Sony, Lenovo, Huawei and ZTE to launch MediaTek-based quad-core phones soon: are the cheap 1080p devices coming?

MediaTek’s quad-core MT6589 chip is behind the boom in cheap 1080p smartphones in China, and its popularity is only about to grow as big name manufacturers like Sony, Lenovo, Huawei and ZTE are all expected to launch devices with the MediaTek chip. Overall, the chip maker has partnered with 20 manufacturers, all expected to roll out devices with its silicon in March to April. To help its popularity, MediaTek is expected to slash the price of the chip by 10% from April.

The quad-core MT6589 might not be among the most powerful ones out there, but it delivers a very solid performance for an extremely low price that allows Chinese manufacturers like Umi to deliver 1080p 5-inch phones with an IPS screen for a price of around $200 or less. That is the off contract price, nearly three times less than what known manufacturers charge for their 1080p smartphones.

With Sony, Lenovo, Huawei and ZTE on board, though, that might be a huge opportunity for Taiwanese chip maker MediaTek to start rivalling the bigger chip makers like Qualcomm and Samsung.