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Despite a global slowdown in smartphone sales, the demand for foldables hasn’t dropped. According to the display industry experts at DSCC, the shipment volume of foldable devices reached 2.2 million units in the second quarter of 2023. That’s a 42 percent year-on-year (YoY) growth from the same period in 2022. The figure is also 16 percent higher than that for the first quarter of the year. DSCC projects sales to reach a new high in Q3 2023.
As usual, Samsung was the world’s biggest foldable smartphone brand this past quarter. However, its market share declined sharply to just 32 percent, which is a new low for the Korean brand. Huawei almost caught it with a share of 30 percent. While new launches from competing brands ate into Samsung’s market, the drop is primarily because of an off-season for the company. It usually sees low foldable sales in the second quarter because potential buyers wait for the latest models to arrive in the third quarter. This has been the trend for the past few years.
Coming to the best-selling foldable phone, Huawei’s Mate X3 took the crown in Q2 2023. Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 4 followed it at the second spot. The Huawei Pocket S, Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4, and Vivo X Flip made up the top five, in that order. As you can see, three of the top five best-selling foldables between April and June 2023 were clamshell folding phones. Overall, clamshell models accounted for 53 percent of total foldable sales this past quarter. Their compact size and affordable price tag make them crowd favorites.
Foldable shipments reach a new high in Q3 2023, Samsung to bounce back
Samsung may have almost lost the foldable crown in the second quarter due to a usual season drop in sales, but it will bounce back in the third quarter. The company has just released its latest folding phones, the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5. The devices have been selling well in their early days, and the trend should continue for a few more weeks.
By the end of Q3, i.e. September 2023, Samsung’s foldable share is estimated to be at around 75 percent. The Korean firm will lead the industry to a new high this quarter, the new report states. The company is expecting to sell 50 percent more foldable phones this year than it did last year. It remains to be seen whether the arrival of other brands in the market affects the sales of Galaxy foldables.
