Smartphone shipments are declining worldwide and the condition is no different in Thailand. The country’s smartphone shipments fell 17% YoY in Q2 2022 due to volatility in the macroeconomic situation, according to a report. Thailand is having reduced consumer demand over the last two quarters. But it’s not all bad news, the country saw a huge rise in premium smartphone shipments.

According to a report by Counterpoint Research, Smartphone shipments have continued to decline in Thailand. In Q2 2022, the country witnessed a 17% decline in overall smartphone shipments. The culprit behind the downfall is said to be the deteriorating economic conditions in the country. The inflation rate rose to 7.66% in June, which is the highest in 14 years.

However, premium smartphone (>$400) shipments are booming in the country. There has been a 22% increase YoY in Q2 2022 despite the overall market decline.

Discussing the factors that affected the shipments in Q2 2022, Senior Analyst Glen Cardoza said, “Thailand has a decent share of consumers who can maintain a good financial standing during this economic slowdown. It is this type of consumer who looks to purchase at least a mid-tier smartphone even in such an economic scenario. With food and related categories being hit the hardest by inflation, consumers who would consider buying a low-tier smartphone are not taking that decision right now. This has resulted in a 23% YoY drop in shipments for smartphones priced less than $250.”

With each new launch in the category, premium models from brands such as Samsung, OPPO, Vivo, and Realme saw an increase in demand. Apple is always in demand in Thailand, but it has mostly focused on the ultra-premium market. Top Chinese brands have expanded from the low- and mid-tiers to the higher price ranges, giving consumers much-needed variety in the post-COVID-19 economy. Gaming is another area where these companies outperform Apple.

RELATED:

• Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 4 Pro 5G with Snapdragon 778G appears on Google Play Console & Bluetooth SIG
• Samsung Galaxy Buddy 2 launched with 120Hz display, Snapdragon 750G, 50MP triple cameras
• Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 Pro launched in India, Pre-orders start tomorrow
• Samsung reportedly reduces smartphone shipment target for 2022

The post Thailand Premium Smartphone Market Grew 22% YoY but Overall Shipments Went Downhill: Report appeared first on Gizmochina.

According to a recent Counterpoint Research, the Samsung Galaxy A52s, which launched back in August 2021 was the most popular 5G Android smartphone in February 2021.

In February 2022, the four most selling 5G Android smartphones were all by Samsung (Via TechGoing). According to Counterpoint Research’s top 10 list of global top 10 best-selling 5G Android smartphones, the Galaxy A52s sold the most with 2.90% market share, followed by the Galaxy S22 Ultra 5G, which managed to secure 2.87% of the 5G Android market share.

The Galaxy S21 Founders Edition captured 2.63% of the market, and the Galaxy A32 5G occupied 2.09% of the 5G Android market in February. Trailing the South Korean, OPPO Reno7 5G became the top-selling 5G smartphone from a Chinese vendor with 1.92% of total 5G Android phone sales in February.

Honor is recently on the rise to fill the void left by Huawei after the US sanctions shipped a sizable amount of Honor 60 smartphones in February, accounting for 1.81% of the global 5G Android smartphone sales. The Vivo S12, the Redmi K40, and the Honor X30 occupied the seventh, eighth, and ninth positions in the top 10 rankings with 1.58%, 1.57%, and 1.51% market share, respectively.

The sales of the Chinese models are mainly driven by the domestic market where 5G has now become standard with a penetration rate of 83% as of February 2022.

In total, the top 10  best-selling 5G Android smartphones accounted for 20% of 5G Android smartphone sales in February. And Android smartphones made up 67% of global 5G smartphone sales in February 2022. Samsung is expected to remain dominant in the coming months as the brand has recently launched the new Galaxy A series which will likely be replacing the previous Gen A-series devices on the list.

RELATED:

• China Q1 2022 smartphone sales drop by 14% YoY although Honor showed a jump of 11.4% in market share
• Global Refurbished smartphone market shows 15% YoY growth; Apple takes lead
• Xiaomi’s 2021 financial result for 2021 shows a 70% increase in profit YoY

The post Samsung Galaxy A52s was the most popular Android 5G smartphone in February 2022 appeared first on Gizmochina.

