The pressure felt around the globe in a tough economy is showing – last year was the worst annual performance for smartphone shipments in a decade. For the entire 2022 calendar year, smartphone sales were down by about 11 percent. And the fourth quarter, usually a massive period for smartphones, saw an even steeper decline of 17 percent compared to the saw period in 2021.
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Decreases in shipments were seen across the board, even for the market leaders. Luckily for the likes of Samsung and Apple, their decreases in sales were slightly more muted compared to the rest of the market. This means the Apple and Samsung’s market share actually increased, even though the amount of phones they sold declined.
As is usually the case in Q4 every year, Apple overtook Samsung as the market leader (due to the launch of the iPhone 14 range). This should again flip around in Q1 this year when Samsung will launch their latest flagships in the form of the Galaxy S23 range. Apple had a market share of 25 percent in the last quarter of 2022, while Samsung came in at a 20 percent market share. Their market shares grew 19 percent and 22 percent respectively, meaning that Samsung actually closed the gap in this past Q4. This is due to iPhone supply chain issues, which have only been resolved in the early part of this year.
So why did the smartphone market suffer? You’ll not be surprised to find that the supply problems had an effect, but the slowing world economy brought the brunt of the impact. Many couldn’t afford a new phone this cycle, leading to many companies heavily discounting their devices towards the end of the year. You can still find some great deals if you know where to look.
Analysts don’t expect 2023 to be any kinder on the smartphone industry.
