Smartphone market likely to remain subdued in 2022: IDC

Xiaomi continued to lead the smartphone market with 32% share. | Photo Credit: File photo

The Indian smartphone market, which declined by 5% in the January-March 2022 period, is likely to remain subdued for the rest of the year due to lower demand amid rising inflation and lengthening of the smartphone refresh cycles, according to IDC.

India’s smartphone shipments declined for the third consecutive quarter, shipping 37 million smartphone units in the first quarter of 2022, a 5% year-on-year decline, according to data released by the research firm.

“The opening of the year was relatively slower as compared with the first quarter of 2021, due to the impact of the third wave of COVID, tight supplies especially for the low-end price segments, and rising inflation leading to increasing end consumer prices,” IDC said.

Navkendar Singh, Research Director, Client Devices & IPDS, IDC India, said that the outlook for 2022 remained cautious from the consumer demand standpoint. “Due to rising inflation and lengthening of the smartphone refresh cycle, IDC expects second quarter of 2022 also to remain muted, while smartphone supplies gradually return to normal, resulting in a slower first half of 2022 compared with 72 million shipments in the first half of 2021,” he added.

5G devices accounted for 31% of shipments with an average selling price (ASP) of $375 in the first quarter of 2022. IDC estimates that shipments beyond $300 will be fully 5G by the end of 2022, Upasana Joshi, Research Manager, Client Devices, IDC India, said.

Overall, ASP continued to rise for the fourth consecutive quarter, hitting an all-time high of $211, on the back of increased prices both for existing and newly introduced devices. The sub-$200 segment struggled as shipments dropped by 16%, but the mid-range segment of $200-300 grew to an 18% share from 14% in Q1 of 2022. The mid-premium segment ($300-500) registered a high growth of 75% y-o-y, and the premium segment ($500+) accounted for a 5% share, with 60% of shipments coming from Apple, IDC added.

Xiaomi continued to lead the smartphone market with 32% share, including sub-brand POCO, followed by Samsung, Realme, Vivo and OPPO.