Mobile manufacturer Huawei Technologies has launched three flagship P9 devices in South Africa. The P9 Lite, P9 Plus and P9 dual-camera smartphone, which Huawei co-engineered with Leica in order to achieve greater image quality, was unveiled to South African consumers in Johannesburg last night.

Guohui (Peter) Hu, Managing Director of East and Southern Africa at Huawei told attendees that the device has already strengthened their position in the global smartphone market.

"The world at large is excited about the Huawei P9. Global response has been amazing since the 6th of April launch in London. It is with great pleasure that we bring the amazing flagship device to South Africa. Currently we are experiencing great growth in market share in middle and high price segments, around one third market share in the middle and high end price category."

Huawei says it expects the P9, P9 Plus and P9 Lite to exceed sales expectations.

"Our smartphone strategy is very simple, we focus on developing cutting edge technology and designs. Our growth is also the result of investment in the partnerships with our operators, channels and global leading brands such as Leica," said Hu.

He added that the South African market is key for Huawei and their ambition is to be the firt choice for local consumers.

Charlene Munilall, General Manager at Huawei South Africa, emphasised that the quality of the product's photography functionality and said this differentiates the P9. "We are excited to give our users the ultimate smartphone photography experience. Consumers around the world use their smartphones to take billions of pictures each year, making photography critical to their everyday lives. Our P9 users can capture images with unmatched clarity no matter where they are," said Munilall.

The P9's storage capacity is 32GB, while the P9 Plus is available in 64GB. Both devices will be available in South Africa, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda through operator networks from 3 June 2016 on contract and prepaid packages.

The solutions will be made available in other regions later this year.

The recommended retail price of the P9 is set at R11 999, while the P9 Plus is pegged at R13 499.