Smartphone shipments to overtake shipments of featurephones globally in 2013

Research firm DisplaySearch sees global shipments of smartphones overtaking the number of basic and featurephones being transported in 2013.Global smartphone shipments should reach 937 million units, compared to 889 million basic and featurephones forecast to be shipped this year. From 2011 to 2016, smartphone shipments will increase at a 26% compounded annual growth rate to reach 1.45 billion units. Smartphones will then account for a whopping two-thirds of mobile handsets.

As carriers shift from 3G service to 4G, many emerging markets are expected to show strong smartphone growth. In these markets, models priced less than $200 USD are driving the industry. In China, entry-level smartphones are making up 55% of the shipments in the country. In addition, China is the globe's largest market for smartphones. According to the report, the Asian-Pacific region will be the destination for 1 in every 2 smartphones shipped globally this year.


With the growth in 4G LTE service, smartphones that support LTE will account for 23% of shipments this year. Another trend, this one toward screen resolution of 1080 x 1920 (FHD) will lead to huge gains in shipments of AMOLED and LTPS LCD panels for smartphones from 1.7 million units in 2012 to 113 million this year.

What used to pass for a generous smartphone screen size is not even seen in the latest estimates which according to DisplaySearch reveal that 57% of all smartphones shipped in 2013 will have a screen between 4 and 5 inches in size. 16% of smartphones to be shipped this year are forecast to have screens larger than 5 inches.

source: DisplaySearch via DigiTimes