Transsion, the mother company of renowned brands Tecno, Infinix, itel and others, remains the continent’s top smartphone maker, accounting for nearly half the market, at a time when the African smartphone market withstood challenges to register positive growth.
“Despite macroeconomic challenges, import restrictions, and volatile currencies in key markets, the region experienced an impressive 12% year-on-year growth in shipments, totalling 17.9 million units,” says Canalys
According to the latest quarterly market analysis by research firm Canalys, the Chinese company’s smartphones accounted for 48% of the overall African smartphone market in the third quarter of the year.
That market share remains unchanged from the first quarter of the year but still one percentage point lower than at a similar time last year. Overall, Transsion saw a 9% growth in its smartphone shipments year-over-year.
On the other hand, rival Samsung which for years used to be the top smartphone maker on the continent, saw its smartphone shipments sink by 13% year-over-year, shipping less than 5 million devices and bagging a 26% share of the market.
The Korean company was the only one to ship fewer devices over the past year among the top 5 smartphone makers in what analysts term as “challenges in its mid-to-high-end devices”.
Chinese brands Xiaomi and Oppo were the biggest gainers, registering 100% and 259% growth respectively.
Oppo’s numbers on the continent exclude the OnePlus brand which doesn’t traditionally offer its devices for purchase on the continent through official channels.
Another Chinese brand that was once an Oppo sub-brand, realme, saw its budget C-series smartphones boost its smartphone shipments by at least 100,000 units over the past year and maintain its 3% share of the African smartphone market.
