- Samsung is no longer the top smartphone brand in Africa, according to a new report.
- Transsion’s Tecno became the continent’s largest smartphone shipper in 2020.
- Itel, Xiaomi and Oppo were also able to increase their market shares.
Samsung may be the world’s largest smartphone maker, but it’s not the case in Africa. The dominant Korean smartphone maker was defeated by the little-known Chinese brand Tecno in 2020, according to a new report from research firm Counterpoint.
According to data from Counterpoint, Transsion’s Tecno was responsible for 18% of all smartphone shipments in Africa last year. The research company attributes the rise of Tecno to a strong second half of the year and its affordable smartphone portfolio. In contrast, Samsung was only able to raise 15% as it reportedly faced “supply chain disruptions” in early 2020. Samsung isn’t the only big smartphone name coming under pressure in Africa.
Huawei retained its fourth place on the continent with a market share of 8%, but fell further behind Tecno’s sister brand Itel (12%).
Xiaomi, meanwhile, saw massive growth in Africa. The number of shipments rose by 126% in 2020 compared to 2019 and doubled the market share to 4%. Oppo also saw 57% year-over-year gains, holding 4% of the market share ahead of Apple, HMD and Realme.
Transsion’s premium brand Infinix also grew and was able to maintain its fifth place in the mailing hierarchy.
Budget phones are big business
Why is Samsung fidgeting in Africa? In contrast to North America or the EU, around four out of five smartphones shipped in Africa are below the price range of USD 200 per counterpoint. It’s a market that is highly value-driven and the players who can offer solid equipment at lower prices are benefiting from it.
also read: The Best Affordable Phones You Can Buy Right Now
While Tecno doesn’t offer state-of-the-art or novel technologies in its products, the reasonably priced Spark and flagship Camon lines are well below $ 300. The Samsung Galaxy A series is the only affordable competitor at this price point. Huawei’s Y series also performed solidly, according to the report.
With the pandemic easing only marginally across the continent, Samsung is likely to regain market share in 2021. But will it play second fiddle to Tecno in the future? We have to wait and see.