Samsung dethroned as king of foldable phones by Chinese rival

Samsung faces stiff competition from Chinese OEMs as it prepares the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Z Flip 6 for a global launch.

Samsung has suffered a significant setback as the company prepares for one of its most important product launch events. The South Korean smartphone brand is reported to have lost its leading position in global 5G foldable phone shipments.

According to a report by Counterpoint Research, the global foldable phone segment saw 49% year-on-year growth in Q1, 2024. This increment can be traced to Huawei’s strong home market performance as shipments from the Chinese brand grew by 257%.

Counterpoint

Samsung, on the other hand, experienced a dip of 42% during the same period, resulting in an overall market share of 23%. During the same time last year, Samsung had a healthy 58% share and was way ahead of the closest competitor, Huawei, which stood at 14%.

Samsung is the only brand that experienced a decline, while brands like Motorola (owned by Lenovo) and Honor saw impressive growth.

Samsung has dominated the global foldable scene since the company released its first foldable phone – the Galaxy Fold in 2019. According to the latest numbers, Motorola and Honor account for 12% and 11% of the market shipments, while brands like Google, OnePlus, and Xiaomi enjoy a 19% share of global shipments.

The report also suggests that notebook-styled foldable phones are the preferred form factor among foldable phone enthusiasts. With over a 55% share, these large-screen devices have outpaced the flip-styled foldable phones for the first time in over three years.

Samsung’s Z Flip phones have enjoyed massive popularity owing to their affordable pricing and broader availability. However, Flip phones were outnumbered by the combined effort of Chinese brands like Huawei, Honor, OnePlus, and Vivo, which introduced several book-styled foldable phones in the second half of 2023.

Both Motorola and Samsung are set to introduce their new foldable phones. The Motorola Razr (2024) series is expected to launch in June, and the Samsung foldable duo may arrive in July 2024.

While the new Razr phones will offer Motorola a chance to strengthen its position, Samsung could be in for a bitter battle for the top foldable phone manufacturer.