According to Counterpoint Research, the global smartphone market is showing signs of recovery with smartphone inventories reaching healthy levels over the past four to five months. It reported that the global smartphone market sell-through fell again for the eighth consecutive quarter at 8 per cent year-over-year (YoY) and 5 per cent quarter-over-quarter (QoQ) in Q2 2023.
The report stated that Samsung’s market share has remained unchanged at 22 per cent despite its shipments falling 12 per cent. Xiaomi held the third place with its shipment falling 12 per cent YoY and its market share eroding marginally from 13 per cent to 12 per cent in the April-June quarter of 2023.
The global smartphone market is now well past its rapid growth phase as consumer replacement cycles get longer convergence in device innovation and the emergence of a mature refurbished market for smartphones especially in the higher-volume low-to-mid-tier price segment demand. The healthy global smartphone inventory has allowed original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to launch and push newer models in the second half and bring in more consumers to upgrade, and accelerate the replacement cycle.
The report also showed that the premium segment of smartphones was underscored in this quarter. However, it is growing immune to broader constraints as consumers seek performance backed by convenient finance options.
