Research Reports

Overview

Summary
With the maturation of the smartphone market, smartphone brands face increasing difficulties in launching innovative products. At the same time, consumers lack compelling reasons to replace their existing smartphones. Looking at brands for Android smartphones, they are under pressure to offer new highlights in terms of features and designs. To give consumers a sense of “meaningful upgrade,” brands in the Android camp have introduced the most notable innovation in device appearance to date—foldable smartphone.

To build a foldable smartphone, brands have to incorporate several components that are exclusive to this design. These components include flexible display, uniquely structured hinges, etc. Due to the significant manufacturing costs of the specialized components and the relative immaturity of the related technologies, brands have been unable to keep production cost down for foldable devices. The price of the whole device has to be raised in order for foldable smartphones to have a decent profit margin. Hence, foldable smartphones have remained in the flagship segment of the market since 2019, when Samsung launched the first of their kind. Currently, foldable devices still represent a very niche market segment with limited demand.
 

Table of Contents
1. Analysis of Development of Market for Foldable Smartphones

2. Cost Analysis of Foldable Smartphone

3. Analysis of Development of the Key Components That Make Smartphones “Foldable”

4. TRI’s View
  (1) Foldable Smartphones Still Represent Niche Market Segment
  (2) Market Penetration Rate Continues to Rise for Teardrop-shaped Hinges and UTG Covers
  (3) Innovation Is Most Powerful Driver behind Device Replacement among Consumers

＜Total Pages：9＞