With the need for online education, work, and entertainment accelerated by the pandemic and the demand for smartphones going up, it was only a matter of time before the swell in the global smartphone market was noticed. Despite the global chip shortage, disruption of supply chains, and COVID-19 restrictions, the smartphone market across the world has clocked a year-over-year growth of 7% to pocket $448 billion in revenue last year.
This is also an increase of 20% quarter-over-quarter, according to a report by Counterpoint’s Market Monitor Service.
It seems that the top five smartphone brands in the world – Apple, Samsung, Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo – have contributed over 85% of the annual revenue. Once again, it is Apple who leads from the front on the successes of its iPhone 12 and 13 devices, which are capable of connecting to 5G wireless networks. The high demand for these devices, along with other 5G-enabled smartphones, saw them make up over 40% of the global smartphone shipments last year. This is a drastic increase from the 18% it contributed in 2020.
Counterpoint’s Market Monitor Service also noted the year-over-year growth of the smartphone average selling price (ASP) by 12% to come at $322. This has been possible not only due to a higher share of 5G devices but also due to the increased retail price of some entry and mid-tier smartphones (which was done due to the chip shortage and supply chain disruptions).
Let us see how the leading smartphone manufacturers of the world did. Apple, realme, and Motorola clocked their highest-ever revenues in a quarter in the winter quarter of last year. For 2021 as a whole, Apple led the way with 44% of the total smartphone revenue worldwide and pocketed $196 billion in iPhone revenue last year. With the high demand for 5G-enabled devices such as the iPhone 12 and 13, the Cupertino-based tech giant’s ASP grew by 14% to reach $825 last year. Its market share in key emerging markets such as India, Thailand, Vietnam, and Brazil increased as well.
Next comes Samsung, which rolled out several new devices last year. Its revenue from smartphones grew by 11% annually to clock $72 billion in 2021. Similarly, its ASP grew to $263, and its global market share in the mid and premium segments increased.
Coming to Xiaomi, its revenue clocked a year-over-year increase of 49% to come at $36 billion last year. This was mainly thanks to the rise in shipments and market share for mid and premium segment smartphones. Its smartphones in India that were priced at $250 and above grew by 39% annually to account for more than 14% of Xiaomi’s market in India.
OPPO, which comes fourth, saw a rise in shipments in smartphones in the $400-$599 and $600-$799 price bands, for which you can thank the high demands for the Reno 6 series, Find X3, and OnePlus 9 series smartphones, Its ASP grew by 15% to reach $259, while its revenue rose by 47% annually to $37 billion. Its market share in China, Japan, and parts of Europe rose, while revenue from OnePlus increased by 33% last year.
Last but not least comes Vivo, whose ASP grew by 19% to $259 last year. It pocketed $34 billion in revenue over the year, an increase of 43%. Other smartphone manufacturers generated $73 billion in revenue in 2021.
