Decline of Smartphones Sales in 2023

Smartphones are the most important thing people need every time for the smooth working of their daily lives. It is nearly impossible to imagine a day without smartphones.

Recent reports have proved that shipments of smartphones have dropped nearly 20 percent over the year. It happened due to inflation which softened consumer demand and economic uncertainties. According to the reports by IDC, "It is the largest-ever decline in a single quarter." These factors contributed to the lowest annual shipment of smartphones for the year 2022 since 2013.

According to surveys, in the fourth quarter of 2022, Worldwide smartphone shipments fall to 18.3 percent year over year to 300.3 million units. This drop depicted the largest-ever decline in a quarter and contributed to an 11.3 percent fall for the year. With the heavy downward risk to forecast, 2023 expects a 2.8 percent recovery 2023. As a result, 2023 will become a year of caution as vendors will think twice about their portfolio of devices.

Another survey showed that the smartphone market has saturated in many countries, and there are few reasons to upgrade to the latest smartphones every two years. If we rank down the top smartphone vendors- Apple maintains the first spot, with Samsung in second place. Apple recently saw a 15 percent drop in its earnings; Samsung also hinted at a plunge in profits after the demand for electronic devices began to dry in the recent quarter, as per the reports.

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Aarti Dhapte
Aarti Dhapte
AVP - Research
A consulting professional focused on helping businesses navigate complex markets through structured research and strategic insights. I partner with clients to solve high-impact business problems across market entry strategy, competitive intelligence, and opportunity assessment. Over the course of my experience, I have led and contributed to 100+ market research and consulting engagements, delivering insights across multiple industries and geographies, and supporting strategic decisions linked to $500M+ market opportunities. My core expertise lies in building robust market sizing, forecasting, and commercial models (top-down and bottom-up), alongside deep-dive competitive and industry analysis. I have played a key role in shaping go-to-market strategies, investment cases, and growth roadmaps, enabling clients to make confident, data-backed decisions in dynamic markets.
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