Smartphone makers may sell over 6.35 lakh foldable phones this year: Report

Foldable smartphones have emerged as a visible differentiator in the luxe smartphone segment

Smartphone makers may end up selling over 6.35 lakh foldable phones this year. That means this segment could contribute little less than 0.5% of the total sales by volume estimated for the period, according to research firm Techarc. The foldable phone segment includes flip type phones as well.

The research firm estimates foldable phones to cross a million mark in annual sales by 2025, and then double by 2028.  Within the segment, phones priced less than ₹80,000 will play a key role in driving growth in the segment. In 2023, this sub-group is expected to half of the total sales in unit terms.

“The market is divided in two variants of H-fold (flip smartphones) and V-Fold (fold or book fold smartphones). As per our estimates, 64% of the sales during 2023, will be flip smartphones,” it said.

Based on a dipstick survey of 650 high-end smartphone users who currently own a phone that costs more than ₹50,000, potential customers for a foldable smartphone said ease of content consumption as the primary reason for considering this segment. But durability remained a top concern for this cohort.

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Foldable smartphones have emerged as a visible differentiator in the luxe smartphone segment. This form factor is also giving the Android premium smartphone makers a reason to stand out from the iPhone.