Apple iPhones and other products are very popular all over the world even in China. This is mostly due to their quality – both hardware and software. They are also seen as status symbols perhaps due to their high prices. But the US company started experiencing a dwindling fortune in China as a result of the rise of indigenous firms like Xiaomi, OPPO, Vivo, and Huawei who tend to offer flagship smartphones with almost the same build and camera quality as iPhones at half the price of Apple’s flagship smartphones.

However, the shift to designs that are more appealing than the large bezel styles of previous iPhones seemed to have engineered a resurgence as the brand has seen a steady rise in its fortunes since the iPhone X to date. The rise culminated in Apple rating among the top 4 brands in China as of September 2021.

A report by market research firm Counterpoint Research has now revealed that Apple threw a surprise by edging out Vivo to emerge as the number one smartphone vendor in China! The reach firm noted that this is the first time since December 2015 Apple was emerging as the largest smartphone vendor in China.

The feat is no doubt made possible by the exploits of the iPhone 13 series that got released not too long ago. The brand’s sales grew 46% over the figure for September. This is the highest growth recorded in October 2021 by any vendor in China. In contrast, the entire Chinese smartphone market grew by just 2% MoM during the period. Also, the fall of Huawei as a result of the US trade ban contributed to Apple’s growth. Huawei’s flagship smartphones have often heated Apple’s in terms of the camera prowess on DXOMark. The smartphones also offer the same build quality and amazing features as those on the iPhones but for a lesser price offering.

RELATED:

• Apple executives explain why MacBooks lack Face ID and touch screen
• iPhone 13 cost to price ratio indicates that Apple is focusing on better value for money
• Apple officially offers a way to hide the notch on 2021 MacBook Pro

(source)

The post Apple beats Vivo to emerge as the largest smartphone vendor in China in October 2021 appeared first on Gizmochina.

It’s been a couple of years since the foldable smartphone has become a reality. While such devices are quite new, South Korean tech giant Samsung is gearing up to launch its third-generation of foldable phones on 11th August at Galaxy Unpacked event.

The upcoming devices from Samsung are expected to have an improved design and come at a competitive price point. With major improvements and lower pricing, the company is hoping to drive more sales of foldable phones.

A report from Counterpoint Research forecasts that the shipments of foldable smartphones will grow by three times this year compared to last year. However, the number of shipments is still expected to be in single digit, around 9 million.

But in a couple of years, by 2023, there could be 10x growth in shipment of such phones.  It adds that Samsung will be dominating the market with more than 88 percent of the market share for foldable devices.

Currently, there are only a handful of companies with foldable smartphones and thus, Samsung remains the market leader. However, the South Korean giant will continue to dominate the market with over 75 percent of the market share even after other brands launch their own foldable phones, claims the report.

Samsung seems to be the only major company that is pushing for foldable smartphones to become mainstream. Other smartphone manufacturers like Xiaomi, OPPO, Vivo, and Honor among others are expected to launch their first commercial foldable smartphone late this year but a launch timeline is not available yet. Even Apple is reportedly working on a foldable iPhone which could get launched in 2023.

RELATED: 

• Samsung patent reveals next-gen Gesture Controls for Foldable Smartphones
• The foldable Pixel phone is still coming this year, Pixel Roll in 2022
• Xiaomi patents new fast wireless charging tech for foldable smartphones
• Vivo trademarks NEX Fold, NEX Slide, and NEX Roll for its foldable and rollable devices

The post Foldable smartphone shipments could grow 10x by 2023, claims Counterpoint Research appeared first on Gizmochina.

Research firm Counterpoint Research has released its outlook of the global refurbished smartphone sales for 2020 and 2021. The research covered global sales of refurbished smartphones in 2020, with some solid projections for 2021.

The Counterpoint research showed a jump of 4% in global sales of refurbished phones in the second half of 2020, compared to the first half of the year. The overall performance in 2020 was also better than the previous year, 2019, which globally saw a decline in the market volume.

