Foldable smartphones have been captivating the market since 2019, consistently experiencing remarkable growth year after year. Today, nearly all major smartphone OEMs have foldables in their lineup.

While the entire smartphone market has been in decline for eight quarters straight, foldables seem to be defying the trend with solid growth.

According to Counterpoint Research, the global foldable smartphone market grew 64% YoY in Q1 2023. Brands shipped about 2.5 million units of foldables. 

China is by a significant margin the largest market for foldable products, followed by Western Europe, Asia Pacific, and North America. In fact, China is the reason why there was a surge in foldable sales last quarter. Why is that so? 

Let’s delve into the details.

Motorola Razr 40 Series

Chinese consumers have more options

Other than Apple and Samsung, the rest of the prominent smartphone manufacturers are Chinese. Due to the vast potential of a country with 1.4 billion people, these Chinese companies have prioritized their domestic market from the start.

Due to various economic factors and policies, it is more convenient for them to test the waters in a new product category in their home nation. In fact, Royole, a lesser-known, now-defunct Chinese company, introduced the world’s first commercially available foldable device.

Though Samsung is known for popularizing commercial foldable phones worldwide, Chinese brands are ruling the market in the region. Huawei was leading the Chinese foldable market for a very long time, but Oppo just got as big as the telecommunications giant last quarter.

As per the latest data by Counterpoint Research, both Huawei and Oppo have a 27% market share each in the Chinese foldable market. With a 26% share, Samsung is the duo’s closest competitor. Honor, Vivo, Xiaomi, and Motorola make up the remainder of the pie.

With the exception of Xiaomi and Motorola, all other brands offer both horizontal and vertical foldable smartphones. That is a lot of options for consumers, as each of these products has distinct advantages over the others. 

For example, if you want an outward folding horizontal foldable, Huawei has got you covered with the Mate Xs series. It is currently the only commercial model of this type on the market. Moreover, if you want the best camera setup on your foldable, Vivo and Huawei offer excellent options despite sporting a thinner form factor than Samsung’s foldables.

The increased options have resulted in fierce competition in China. So it’s no surprise that foldables are comparatively more affordable here than in any other country. For instance, the Motorola Razr 40 starts at only ¥3,999 (~$560).

Foldables get extravagant launches and limited editions in China

Foldable smartphones fall into the premium category. They are getting more affordable, but the better ones are more expensive than regular flagships. 

Also, foldable is still a new category, so consumers need more convincing. Therefore, these products are unveiled at grand launch events, especially in China.

Moreover, Chinese people love luxury goods, so brands use special edition foldables to cash in on this trend.

The special edition foldables from Chinese brands are mostly premium packages with a number of accessories. But Samsung has stepped up its game in this regard.

For those who do not know, Samsung is almost non-existent in the Chinese smartphone market, except for the premium smartphone market, thanks to its foldables.

Samsung sells one-of-a-kind Galaxy Z Fold and Galaxy Z Flip phones in China to set itself apart from its competitors. These special Samsung foldables go by the W series in China. They have additional design elements that make them look like luxury products.

Foldables do not seem to be slowing down

Foldables are getting more accessible with a drop in prices. Razr 40, the world’s cheapest foldable phone, was just released recently. 

This handset, along with other clamshell phones, is expected to boost sales of foldables in the second half of 2023. The increase in shipments will not be limited to China, as most clamshell foldables are also available in other countries.

Tecno is also anticipated to launch its first clamshell foldable very soon. This device could be even cheaper than the Razr 40, going by the brand’s reputation. Even Apple is rumored to enter the foldable phone category, but only after 2025. 

Clearly, the future of foldables is looking promising. The global foldable smartphone shipment is forecasted to hit 100 million units in 2027 by Counterpoint Research.

But will foldable smartphones replace regular slab smartphones in the future, or is it just an intermediary product category leading up to something better? Only time will tell.

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