Canalys: Foldable shipments could 'exceed 30 million by 2024'
- Reference: 1644864369
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2022/02/14/foldable_shipments_canalys/
- Source link:
To put that figure in context, last month the analyst confirmed that [2]363 million smartphones were shipped in Q4 2021, up just 1 per cent year-on-year, but for the whole of 2021 sales grew 7 per cent to 1.37 billion.
Foldables have relatively high price tags and with consumers (particularly Android fans) pondering why they should drop substantial amounts of cash on a smartphone, vendors have been looking for The Next Big Thing to tempt early adopters and buyers in the premium sector.
[3]
One device category targeted is foldables, which were initially seen as a ridiculously priced technical curiosity.
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"The key catalyst for foldable smartphones has been the booming use of large-screen devices during the pandemic," said Runar Bjørhovde, research analyst at Canalys. Driven largely by Samsung, foldable smartphone shipments hit 8.9 million in 2021, a 148 per cent increase.
The foldable form didn't get off to the most auspicious of starts, with Samsung's high profile review model being [6]pulled apart by critics . Samsung [7]lowered the prices last year in a bid to give the latest device wider appeal.
[8]India bans drone imports to help local manufacturers take off
[9]Apple tweaks AirTags to be less useful for stalkers, thieves
[10]Samsung reveals new smartphones, tablets... and yes. The S22 Ultra is undeniably good
[11]This is going well: Meta adds anti-grope buffer zone around metaverse VR avatars
Canalys says Android handset makers are under immense price pressure: sales of Android phones in the $800+ tier shrunk 18 per cent between the close of 2021 and the end of 2019, while iOS shipments grew 68 per cent during that period.
Amber Liu, research analyst at Canalys, said: "The real battlefield for device vendors is the software user experience, which requires substantial investment in the user interface and capable software as the foldable app ecosystem is still far from optimal.
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"We expect this year will see many new foldable device launches as vendors continue reducing thickness, weight and price, which will be vital for mass-market adoption."
There is indeed quite a way to go. We had a play with Samsung's latest folding phone at a recent event organised by the vendor, and while the tech was undoubtedly nifty, we're not sure it was elevated above the status of neat gimmick.
A few more confidence-building years to prove that screens won't crease or crack, a few Android updates to add foldable features, along with the inevitable downward push on prices and that 30 million niche might just be achievable. Unless Apple "invents" a foldable of its own. ®
Get our [13]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.canalys.com/newsroom/foldable-smartphone-shipments-2024
[2] https://www.theregister.com/2022/01/18/apple_grabs_smartphone_crown/
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2YgrfIFk8curQ1UNHATxtPgAAAEc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YgrfIFk8curQ1UNHATxtPgAAAEc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33YgrfIFk8curQ1UNHATxtPgAAAEc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2019/04/18/samsung_galaxy_fold_fiasco/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2021/08/11/samsung_fold_3_flip_3/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2022/02/11/india_bans_drone_imports/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2022/02/11/apple_airtags_stalking/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2022/02/09/samsung_s22_s8/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2022/02/05/meta_grope_gap/
[12] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YgrfIFk8curQ1UNHATxtPgAAAEc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[13] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: Rollable
Don't we all?
That said, the first 3 months with my Z-Fold 3 have been, as I believe the young people say these days, awesome.
The folded profile really only gets used for phone calls and selecting tracks on the 'music' player ( currently rocking out to the Lovecraft Mysteries series from Auntie Beeb ), while for everything else ( videos, games, reading El Reg, and especially navigation while tunnelling up the New England Highway in search of the Alfa's next speeding fine ) there's the full unfolded glory.
Samsung, though it pains me to admit, have to be congratulated both for their clever method of upsizing 3rd Party apps, and the thought they've put into making their own native apps utilise the screen real estate, especially the camera app, which gives a wide selection of shooting information and onscreen access to all the tools that are useful for a tog reduced to using a smartphone.
Ah Richard
you just had to have a dig at Apple didn't you. Are you aware that Apple have not "invented" anything in years? Maybe never.
Just like they didn't "invent" a telephone without a headphone socket. That honour belongs to Motorola.
And when they bring out a telephone with no sockets for anything they won't be the first either.
Re: Just like they didn't "invent" a telephone without a headphone socket...
I suspect that honour might just have gone to the inventor of the first ever telephone.. :-)
Headline says "could". First paragraph says "will". These words do not mean the same thing.
Rollable
I want a 28in wide-screen I can unroll like a scroll