Vivo, Honor & Oppo dominate the Chinese smartphone market

China has the largest and most competitive smartphone market in the world. China’s smartphone market has been the largest in the world for several years. This market is so competitive that only a few non-Chinese brands survive in the market. Recently, International Data Corporation (IDC) has released the smartphone market report for the third quarter of 2022. The report shows that smartphone shipments in China in the third quarter were around 71.13 million units. This is a decrease of 11% compared to the same period last year. Continues on slow performance in the Chinese market in the first half of the year. However, the high-end market was less affected, with the overall share reaching 22.4%. This represents an increase of 1.9 percentage points on an annual basis and 2.3 percentage points on a monthly basis.

Vivo is back at number 1 in the Chinese smartphone market

An interesting aspect of the Chinese smartphone market is that it is dominated by Chinese brands. The top five smartphone brands in China are Vivo, Honor, OPPO, Apple and Xiaomi. Except for Apple, all other brands in the top five are Chinese. Moreover, only Apple recorded an increase in shipments on a year-over-year basis. The other four Chinese brands all posted declines.

Vivo

In the third quarter of this year Vivo about 14.2 million units shipped. That’s down 20.5% year-on-year, and its market share stands at 20.0%. However, it returns to the top position in the Chinese market. Its iQOO sub-brand has been continuously recognized by the market for its good product strength and competitive price positioning. Its market share continues to increase, reaching 4.6% of the Chinese market in the third quarter. The Vivo X series also performed well, maintaining a leading position in China’s mid-to-high-end market.

honour

Honor’s shipments in the third quarter of this year were around 12.7 million units. That’s down 9.1% year-on-year, and its market share remains at 17.9%. Among them, the Honor 70 series has maintained its rapid growth since its launch. With its very attractive appearance and good performance optimization, the Honor X40 series has quickly become a “popular” product since its launch. The Honor Play 30 series, Play 6 series and other products also continue to be important choices in the entry-level market.

Oppo

OPPO shipped around 11.6 million units in the third quarter, down 27.9% year-on-year. The company has a market share of 16.3%, ranking third. Shipments of the Oppo Reno8 series continue to increase. Maintains its leadership position in the mid-range market. The Oppo A57 and A97 models are the main models in OPPO’s lineup. These smartphones have shipped over 1.5 million units.

An apple

Apple shipped about 10.8 million units in the third quarter, up 2.5% year over year. It was the only mobile phone brand among the top five brands to maintain positive growth, with a market share of 15.1%. The two products of the iPhone 14 Pro series are very popular. Due to Apple’s lack of market expectations at the beginning, they are still in a state of limited supply so far. The iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus had a limited market response. This is due to their poor upgrades. However, many users still prefer the iPhone 13 series.

Xiaomi

Xiaomi shipped around 9 million units in the third quarter, down 17.9% year-on-year. Its deliveries occupy 12.7% of the market share. Redmi is still the main force in shipments. The The Redmi K50 series and the Redmi Note 11 series are the main selling models. The newly launched Xiaomi 12S series has also gained a good market reputation. This will help promote Xiaomi’s growth in the high-end market in the future.

Foldable smartphones are developing rapidly

This report shows that currently the major mobile phone manufacturers are still mainly focusing on a few areas for development. Some of the areas are screen, camera, large memory and chip. However, there is a conecontinuous investment in research and development of foldable smartphones. In the third quarter of 2022 China’s foldable smartphone shipments exceed 1 million units. This is an annual increase of about 246%. It is also the largest shipment in one quarter in history. This shows that consumers are increasingly accepting foldable smartphones.

Huawei leads the foldable device market and others are following

The face of the foldable smartphone market in China is very different from the ordinary list of smartphones. Here Huawei is the market leader with its strong brand strength and product strength. The Chinese manufacturing giant has a market share of 44.9%. Samsung’s new Z Fold4 and Z Flip4 products sold well, ranking second, accounting for 22.2% of the market share. The newly released Vivo X Fold series helped Vivo rise to the third position in the foldable smartphone market. It has a market share of 11.9%. Xiaomi’s new MIX FOLD 2 also gained a better market reputation than the previous generation due to its slim and light appearance, and its market share increased to 9.3%, ranking fourth. More and more manufacturers are now giving importance to foldable smartphones. Thus, the number of foldable smartphones will increase. Expectations are that the price will continue to fall.

Guo Tianxiang, senior analyst at IDC China, said at the China Dynamic Media Communication Third Quarter Conference that due to the impact of the domestic and external economic environment and some other factors, the Chinese smartphone market continues to be slow and difficult to recover in the short term. Faced with the difficulties, industry players have adopted a more pragmatic and sensible strategy. While prudently and effectively controlling inventory, they still maintain or even increase their investment in product research and development. Whether it’s at the hardware or software level, they strive to create distinctive products that drive more consumers to buy.