A new report from Juniper Research predicts that one billion smartphones will be shipped in 2016, up from 302 million last year. That’s more than a 230% increase.
It means that smartphones will have overtaken feature phones, with ‘economy’ smartphones - devices with a retail price of no more than $150 (around £93) - accounting for nearly a third of the shipments in five years’ time. The Android operating system is expected to be a key part of this lower-price growth.
Daniel Ashdown, who wrote the report, said “In developed markets, many consumers will want to upgrade from a feature phone to a smartphone, but still pay a feature phone price. In emerging markets though, lower average consumer spending power and lack of operator subsidies will make a low price point essential”.
[Whitepaper]