Smartphone Sales Drop To The Lowest Levels Ever In Q4 2022; With Recession Fears Looming Further Drop In Sales Expected.

Smartphone sales have shown a steep drop globally; typically, holiday seasons are the best in sales; however, this year, the same did not hold when it comes to sales figures for smartphones. 

With people across the globe being laid off by the millions and rising inflation, concerns have put a damper, and consumers aren’t that gungho about spending their precious money on a new smartphone.

The International Data Corporation released the latest numbers for worldwide smartphone sales in Q4 2022, which are not so promising! 

Shipments declined 18.3 per cent year-over-year, making for the largest-ever decline in a single quarter and dragging the year down to an 11.3 per cent decline.

In 2022, a total of 1.21 billion smartphones were shipped, representing the lowest annual total since 2013 “due to significantly dampened consumer demand, inflation, and economic uncertainties,” IDC said.

As per the statistics, Apple retained its position as the number one smartphone maker in the world. 

IDC said that the U.S. tech giant shipped 72.3 million iPhones in the fourth quarter, down 14.9% year on year.

The second-largest smartphone player, Samsung, saw shipments decline 15.6% yearly to 58.2 million units.

“We have never seen shipments in the holiday quarter come in lower than the previous quarter. However, weakened demand and high inventory caused vendors to cut back drastically on shipments,” said Nabila Popal, research director at IDC.

Shipments represent the devices companies like Apple and Samsung send to retailers and mobile carriers. They do not equal sales, but they indicate the general demand.

According to IDC, the challenging close to the year puts the 2.8% recovery expected for 2023 in serious trouble with heavy downward risk to the forecast.

In the top five for Q4 2022—were Apple, Samsung, Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo—

• Apple was the least affected, but not by much. Apple saw a year-over-year drop of 14.9 per cent for Q4 2022, 
• Samsung was down 15.6 per cent, and the big loser, 
• Xiaomi dropped 26.5 per cent. 

Samsung still took the No. 1 spot for the year with a 21.6 per cent market share; Apple was No. 2 with 18.8 per cent, and Xiaomi took third place at 12.7 per cent.

The IDC also mentioned that consumers are retaining their smartphones longer than ever now, with “refresh rates,” i.e. the time that passes before someone buys a new phone ‘climb[ing] past 40 months in most major markets.

Still, on an optimistic note, consumers may find generous trade-in offers and promotions continuing well into 2023 as the market will think of new methods to drive upgrades and sell more devices, specifically high-end models.

While Apple held its position as the number one smartphone maker in the world, the U.S. tech giant shipped 72.3 million iPhones in the fourth quarter, down 14.9% year on year. Apple had a 24.1% market share. 

The decline came although Apple launched its latest model — the iPhone 14 series — ahead of the crucial holiday quarter.

Apple faced several supply chain issues in the December quarter after the world’s biggest iPhone manufacturing plant in Zhengzhou, China, was hit with a Covid outbreak and worker protests.

The second-largest smartphone player, Samsung, saw shipments decline 15.6% yearly to 58.2 million units. Samsung did not release a brand new flagship smartphone for the fourth quarter but is holding an event on Feb. 1 at which it is likely to show off its new device.

Chinese electronics maker Xiaomi, which came in third, shipped 33.2 million units in the fourth quarter of the year, down 26.3% year on year. 

That was the most significant decline among the top five smartphone players, including Chinese smartphone makers Oppo and Vivo.

The forecast for smartphone sales does not look that promising either; while 2022 showed a decline of more than 11% for the year, 2023 is said to be exemplary for vendors as they will rethink their portfolio devices; at the same time, it is expected that channels will think twice before taking on any excess inventory.