The number of 5G smartphone shipments in India increased by 14% (year over year) in the first quarter of 2023, with the 5G smartphone shipment share increasing to 41%, according to fresh study published on Friday.
According to CyberMedia Research (CMR), 34 new 5G smartphone releases took place in India during the first quarter of 2023, with Samsung and Apple each owning a market share of 23% and 17%, respectively.
Additionally, smartphone shipments decreased by 21% (year over year) in the first quarter of 2023, while the nation’s entire mobile market declined by 20% (year over year).
It was in Q1 2023 when smartphone shipments fell for the first time in a quarter since 2019. This decline is being attributed to inflation, sluggish demand, and surplus inventories. Shipra Sinha, Industry Intelligence Group Analyst at CyberMedia Research (CMR), reports that “the overall feature phone segment declined by 19% (year-on-year), driven by muted demand and an increase in feature phone to smartphone upgrades.”
According to the report, slow demand and challenging economic conditions caused declines in India’s affordable smartphone segment (under Rs 7000), value-for-money smartphone segment (Rs 7000–Rs 25,000), and premium smartphone segment (Rs 25,000–Rs 50,000) of 38%, 25%, and 23%, respectively, year over year.
However, shipments of ultra-premium smartphones (Rs 1,000,000 and above) and super-premium smartphones (Rs 50,000 to R$ 1,000,000) saw significant increases year over year, respectively, of 96% and 208%.
The top three smartphone brands in Q1 2023 were Samsung (20%), Vivo (17%), and Xiaomi (16%), with Oppo (10%) and Realme (9%) trailing behind.
In the first quarter of 2023, 5G devices worth almost $2 billion were delivered.
According to the poll, 100 million 5G smartphones are expected to be shipped worldwide in Q2 2023.
Along with the 5G smartphone market, Samsung maintained its top spot in the first quarter of 2023 with a 20% market share.
Vivo came in second on the smartphone leaderboard with a 17% market share, while Xiaomi fell to third with a 16% share.
“In the first quarter of 2023, overall shipments of foldable smartphones climbed by 125% (year over year). This growth in the foldable smartphone industry, according to Menka Kumari, Analyst-Industry Intelligence Group, CyberMedia Research (CMR), would assist the overall smartphone market in CY2023 and beyond.
Additionally, Realme was in fifth place with a 9% market share, while OPPO was in fourth place with a 10% market share.
While significantly increasing its shipments (year over year) by 67%, Apple nevertheless persisted in its steady growth, snatching up 7% of the smartphone market in the first quarter of 2023.