As a result of the coronavirus pandemic, many countries worldwide experienced substantial dips in their economies, with significant job losses reported in all the regions. This could have contributed to the rise in the patronage of refurbished phones, as shown by the Counterpoint research. Counterpoint also notes a sharp rise in demand and supply of refurbished smartphones in 2020, mainly in the second half of the year. Resell volumes and trade-ins were observed to have gone up in all the regions covered by the survey.

The regions covered by the Counterpoint research are the US, Latin America, Europe, Southeast Asia, India, and Africa. With the average selling price of Apple refurbished phones up to three times higher than the average of other brands, greater preference was observed for the brand ahead of other brands in the secondary market. The more extensive rollout of 5G technology across 150 mobile operators in 70 countries did not affect the increased appetite for Apple phones, as shown by the numbers released by the Counterpoint Research.

The outlook for 2021, according to the research, remains bright within the secondary phone market globally. The sometimes significantly lower average selling prices of products in the secondary market could be fuelling the demand for products from the market. At the same time, supply may have been driven by several possible factors, including a dip in the global economy that has limited the purchasing power of some segments of consumers.

RELATED:

• Xiaomi could offer 100W fast charging support to Redmi Note series smartphones
• Most Flagship smartphones will still feature punch hole cameras in 2022: Tipster
• China smartphone shipments in May fell by 32%, reaching 23 million units

(source)

The post Counterpoint report shows a 4% growth in global refurbished smartphone sales in 2020 appeared first on Gizmochina.

Apple has just recently announced its latest flagship series of smartphones, the iPhone 12. The lineup will help boost its sales during the fourth quarter of 2020, while also helping in outperforming the global smartphone market this year.

According to Tom Kang, Research Director at CounterPoint Research, “Apple has done a great job outperforming the global smartphone market. During the COVID-19 low point in Q2 2020, Apple was helped by the timely launch of the iPhone SE, which created a new, low price point for iPhones at $399. It helped Apple get through the worst months of COVID-19 and its lockdown periods. In addition, the iPhone 11 has proved to have great longevity, still selling over one million devices per week on the brink of a refresh. The SE and iPhone 11 helped maintain momentum through Q3 as the general market remained negative.”

Editor’s Pick: Samsung Galaxy S20 FE and Galaxy F41 now available for purchase in India

In other words, while various smartphone OEMs suffered from the impacts of the Coronavirus outbreak, strategic launches from Apple, helped in softening the blow. Furthermore, it is expected that the iPhone 12 lineup will outperform the iPhone 11 during the opening year, despite launching a month later. The overall global smartphone market is expected to also decline by 10 percent this year, however, the Cupertino based giant will reportedly see a growth of 4 percent year on year.

As per the report, demands for a new iPhone for iOS users had also been pent up with year, and the upgrade to 5G networking is also a highly desired feature in certain markets. Furthermore, the varied options for the display sizes and prices might drive sales in different markets, with nations with 5G infrastructure likely seeing an increase in iPhone 12 series’ shipments.

UP NEXT: Infinix Note 8, Note 8i launched with Helio G80, up to 64MP quad cameras, 5,200mAh battery with fast charging

The post Apple to Outperform Global Smartphone market, iPhone 12 to raise sales in Q4 2020: Report appeared first on Gizmochina.

The global online music streaming revenues have declined 2 percent quarter on quarter but grew by 13 percent over last year at 6.7 billion US Dollars. The fall in music streaming arrives after the sudden surge that occurred earlier this year due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

According to a Counterpoint Research report, the paid subscriptions for online music streaming grew by 29 percent year on year over 35 percent in the previous quarter. Research Analyst Abhilash Kumar stated that “The growth slowed down in the second quarter and, for the first time, the revenues declined sequentially. There are a couple of reasons for the same. Also, the advertisement revenues saw a dip since many companies opted to cut expenditure in view of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, podcasts related to different genres were able to keep people glued, offsetting some of the decline.”

