This year, we have seen the first smartphones with 5G connectivity although they are still a minority even among high-end devices. According to an IHS Markit report, Samsung is the company with the largest market share in 5G smartphones. IHS states that, in the third quarter of 2019, Samsung dominated the 5G smartphone market with 74% of all 5G smartphones.
According to their numbers, Samsung has managed to sell 3.2 million 5G smartphones of the 4.3 million 5G smartphones in the global market. This represents an important jump compared to the previous quarter, when Samsung only sold 1.5 million units.
Samsung now has five 5G models in its catalog, more than any other manufacturer. Apparently, the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 5G was the model that contributed most to these figures since it was 1.6 million units.
If you look at other players in the 5G market, cumulative shipments of LG 5G smartphones in the second and third quarter reached 700,000 units. Shipments from Chinese manufacturers Xiaomi, Huawei, Vivo, Oppo and ZTE accounted for 17 percent of total 5G shipments. With 700,000 units in the second and third quarters.
Gizchina News of the week
Chinese OEMs bet on domestic 5G rollout
Although Chinese OEMs account for more than half of the global smartphone market. Their share of 5G smartphone shipments totaled only 17 percent in the third quarter. This small share is due to the fact Chinese-made 5G models mostly shipped to overseas markets. Where the majority of smartphones these OEMs sell are mid-range and low-end devices.
“The Chinese OEMs don’t enjoy the same level of recognition as high-end brands. Which consumers believe they can trust to be suppliers of first-generation 5G devices. Oppo, for example, is using its 5G smartphone as a brand-building product to expand its sales in Europe” according to IHS.
As 5G services in China begin to roll out, 5G smartphone shipments from Chinese OEMs will start to increase significantly. Furthermore, Samsung is a non-factor in the Chinese smartphone market, eliminating a key competitor for the domestic brands.
