Parallel leader – Newspaper Kommersant No. 228 (7429) dated 08.12.2022

According to the results of eleven months, demand in Russia has fallen not only for premium smartphones, but also for devices in the low price segment, retailers say: only sales of phones worth 30–40 thousand rubles are seriously growing, other categories are declining or stagnating. But Apple retains leadership in monetary terms, despite the disabling of some functions for the Russian Federation and the absence of an official service. In 2023, experts believe, the American manufacturer may give way to Chinese brands that are actively increasing supplies.

According to MTS, in January-November, sales of smartphones in Russia in units fell year-on-year by 19% in units and by 22% in money terms. In just eleven months, about 21 million devices were sold for 477 billion rubles, the average check amounted to 22 thousand rubles, which is 3% lower than last year’s result. According to the results of the third quarter, sales of smartphones fell year-on-year by 30% in absolute terms and by 43% in monetary terms (see Kommersant dated November 2).

Consumers have shifted their attention to the middle segment of smartphones: devices priced at 30–40 thousand rubles have become the fastest growing category. (an increase of 30% in units), while sales of smartphones priced at 20-30 thousand rubles. showed an increase of only 6%. Demand in the premium segment (devices more expensive than 50 thousand rubles) fell immediately by 57%, and in the budget segment (up to 15 thousand rubles) – by 35%.

The most popular smartphone brands, according to MTS, are Chinese Xiaomi and its sub-brand Poco (33% of the market in units), South Korean Samsung (19%) is in second place, followed by Realme (14%), Apple (10%) and Tecno (7%). In terms of money, Apple remains the market leader (34%), followed by Samsung (31%), Xiaomi and Poco (24%), Chinese Realme (8%) and Tecno (3%).

At the same time, according to MTS data, sales in pieces of Samsung phones decreased by 51%, Chinese Honor – by 47%, Huawei – by 33%, and Apple – by 45%. At the same time, Tecno, Realme and Vivo, on the contrary, show the highest sales growth rate: demand for Vivo increased by 20%, Realme – by 122%, and Tecno – by 563%.

Among the ten most bought smartphones this year were Xiaomi Redmi 9A, Apple iPhone 11, 12 and 13, Samsung Galaxy A03 and others. Among them, there is not a single model from the fresh iPhone 14 line. “The latest iPhone models, as a rule, do not get into the top – these are expensive premium segment smartphones that are not bought so often,” MTS explained. The iPhone 14 appeared late on the market and therefore could not be among the sales leaders, clarifies the interlocutor of Kommersant in the electronics market.

Citilink provides other estimates for the most popular smartphones in terms of price: in this network, citizens most often chose smartphones costing up to 10 thousand rubles, in second place are devices for 10-15 thousand rubles. In Citylink, Xiaomi, Realme and Samsung are leading in quantitative terms, and Apple, Xiaomi and Samsung are leading in money terms.

The share of Chinese branded devices in the Russian market in ten months of 2022 reached 65% (about 13.5 million devices), while for the same period last year it was 50%, Kommersant was told in M.Video-Eldorado: “Chinese manufacturers have been increasing sales in recent years, and now they are leading not only in the basic and mid-price segment, but also among the flagships.”

The main reason for the shift in consumer demand for Chinese devices was the decision of Apple and Samsung to stop official deliveries to Russia, which “led to a decrease in consumer confidence in these brands,” believes Alexander Surkov, head of the GS Group analytical center: “Buyers have limited access to some services, there is no way repair devices in official service centers. According to the expert, Chinese brands will increase the supply of expensive smartphones to the Russian Federation, as a result of which in 2023 Apple may give way to Xiaomi in terms of money.

Timofey Kornev