Smartphone shipments are expected to exceed 1.8 billion in 2018, representing a 12 per cent compound growth rate from 2013, according to the International Data Corporation (IDC).
HumanIPO reported in January smartphones shipments totalled over one billion in 2013, a 200 per cent increase from 2011.
“Smartphone shipments will more than double between now and 2018 within key emerging markets, including India, Indonesia, and Russia. In addition, China will account for nearly a third of all smartphone shipments in 2018,” said Ramon Llamas, research manager with IDC’s Mobile Phone team.
The company said shipments in 2014 are expected to increase 23 per cent to 1.2 billion.
The IDC said the average selling price of smartphones this year will be US$314, dropping to US$267 in 2018.
“Until recently, low cost has equaled poor quality in the smartphone space,” said Ryan Reith, programme director with IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker.
“Given the competition at the high end, vendors like Motorola are trying to skate to where the puck is going by offering extremely affordable devices like the Moto E, which offer a ‘good enough’ experience that will suit the needs of many. This goes to show that components that were used 2-3 years back in high-end smartphones are still sufficient in many aspects, and ultimately will allow vendors to come to the table with viable low-cost solutions.”
According to the IDC Android will dominate the smartphone market this year, holding 80 per cent of the market share, while Apple makes up 15 per cent of the market.
However, these numbers are set to decrease, with Android holding 77.6 per cent and Apple controlling 13.7 per cent of the market in 2018.
Windows Mobile’s market share is expected to increase from 3.5 per cent currently to 6.4 per cent in 2018.
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