Editor’s Pick: HUAWEI Watch GT 2 Pro, FreeBuds Pro & MateBook 14 2020 AMD are on sale in the UK with exciting freebies

In terms of overall monthly active users, Tencent Music, along with its subsidiaries QQ Music, Kuwo, and Kugoi, led the charts in Q2 2020 with a 26 percent share, followed by Spotify and YouTube Music with 12 to 10 percent shares respectively. However, Spotify led the paid subscriptions numbers, with a 34 percent market share followed by Apple Music at 21 percent and Amazon Music at 15 percent.

For those unaware, while various nations, economies, and industries faced the impacts of the pandemic and the subsequent lockdowns, the online streaming market remained unaffected. Rather, the industry saw a boom during this time in both paid subscribers and overall userbase as people stayed indoors. Although, this surge has already started to decline quarter on quarter and is expected to reach pre COVID-19 levels by Q4 2020.

UP NEXT: October 2020 security update brings a ton of fixes & improvements for Google Pixels

The post Global Online Music Streaming market growth slows in Q2 2020 appeared first on Gizmochina.

Samsung’s Unpacked event is right around the corner as the anticipation for its 2020 flagship series, the Galaxy S20 lineup grows. The smartphone will succeed the popular Galaxy S10 series and reportedly may see sales figures surpassing 40 million units.

According to Counterpoint, a research and analytics agency, Samsung’s Galaxy S20 series may surpass 40 million units in total shipments. The firm believes that the improvements to the South Korean giant’s upcoming flagship will make it highly attractive to potential buyers. The flagship series will arrive with various performance improvements alongside photography as a major area apart from other aspects as well.

The large sum of Galaxy S20 series unit shipments is also reflective of the recovering and growing global smartphone market. In recent years, Samsung’s flagship Galaxy S series smartphone offerings have been popular in many regions. The latest iteration’s improvements in the photography side will seek to continue this pattern too.

UP NEXT: Samsung Galaxy M31 leak reveals 6.4-inch display 6,000mAh battery and variants

The base Samsung Galaxy S20 model will be equipped with a 12 megapixel primary camera alongside a 64 megapixel telephoto lens, 12 megapixel ultra wide lens and a ToF sensor as well. On the other hand, the Galaxy S20 Ultra model is stated to arrive with a massive 108 megapixel sensor along with a 48 megapixel telephoto lens for 10x zoom and 100x digital zoom. Furthermore, it is being speculated that the RAM offerings will be sizeable too, with up to 16GB being configurations being available.

Unfortunately, we will have to wait for the Samsung Unpacked event for the official announcement to know for sure if the Galaxy S20 series is worth such a high market expectation. The event takes place on the 11th of February 2020, so stay tuned for launch updates and more.

UP NEXT: Coronavirus may force Sharp to move its production out of China, Nintendo faces delays as well

(Source)

The post Samsung Galaxy S20 series sales may surpass 40 million shipments: Counterpoint appeared first on Gizmochina.

A new Counterpoint report has revealed that OnePlus, a Chinese smartphone manufacturer, has grabbed the top spot in the Indian smartphone market in the premium segments.

In recent years, OnePlus has grown significantly to become one of the most recognized smartphone brands in the Indian subcontinent. According to the Counterpoint report, the company led the premium smartphone segment with a 33 percent market share. This marks the first time the company took the top spot while also surpassing 2 million smartphone shipments in India, within 2019.

On the other hand, the previous market leader, Samsung, arrives second with a market share of just 26 percent in the same market segment. Apple follows close behind the South Korean tech giant with a 25 percent market share and was touted to be the fastest growing premium smartphone brand in 2019; marking a 41 percent year on year bump over 2019. The success of the Cupertino based giant has been accredited to its popular and relatively affordable offering, the iPhone XR.

Editor’s Pick: OnePlus joins Wireless Power Consortium; proof OnePlus 8 series will have wireless charging 

The premium segment in India includes smartphones sold above which are priced at 30,000 INR (or roughly 421 US Dollars) or above. Notably, this segment also saw remarkable growth with an overall market rise of 29 percent over 2018, reaching record breaking smartphone shipments as well.

