Gartner: Worldwide Smartphone Sales to Grow 11% in 2021
Publish Date :2021/02/03
Worldwide sales of smartphones to end users will total 1.5 billion units in
2021, a 11.4% growth year over year, according to Gartner, Inc.
“In 2020,consumers reduced spending on smartphones but availability of new
products, will see users drive significant uptick in demand in 2021,” said
Anshul Gupta, senior research director at Gartner. “The combination of delayed
smartphone replacements and the availability of lower end 5G smartphones are
poised to increase smartphone sales in 2021.” Gartner analysts expect smartphone
sales in 2021 to be close to 2019 levels.
After recording a 10.5% decline in 2020 due to the impact of the COVID-19
pandemic on the industry, smartphone sales are forecast to rebound in 2021.
Mature Asia Pacific, Western Europe, and Latin America are expected to exhibit
the strongest growth between 2020 and 2021 (see Table 1).
5G Is the Next Frontier of Growth for Smartphones
The growing availability of 5G networks coupled with a higher variety of 5G
smartphones starting at $200 will steer demand in mature markets and China.
Demand in emerging countries will be driven by buyers looking for a smartphone
with better specifications and a 5G connectivity as an optional feature. Gartner
forecasts sales of 5G smartphones will total 539 million units worldwide in
2021, which will represent 35% of total smartphone sales in that year (see Table
2).
“5G is now a standard feature in premium smartphones, especially in the U.S.,
China, Japan and South Korea,” said Mr. Gupta. “Driven by lower-cost models,
adoption is particularly aggressive in China, where 5G smartphone share is on
pace to reach 59.5% in 2021. In addition, lower end 5G smartphones, which are
becoming more prevalent outside China, are poised to drive more momentum for 5G
smartphones in 2021 across all regions.”
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