TrendForce has reported that global smartphone shipments reached 265 million units in 4Q13, showing a growth of 6.5 percent QoQ and 32.2 percent YoY. For the entire 2013, worldwide smartphone shipments rose by an estimated 33.5 percent YoY, ending at nearly 945 million units. With smartphone makers ramping up Q4 shipments as a means to fulfill 2013 sales targets and pressures related to inventory digestion mounting, TrendForce forecasted that the global smartphone shipments will decrease by about 5.1 percent in 1Q14.

Thanks to the recent momentum brought about by Apple's new iPhones, the proportion of high-end smartphone devices shipped jumped from 35 percent in 3Q13 to 37 percent in 4Q13, whereas that for the mid to low-range models (ie. those whose prices fall within the range of $450 to $150) remained at about 50 percent.

Despite enjoying noticeable growth in the fourth quarter with an estimated 80 million shipped smartphones units (a 3.8 percent increase QoQ), the shipment proportion of Samsung's high-end devices have shown a noticeable decline over the months. In 2H13, the Korean company's high-end smartphones represented only 38 percent of its total smartphone shipments, which is down from 50 percent in 1Q13. The decline is partially attributable to the company's increased emphasis on mid to low-end smartphones, a decision which caused its profits to be lower than expected in the fourth quarter.

Sales of Apple's iPhones, on the other hand, were remarkably impressive due to the company's decision last quarter to promote the iPhone 5S in China. On the whole, TrendForce projects the Cupertino giant's Q4 shipments to be around 50 million units, which represents a growth of 47.8 percent QoQ and 11.2 percent YoY. The iPhone 5S, in particular, accounts for nearly 70 percent of all of Apple's shipped iPhones (roughly 34 million units), and is partially responsible for the Cupertino company's success in China, where its market share grew from five percent to 12 percent. With the China Mobile version of the iPhones set to be released in 1Q14, Apple's overall market share in the region can be expected to remain stable.

The two noteworthy "dark horses" in the industry who are currently worth paying attention to, according to TrendForce, are Sony and LG. Due to its increased efforts in the field of smartphones and hardware components, Sony has been able to boost its domestic market share to over 20 percent over the years. Its product shipments, meanwhile, saw a series of noticeable growth since 1Q13, with the total numbers of smartphones shipped reaching an estimated 12 million units in 4Q13, a 1.6 percent QoQ and 62 percent YoY increase. In 3Q13, Sony's global smartphone market share rose to around five percent. Benefiting from Google's Nexus smartphone orders, the other noteworthy dark horse, LG, managed to ship a total of 11 million smartphone units during 4Q13 (two percent QoQ and 57 percent YoY growth). The company's worldwide market share, meanwhile, grew to about 4.2 percent.

In the periods ahead, TrendForce believes the influences of domestic brands such as TCL and Xiaomi will be a lot more prominent in the smartphone market. Even though its overall shipment levels are not impressive compared to the first tier manufacturers, the quality and product standard of TCL's smartphone devices have already gained official recognition from Alcatel, and are enabling the Chinese company to earn more and more OEM orders and export opportunities. For Xiaomi, the main strategy will continue to revolve around releasing products with high price performance ratios and devising novelties that surprise consumers. Through effective brand marketing, the company's smartphone shipments have a legitimate shot of eventually approaching 40 million units in 2014.

Despite the continuous decline in smartphone entry barriers, TrendForce stated that the majority of the Chinese smartphone manufacturers' impact is still only visible in the mid to low-end market sectors. In the high-end and foreign markets, the said manufacturers' influence is significantly less prominent. To exert more impact in the market and gain larger market share, the Chinese manufacturers need to work hard on improving not only their product standards, but also their brand image.

By: DocMemory
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