Pete Lau, Founder and CEO of OnePlus, stated that “2019 has been a remarkable year for us at OnePlus. Every milestone we have achieved strengthened our pursuit for excellence in technology. We will remain dedicated towards creating burden-less and best-in-class user experience.”

Notably, the company’s OnePlus 7 series of smartphones has emerged as the most popular premium segment smartphone in the Southeast Asian country in 2019. The device’s popularity is said to have been boosted. Furthermore, even the ultra-premium segment which includes devices over 45,000 INR also saw impressive growth of 63 percent over 2018, with OnePlus also offerings more handsets in this segment as well.

UP NEXT: Nubia President comments on the Red Magic 5G smartphones battery’s capabilities

(Source)

The post OnePlus takes top spot in the Indian Premium Smartphone Market in 2019: Counterpoint appeared first on Gizmochina.

According to a new report, smartphones with an AMOLED display (Active-matrix organic light-emitting diode) are expected to surpass 600 million units in sales in 2020. This is indicative of the displays explosive popularity in the past couple of years which is still on a steep rise.

Based on a Counterpoint research note, the global sale of smartphones with AMOLED screens will exceed the 600 million shipment mark by the end of 2020. It is a sizable YoY (Year-on-Year) growth of 46 percent from 2019. This rise is expected to arrive with the inclusion of AMOLED display panels in mid range segment of smartphones. Certain Chinese brands like Huawei, Vivo, Oppo, Realme, and Xiaomi are a few of the OEMs that will be making this move.

Displays are one of the most crucial parts of the overall user experience. In 2019, smartphone displays received a lot of attention in terms of features and advertising. This was done to facilitate people in replacing their older handsets for the newer and upgraded versions that had thinner bezels, smaller screen to body ratio, increased refresh rates and more. It also quickly became one of the most promoted part of a smartphone.

UP NEXT: Sony can’t keep up with overwhelming image sensor demands

Furthermore, the inclusion of certain features like in-display fingerprint scanner and and a punch-hole camera led to further growth of the AMOLED panels; which is touted to be better over its LCD counterpart due to its superior image quality, lower power consumption and even flexible form factor. Counterpoint believes that AMOLED smartphones will see increased demand, especially in China, which will lead to Chinese brands aggressively pricing their handsets.

This would bring the AMOLED screen that is generally seen in flagship models to also be found in mid tier smartphone of 2020. Currently, Samsung is the leading OEM with 45 percent of the total AMOLED smartphone shipments. The South Korean giant is followed by Apple with a 16 percent market share and Oppo with an 11 percent share. Lastly, a smartphone with OLED displays are generally placed between the $300-400 price segment but might soon be seen in sub-$200 segments as well.

UP NEXT: TSMC’s supply of 14nm chips to Huawei could be disrupted by the US

(Source)

The post AMOLED Smartphone sales to exceed 600 million units in 2020 appeared first on Gizmochina.

Research firm Counterpoint Research has released its statistical data for smartphone shipments in China for the entire quarters of 2017. The statistical data shows the global smartphone market shares for Q3 2017 as well as the mobile phone market shipment comprising both smartphones and feature phones.According to the report, last year was a not so positive one for the market in China as sales volume grew by 5% but there was a 1% drop in smartphone shipments compared to the previous year. Shipments took a dive with a  4% drop in market shares YoY in Q4 2017 but in Q3, shipments were up by 5% when compared to the same period last year. Counterpoint’s James Yan, a research director explained that the year 2017 was a tough one for the Chinese handset makers due to a reduction in smartphone shipments. This is said to be due to the huge shipments made in 2016 to balance the huge marketing expenditures in the second half of the year which led to the need to clean up the inventory accumulated in 2016 last year. The surge in full-screen models being launched in China was in a way a move to get many buyers to replace their smartphones with new models which would help the overall sales. But then this created a lot of inventory of older models which had to compete with the new full-screen models.

