Foldable smartphones global market may grow by 52% in fiscal 2023

Supplies of foldable smartphones on the global market in fiscal 2023 may grow by 52%, to 22.7 million units. Such forecast was shared by specialists of Counterpoint Research, the company engaged in research of the global technology market.

According to the Global foldable smartphone market forecast, in fiscal 2022 the global supply of such smartphones will reach 14.9 million units.

In 1-3 quarters of this year, cumulative shipments of such devices amounted to 9.5 million units, but in the last quarter of 2022 is expected to decline, which will contribute to the global increase in inflation amid the economic downturn.

To date, flexible smartphones account for only a small share of the overall smartphone market: conventional models still far exceed them in both demand and supply. However, in recent years, flexible devices are beginning to gain a place in the segment of ultra-premium class devices (with prices starting at $ 1000): experts expect that in 2023 their share of devices in this class will increase to 20%.

Competition in this area in 2023, according to experts, will also increase, as more Chinese vendors will begin to produce flexible devices. Competition, according to analysts, will lead to lower prices for flexible smartphones.

Samsung is still likely to lead the market, but Honor, Motorola, and Xiaomi are likely to be serious competition. Their own flexible models will probably present Huawei, Oppo, and Vivo. It is possible Apple will try to create flexible devices as well. Although there is no specific information about these plans.

Some experts are confident that in the not-so-distant future all displays will be flexible and extensible. And devices with such screens will have a number of advantages: they can be more compact (foldable and stretchable) and more durable (it is likely to be harder to break them).

On the other hand, flexible and stretchable screens also have disadvantages: they may not adequately protect the insides of the device from external influences. Besides, they are likely to have limitations as to how many times they can be folded, especially at the initial time. And their price for some time will be much higher than that of devices with normal screens.