Huawei expected to lead foldable smartphone market soon

WEB DESK: Samsung has been the leading brand in foldable smartphones since the launch of the Galaxy Fold in 2019. However, a recent report by Display Supply Chain Consultants (DSCC) suggests a shift in the market.

The DSCC report predicts that Huawei will overtake Samsung in the foldable smartphone market in the first half of 2024 (Q1 and Q2).

This is attributed to lower-than-expected sales of Samsung’s latest foldables, the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Z Fold 5, in Q4 2023. Conversely, Honor and Huawei gained market share during the same period.

A total of 23 foldable phones were shipped globally in Q4 2023. Samsung held four spots in the top ten best-selling models, while Honor and OPPO each had two.

Huawei and Xiaomi rounded out the list with one phone each. The Galaxy Z Flip 5 remained the best-seller, followed by Huawei’s Mate X4 in second place.

The report anticipates Huawei’s upcoming Mate X5 and Pocket 2 foldable phones to be the key factors propelling them past Samsung in the first half of 2024.

Samsung is expected to counter this challenge with a strong comeback in the latter half of the year, potentially regaining the lead in overall sales for 2024.

The foldable phone market is expected to see significant growth in 2024 with the launch of 27 new models.

However, OPPO and Vivo are not expected to release new flip phones due to lower profit margins and limited demand in China.

Rumors suggest Samsung might introduce a premium version of the Galaxy Z Fold 6, possibly named the Fold 6 Ultra. This high-end model could boast an S Pen slot and improved cameras.