer Phone experience by spending a high price to buy the phone. They can actually get a similar experience to Hammer Phone by flashing Hammer ROM. The insufficient shipment volume will also shake the purchasing determination of these users to a large extent.

5. Another drawback of the first batch of Hammer phones is that they do not support 4G networks. This is contrary to the current situation where 4G phones are prevalent. Therefore, this will also limit the choices of some consumers to a large extent. You must know that the standard of 4G network format has become a necessary factor for a large number of users to select mobile phones.

Insufficient production capacity or other strategies?

Personally, Luo Yonghao's release of the Hammer phone is not entirely due to production capacity issues. To a large extent, it is also partly motivated by testing the market, because at this time, the most worrying thing is whether users will withdraw their pre-orders and give up waiting to buy the Hammer phone. At this time, Luo Yonghao needs to carefully observe the fans' determination and loyalty to buy, and then adjust the production capacity.

I found that in the eyes of some netizens who criticized Luo Yonghao, they thought that the Hammer phone was a one-time deal. But I want to say that Luo Yonghao really invested this time, so for him and his team, sustainable development is the top priority. The issue of ensuring the yield rate is a manifestation of the pursuit of details on the surface, but on the other hand, it is actually a way to buy time for themselves and escape.

Just now, it was mentioned that the first batch of customers who had priority to purchase would not exceed 8,000. From this point of view, the sales of Hammer phones in the past few days should be sold out. Despite this, some netizens will inevitably compare Luo Yonghao's gameplay with hunger marketing. However, I would like to say that before the release of iPhone 6, there is really not much time left for Luo Yonghao to play hunger marketing. The safest way is to sell as many as possible. Therefore, regarding the weak production capacity of the first batch of Hammer phones, I personally prefer that this is a combination of the yield rate problem and the test market. I believe that the production capacity problem of subsequent products will be solved.

I personally have great confidence in Luo Yonghao's efforts this year. Especially after they released Hammer ROM in March last year, from a team of only 7 people to a team of 200 people today, Luo Yonghao recruited technical experts from various fields to test the product, and even invited Robert Brunner, the founder of Ammunition Design Company in the United States, to participate in improving the industrial design of Hammer phones. Of course, they also brought a very easy-to-use deep customization system - Hammer ROM. However, behind these efforts, whether they can get the biggest gains still depends on the market to verify.

Smartisan smartphone sales channels urgently need to change

The 300 yuan deposit can be converted into the final purchase amount of the user to a large extent, but as the popularity of the product decreases, the subsequent pre-order volume becomes a big problem. Among Internet companies, Xiaomi is one of the most outstanding ones in using Internet thinking. They have laid a solid foundation for their sales from the early single online sales to today's sales through e-commerce and operators. Therefore, Luo Yonghao also needs to think more carefully and comprehensively about how to maximize the sales of products in a limited time.

Today's consumers are obviously more picky, and users are patient in waiting for the best products. Moreover, there are many products to choose from in the smartphone market. To be honest, the timing and price of the Hammer phone are actually very challenging. After all, the situation of "wolves in front and tigers behind" has already formed. In addition, the purchasing power of the smartphone market is relatively saturated, so how many users will choose to change phones frequently? However, I believe that there will also be a large number of Luo fans waiting for the Hammer phone to gradually lower its price, so as to reach a critical point that is more in line with their purchase expectations before making a move.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.