On May 8th, Hisense held its first product launch event that did not focus on televisions. This event centered on 3C smart hardware, where a high-end, large-screen "girlfriend machine" model, the X8 Ultra, with a launch price of 7,999 yuan, garnered significant attention. According to the introduction, the Hisense X8 Ultra features a 32-inch 4K large screen, an innovative "Swan Neck Flexible Structure" emphasizing adjustability and detachability, a 15-hour battery life for the whole unit, and a 7-hour independent battery life for the detached screen. It is also equipped with a TV-grade AI super picture quality engine, an acoustic system jointly tuned with Devialet, and 8GB RAM with 256GB storage.
Despite the emphasis on upgraded specifications, at a time in 2026 when consumer spending is returning to practicality and the overall "girlfriend machine" market is slowing down, the challenges for Hisense's new hardware priced close to 8,000 yuan may be considerable.
Although the overall scale of the girlfriend machine market is not large, there are many competing players. The first generation of mobile smart screens was manufactured by LG in 2021 and sold overseas but did not gain significant market traction. In March 2023, the launch of the Xiaodu Tiantian Girlfriend Machine by Baidu ignited the Chinese mobile smart screen market. Subsequently, TV brands like Hisense and Skyworth, internet company Dangbei, and display manufacturers such as KTC, EIMIO, and AK entered the market.
Regarding market structure, according to data from Luotu Technology, in the 2025 online market for Chinese mobile smart screens (girlfriend machines), Baidu ranked first with a 38.0% share. TV brands showed a clear rising trend, with Hisense's market share increasing to 16.5%, a significant year-on-year rise of 12.3 percentage points, securing the second position, thanks to the strong performance of its new 32-inch 4K models, the X8 and X8 Pro.
However, the golden age of rapid growth in the girlfriend machine sector came to an end in 2025. Luotu Technology data shows that the full-channel sales volume for Chinese mobile smart screens (girlfriend machines) in 2025 was 338,000 units. While this maintained a year-on-year growth of 33.5%, it was a sharp decline compared to the high growth rate of 65% in 2024.
The slowdown in growth was particularly pronounced in the second half of 2025. In the third and fourth quarters, the sales growth rate for girlfriend machines slowed to 29% and 18.4%, respectively. A Luotu Technology report pointed out that national subsidy policies, which once acted as a catalyst for sales, saw their effectiveness diminish in the latter half of the year due to limited quotas. This directly led to a 1.6% decline in full-channel online sales in December 2025, marking the first instance of negative monthly sales growth since the inception of the girlfriend machine category.
Concurrently with the slowing growth, the average selling price of girlfriend machines is also declining. According to Luotu Technology data, the average price in the full-channel online market for girlfriend machines in 2025 was 3,589 yuan, a slight year-on-year decrease of 4.1%. However, a move towards premiumization appears to be an important trend. Since 2025, brands like Baidu and Hisense have launched new high-end flagship products with 32-inch 4K screens. Influenced by this, the sales share of the price segment above 5,000 yuan in the online market grew by 3.8 percentage points to 12.2% in 2025.
Even so, in a market where the average unit price is less than 3,600 yuan, Hisense launching a new product priced as high as 7,999 yuan undoubtedly requires stronger product capabilities to convince consumers. Luotu Technology's report further suggests that a product average price approaching 4,000 yuan is already considered too expensive. Compared to highly mature home audio-visual entertainment terminals like smartphones and tablets, its advantages are not particularly obvious, making it difficult to justify a high price premium.
It is worth noting that many girlfriend machine products on the market still suffer from fundamental hardware flaws such as unresponsive touchscreens, system lag, and short battery life, which continue to erode the trust of early adopters in the product category. Furthermore, the commonly used name "girlfriend machine," which is highly feminized and even carries somewhat narrow connotations, inadvertently excludes male consumers who represent half of the potential market. Additionally, the variety of names in the market, such as "freestyle screen" and "mobile smart screen," has led to inconsistent messaging in market education efforts, preventing the industry from moving beyond its niche market status.
In 2026, the girlfriend machine category will undoubtedly continue to struggle with market confusion. Against this backdrop, how to further define the specific use-case scenarios for this product category and improve its "quality-to-price ratio" remains a significant challenge for participating companies.