5G Smartphones Dominate North American Market. Who Dominates in 5G?
5G smartphone shipments in North America in will grow by nearly 40% YoY in 2022. 5G Smartphones North America
The USA will account for more than 9 in 10 of total smartphone shipments in the region in 2022.
Apple is the leading 5G smartphone vendor and Samsung is the leading Android 5G smartphone vendor.
“Apple’s record breaking fourth quarter undoubtedly put 5G front and center to consumers in 2020 and will help drive the entire market going forward,” said Anthony Scarsella, research manager with IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker. “Despite the fact we continue to hear that consumer demand for 5G remains low, consumers who are upgrading are grabbing up 5G models. We believe this is a combination of the latest flagship models all featuring 5G but also the fact that consumers are future proofing their three-year investment.”
But only five vendors can claim market share of over 1% of 5G smartphone shipments currently, and two of those, Apple and Samsung, combined account for 90% of 5G smartphone shipments in the market.
Even if you’re not good at math, it’s obvious that there’s little share left for the remaining vendors. What are they to do?
The North American smartphone market has become highly concentrated among just a few brands – especially so for 5G smartphones. More brands, particularly innovative ones from China such as Xiaomi, vivo and OPPO could shake up the 5G smartphone market while giving consumers more choices.
Understanding who the customers for 5G smartphones are, their attitudes towards and knowledge of 5G, and what are driving their buying decisions are all critical data points for understanding the buying journey for 5G smartphone buyers. It is the job not just of operators but of smartphone vendors to understand these points through in-depth research and customer surveys to create appealing products and propositions to reach the those consumers who have not yet purchased a 5G smartphone in 2022.
For smaller vendors, understanding why 9 in 10 of 5G smartphones shipped in 2022 are by Apple and Samsung will be just as critical.
The U.S. 5G smartphone market will reach a total of 89.5 million units shipped in 2021, up 167.9% from the 33.4 million units shipped in 2020. From there, shipments will reach 153.3 million units in 2025, the final year of IDC forecast period, resulting in a CAGR of 35.6%. 5G Smartphones North America
