Lenovo sails with Olympic wind

Chen Yu, vice president of Lenovo Group, speaks at the launching ceremony of ZUK Z2 Rio version in Beijing on July 27, 2016. [Photo/Provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

ZUK, one of Lenovo Group's smartphone brands founded last year, launched a product tailored for the 2016 Rio Olympic Games in Beijing on Wednesday.

The ZUK Z2 Rio version is a small-screen flagship, equipped with Qualcomm's Snapdragon 820 processor and 3GB RAM and 32GB ROM.

Priced at 1,599 yuan ($240), the online subscription has begun and first shipment will be made on August 2.

"ZUK Z2 has been one of the most cost-effective smartphone products on the market. With the approaching Rio Games, the Z2 Rio version will offer users more tailored Olympic products and services," said Chen Yu, vice president of Lenovo Group who is in charge of mobile product development.

During the Olympic period, about a hundred journalists will use the Z2 Rio version to make on-the -spot reports, Chen added.

For the convenience of users who will travel to Brazil to watch the events, the Z2 Rio version supports the networks of all five major carriers there and provides unlimited transfers at the price of 25 yuan per day.

ZUK Z2 was issued on May 31 as a move for Lenovo to promote its smartphone business.

Senior vice president of Lenovo Group, Chen Xudong, who was named head of Lenovo's China mobile business group to revive its faltering smartphone business, vowed earlier that Lenovo will make big moves in the smartphone sector this year.

Chinese vendors witnessed slowing growth in the smartphone market. According to global market consultancy Gartner Inc, smartphone sales in China, after growing 16 percent in 2014, were flat last year. In the January-March period, 349 million smartphones were sold in China, up 3.9 percent year-on-year.