Gadgets
Xiaomi Rises to the Top as Smartphone Shipments to India Increase 25% YoY in Q4 2023: Counterpoint
By - 01 Feb 2024 06:18 PM
According to a recent report by market research firm Counterpoint, smartphone shipments in India increased by a noteworthy 25 percent year-over-year (YoY) for the October–December period (Q4) in 2023. For the first time since Q3 2022, Xiaomi took the top spot during the quarter with 18% of the market share. The accomplishment was made possible by the company's entry into the low-cost 5G market with the Redmi 13C. Vivo held onto the second position, with Samsung falling to third after dominating the market for four straight quarters. Realme and Oppo, two Chinese smartphone manufacturers, took fourth and fifth place, respectively.One of the main drivers of the growth in the quarter, according to Counterpoint's report, was the 61 percent contribution from 5G smartphones. Notably, 24% of all smartphone shipments were made up of 5G phones priced between Rs. 10,000 and Rs. 15, 000. There was also a 51% increase in the premium smartphone market. Due to the release of the iPhone 15 series, Apple dominated the market with a 17 percent share.
When comparing brands among the top five positions, Xiaomi emerged as the market leader with an 18% market share. For the second quarter in a row, Vivo maintained its impressive second place ranking and gained 17 percent of the smartphone market. Samsung only managed to secure 16.8% of the market share in third place, despite having a strong Q3 performance in which it led the industry. At number four with an 11 percent market share, Realme was present. With a 69 percent YoY growth, the company was the fastest-growing brand, according to the report. Oppo maintained its fifth-place position with a 10 percent share of the market.
A different Counterpoint report noted that even with a strong quarter, the overall picture for smartphone shipments in India in 2023 stayed unchanged at 152 million units. The market research firm attributed the lack of growth to issues arising from macroeconomic turbulence, which led to low demand and an inventory build-up in the first half of 2023. The report also stated, "Better-than-expected holiday sales and 5G upgrades helped the market start recovering in the second half of the year."
After capturing 18% of the market as a result of its impressive performance in the first three quarters, Samsung emerged as the market leader in 2023. Since 2017, this is the first time the South Korean tech giant has taken the lead in a calendar year. Notably, the business debuted the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5 in 2023 along with the Samsung Galaxy S23 series. Vivo, with a 17 percent share, continued to perform steadily and held the second position. The next three positions were occupied by Chinese smartphone brands Xiaomi, Realme, and Oppo, with respective market shares of 16.5%, 12%, and 10.5%.
Although Apple did not place among the top five in shipments, it led the category when revenue crossed the ten million mark for the first time in a calendar year.
