Mid-range smartphones dominate global phone market

Globally, smartphone sales reached nearly 1.7 billion units last year, down 3.2% from 2022, according to IDC data. Apple surpassed Samsung in the number of units shipped after many years of Korean dominance, with 234.6 million units versus 226.6 million, but the two companies still maintain a strong lead over the rest of the manufacturers, with Xiaomi in third place with 145.9 million units.

By Aurel Dragan

Apple’s comeback is being blamed on the fact that inflation has reduced overall phone sales, but the decline has had less impact on flagship products—high-priced premium phones. Premium mobile terminals have reached a market share of 20%, and Apple is known as a manufacturer of such phones. However, Samsung, like other manufacturers of phones that feature the Android operating system, also relies on sales of mid-range phones, which make up the largest share of the smartphone market.

This breakdown is also found in Romania, where the market amounted to a total of about 3 million units, 6% less than in 2022. The increase in purchasing power in our country was also felt on the phone market, where the average purchase price has constantly increased. The largest sales volumes are now in the RON 1,500-2,500 segment, i.e., mid-range phones. Sales of premium phones costing over 600 euros, as well as super-premium ones priced at over 1,000 euros, are also growing, but the large volume remains in the mid-range category.

While Apple’s mid-range category consists of older generation phones, which get cheaper when a new generation comes out, for manufacturers such as Samsung, Xiaomi, Oppo, Honor, Vivo or Motorola, this is a wholly distinct category, clearly defined differently from premium and super premium. For example, Samsung, the market leader here with a market share of about 45% last year, has the Galaxy A series for mid-range phones, which reached its fifth generation this year.

Samsung Galaxy A55

The South Korean company launched the latest generation of Galaxy A just a few weeks ago. To be exact, it presented the Galaxy A55 5G and Galaxy A35 5G, two smartphones that bring the best innovations in the mobile market within everyone’s reach. Both devices come with extensive security features, such as Knox Vault, and offer new shooting capabilities inspired by Galaxy flagship camera innovations, alongside a remarkable display that adapts to users’ surroundings through Vision Booster. “With the Galaxy A series, we are extending the latest technologies to a wider audience so that more people can benefit from them. We’re excited to open up even more possibilities on the Galaxy A series this year, including offering the Samsung Knox Vault service for the first time on this series. Galaxy A users will enjoy such remarkable experiences on their new mobile phones,” said TM Roh, President and Head of Mobile Experience at Samsung Electronics.

On the photo-video side, with the improved Nightography function, the Galaxy A55 5G takes sharper and more vibrant photos even in low-light conditions. The advanced Artificial Intelligence Image Processor (ISP) produces good low-light images, truly outstanding for the Galaxy A series. Night Portrait mode and 12-bit HDR videos ensure that people in every image look great, so users will have memories with friends and family without depending on perfect lighting. Both the Galaxy A55 5G and Galaxy A35 5G also have features like Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS) and Video Digital Image Stabilisation (VDIS), meaning photos and videos will be sharp even when taken in motion.

The new products continue the Galaxy A series tradition of providing fun and engaging experiences that are accessible to all users. They can enjoy watching the latest shows or browsing social networks thanks to the Super AMOLED screens, which offer great clarity in Full High Definition. Both phones have 6.6-inch screens that provide clear and bright experiences in various lighting conditions thanks to the Vision Booster function.

The phones are fully compatible with the Galaxy ecosystem, giving users a seamless and integrated experience across a wide range of Galaxy devices. Users can track their fitness goals by connecting the Galaxy Fit3 or Galaxy Watch6 to their Galaxy A series smartphone. In addition, thanks to the Auto Switch function, incoming calls will be automatically switched to the connected Galaxy Buds FE for greater convenience. Prices are around RON 1,600 for the A35 and RON 2,200 for the A55.

Xiaomi

Xiaomi consolidated its second place on the Romanian market, with a share of 20% in number of units sold at the end of the October-December 2023 period, an annual growth of 30%, according to the latest report by technology market analysis company Canalys. Recently, the company presented the Redmi Note 13 series locally, which includes five new devices that expand the popular range: Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G, Redmi Note 13 Pro 5G, Redmi Note 13 Pro, Redmi Note 13 5G, and Redmi Note 13.

With significant improvements in the camera system, design, display, and processor, the Redmi Note 13 series continues to bridge the gap between mid-range and high-end smartphones, offering top durability, a fantastic experience, and impressive imaging capability—all at reasonable prices. The 13 range has prices between RON 1,000 – 1,400, representing a category that drives Xiaomi’s sales in Romania.

Honor Magic

Another brand expanding its presence on the Romanian market is Honor, with its Magic range, which starts at around RON 1,500 for a Magic6 Lite, with 8GB of RAM and 256GB storage, and goes up to super premium prices for the Magic Pro range. Honor managed to rank among the top 5 vendors at the European level in the last quarter of last year after a sales increase of 116% compared to the fourth quarter of 2022.

Honor Magic6 Lite is equipped with an ultra-durable 5300mAh battery, perfect for users with an active lifestyle. According to DXOMARK, this battery allows the user to enjoy 21 hours of video playback, 12 hours of gaming or 13 hours of internet browsing without using social networks. That’s two days of use on a single charge. In addition to its long battery life, the HONOR Magic6 Lite features extraordinary durability, maintaining 80% capacity even after 1,000 charge cycles. The smartphone features a state-of-the-art 6.78-inch curved AMOLED screen with an ultra-clear 1.5K resolution, 1.07 billion colours and a DCI-P3 colour gamut of 100. The 120Hz curved AMOLED screen is 360-degree drop resistant thanks to a structure with micron spaces. The mid-range phone market is completed by models from Motorola, Vivo, Oppo or Asus. The variety of models is so great that any type of user can find a terminal that suits their personal needs and desires, even if this requires a more thorough analysis of the offer before the purchase. However, considering that a phone’s lifespan is between 2.5 and 3 years, users are advised to analyse their purchases carefully.

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