According to the newest data on smartphone sales for the first half of 2021, sales are high but there’s a caveat: consumers are waiting longer to upgrade their phones once they’ve bought them.
Despite LG’s announcement that it was pivoting away from smartphone manufacturing in favor of other electronics production, the industry as a whole is showing impressive growth, likely improved by the incorporation of 5G technology.
According to the research released by Gartner, Samsung is leading the market, with nearly 74 million units shipped in the first quarter of 2021. Apple came in second with 58.5 units and Xiaomi shipped 49 million units for third place.
A large part of Samsung’s ability to dominate the market comes with their sales of mid-priced smartphones in the $150 range. Only Apple has been able to convince its users to continue to upgrade at high rates, thanks to a loyal market following based in years of top-quality hardware and software production. Apple also benefitted in early 2021 thanks to it its release of its first 5G-compatible iPhone.
Despite Apple’s success in convincing its users to continually upgrade to their newest devices, overall trends in the smartphone market show that users are waiting longer and longer before upgrading. Part of this trend is attributed to the largest improvements in smartphones being released in premium versions of new models, which come with a much larger price tag. Overall, the average price of smartphones is increasing. Users who can get by with what they have may be deciding to wait to upgrade due to increased prices.
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