[June 18, 2013] China offers latest iPhone rival Tweet (Guardian (UK) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) The world's thinnest smartphone, with a touch screen so sensitive it responds to gloved hands, has been unveiled by rising Chinese manufacturer Huawei in the latest challenge to the iPhone. The Ascend P6 is just over 6mm thick, and in language usually associated with skin creams rather than computer technology, its maker claims the camera's "instant facial beauty support" software reduces wrinkles and blends skin tone. The phone capitalises on the growing popularity of the self portrait or "selfie", examples of which now litter the internet, with celebrities from Justin Bieber to Rihanna as likely to photograph themselves as their friends and family. While smartphone front-facing cameras have tended to be low resolution, the P6 has 5 megapixels, compared with 1.2 for the iPhone 5. Its rear camera has 8 megapixels, equivalent to Apple's phone. On sale from July, and with a recommended price of euros 449 (pounds 385), or pounds 21 a month with a contract, it is cheaper than the latest iPhone, which costs pounds 529 in the UK. The P6 is made with metal and glass and less plastic than previous Huawei models, but the current version lacks the iPhone's ability to run on 4G networks. With Apple and Samsung taking the lion's share of profits to be made from smartphones, operators and retailers are keen to redress the balance of power away from the duopoly. Carphone Warehouse chairman Sir Charles Dunstone described Huawei as "the most fantastic partner". (c) 2013 Guardian Newspapers Limited. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]