The Galaxy Z Flip 3 came in at a much lower price than its direct predecessor, the Galaxy Z Flip 2 while providing consumers with more. This alone should make it an attractive buy for several customers. A display analyst has now released a forecast, stating that Samsung’s clamshell handset could be the best-selling foldable device for 2021. Not just this, but a forecast for later years suggests that the foldable smartphone market will become even bigger.
Samsung Will Once More, Hold an Undisputed 85 Percent Market Share in the Foldable Smartphone Market for 2021
Ross Young from DSCC has shared his forecast up to 2026, with the latest statistics revealing that a record 819,000 foldable smartphones were sold in Q2, 2021, registering an increase of 147 percent quarter-over-quarter. Young has commented that additional growth is expected in Q3, 2021, with a staggering 480 percent year-over-year growth to 2.6 million units and 450 percent year-over-year growth in Q4, 2021 to 3.8 million units. Young explains the reason for this growth, stating that Samsung’s aggressive pricing strategy has worked wonders this time.
“This enormous growth is a result of the launch of Samsung’s aggressively priced $999 Z Flip 3 and full featured/multi-functional $1799 Z Fold 3 both of which are the first foldable devices with water-proofing and with the Z Fold 3 the first foldable device with pen input and an under-panel camera (UPC). These attractive products are backed by a reported $2B spend by Samsung in promotions and marketing which are significantly increasing consumer awareness of foldable smartphones.”
As a result of the improved outlook for demand, Young predicts that by 2026, there will be 51 million foldable smartphone shipments, but by then, Samsung might not have that undisputed ranking, thanks to Apple’s involvement. According to Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple could sell up to 20 million foldable iPhone units in 2023, a figure that is significantly more than what Samsung has been able to achieve this year.
Kuo predicts that Apple’s cross-product ecosystem coupled with hardware advantages will allow the California-based giant to wield this level of success, but by then, Samsung may have more innovative foldable products for a variety of clientele. There is also a possibility that the affordability of foldable smartphones becomes an attractive selling point for customers who are not comfortable splurging hundreds of dollars on a mobile phone.
Regardless, we will see in a couple of years how this technology has matured.
News Source: DSCC
