Following yesterday"s announcement of the Honor 9 launch in Europe - priced at €430 / £380, which even includes a free Band 3 chucked in - Eva Wimmers, VP of Honor Global and president of Honor EU, told Android Central that a U.S. release for the Honor 9 is "not planned at this moment." While the company doesn"t completely rule out a launch sometime in the future, poor sales may have contributed to the decision.
A couple of months ago, the Huawei owned company knocked a massive 31% off the price of the Honor 8 in the US in an effort to shift stock, and while that deal has now ended, it is still selling at 13% under the list price on Amazon at $349. That said, it"s not entirely surprising to see a discount like that one now, given that the handset"s successor has been announced.
Despite being on our watchlist of smartphones to look out for, as well as the price drops this past February before the 31% off offer, it just goes to show how difficult it is for Chinese OEMs to break into the U.S. market, despite consistently offering features you"d expect on premium flagships at mid-ranged prices.
Wimmers added that "it"s still early days" for Honor"s efforts in the U.S., compared to Europe and Asia, where the brand is better established. Right now that leaves just the Honor 6X, as well as the Honor 8, available in the U.S. to buy, but if we were to read between the lines, it seems that Honor isn"t done trying to crack the United States just yet.
Source: Android Police