Read More: 7 Most Beautiful Chinese Smartphones of 2017

On the individual OEM scale, Huawei emerged as the number one Chinese smartphone brand. Huawei’s shipments increased by 8% in the fourth quarter of 2017 and in the entire year it grew by 19% YoY. Thus, the company is the number one manufacturer n China last year. Don’t forget also that Huawei still ranks among the top 3 global manufacturers. Huawei is closely followed by OPPO with an 18% growth and then Vivo is at number 3 with 17% compared to 2016’s 14% growth. China’s Apple, Xiaomi came in at the number 4 spot after resurging from a turbulent 2016. The company saw its market share grow by just 1% from 11% in 2016 to 12% last year. U.S giant Apple Corp. completes the top five with an 11% shipment. Apple’s market share remained stagnant at 11% which is a result of slumping sales last year. Also worthy of note is the huge drop in the gross shipments by other mobile phone vendors from 33% to 23%.

(source)

The post Counterpoint’s 2017 Chinese Market Ranking Places Huawei At Top Spot, Xiaomi In Fourth appeared first on Gizmochina.

A survey carried out by Counterpoint Research revealed that two out of three mobile phone users in India plans to change their phone in the next one year. The desire to upgrade to a new smartphone stems from wanting a device with 4G capabilities. The survey also revealed that one in every three persons wants a smartphone with a fingerprint scanner and a better front facing camera.

A research director at the firm, Neil Shah says that Chinese brands that offer phones which meet these standards in the sub-$200 category will benefit. However, bigger brands like Apple will have to wait a bit longer before they can benefit, probably post-2018. The reason is because by then, the user base would have matured, 4G network will be everywhere and people will want to upgrade to a better device.

“In the longer term you will have a bigger user base who will want to upgrade to a better phone. Apple will benefit post-2018 with a maturing user base and the 4G network will be available everywhere. People will be using more services. In the next two years it would be a good idea for Apple to roll out their retail footprint and invest in manufacturing.”

Apple CEO,Tim Cook said earlier this year that the company had an “all-time record revenue results” in India last year. The American company is planning to have an assembly plant in India which should help reduce the cost of their devices. The cheapest iPhone at the moment is the iPhone SE and it sells for Rs 27,000 ($420.50). That is higher than the cost of the Xiaomi Mi 5 which sells for Rs 22,999.

READ MORE: New Xiaomi Factory in India Makes One Phone Per Second

A recent report by Strategy Analytics says Xiaomi is the most preferred brand in India. The survey also revealed that half of the smartphone users in the country prefer purchasing phones priced between Rs 10,000 ($155) and Rs 20,000 ($308). Let’s see if Apple will indeed change the stats after 2018.

(Source)

The post Indian Smartphone Market: Chinese Brands Benefit in Short Term, Apple Gains in The Long Term appeared first on Gizmochina.

For the first time in five years, the iPhone wasn’t the best selling smartphone in China. That title is now held by the OPPO R9 which sold 17 million units, which is 4% of the market share and 5 million units more than the units of iPhone 6s sold in 2016. The report comes from Counterpoint Research, an analysis firm with headquarters in Hong Kong.

It is one thing to not be the top selling smartphone and it is another thing to have declining sales. For Apple, they are also suffering from the latter. In 2016, top sellers like OPPO, Vivo, and Huawei recorded an increase in shipments by 109%, 78%, and 21% respectively; Apple’s shipments declined by 21%, a tad better than Xiaomi who recorded a 22% decline in shipments.

The statement below from the research director at Counterpoint, Neil Shah explains why Apple suffered a decline last year:

READ MORE: Apple Sues Qualcomm in China, Seeks 1 Billion Yuan in Damages

Counterpoint research also says that Apple’s declining sales in China is also as a result of the popularity of mid-range smartphones. Apple knows that sales are declining in China and it is focusing on the next big market, India which  is exactly what Xiaomi is doing too.

(Source)

The post iPhone Loses Position of Top Selling Phone in China for The First Time in 5 Years appeared first on Gizmochina.