• Foldable smartphone shipments rose 33% Y/Y in Q4’23 to 4.2M, the fourth highest total to date.
• DSCC expects Huawei to overtake Samsung in foldable phone market share for the first time in Q1’24.
• While Huawei and Honor are expected to gain share in 2024, Oppo and Vivo are forecasted to lose share as they drop clamshell products.
• Q1’24 foldable phone market is expected to jump 105% Y/Y.

Foldable smartphone shipments rose 33% Y/Y in Q4’23 to 4.2M, the fourth highest total to date, according to DSCC’s latest Foldable/Rollable Display Shipment and Technology Report. Samsung led the market in Q4’23 despite lower than expected sell-through of its Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Z Fold 5. Huawei and Honor each gained share in Q4’23. In Q4’23, 23 different foldable models shipped. Of the top 10 best-selling models, there were four from Samsung, two each from Honor and Oppo and one each from Huawei and Xiaomi. The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 remained the best-selling model followed by the Huawei Mate X4, the Honor Magic Vs2, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 and the Oppo Find N3 Flip.

Foldable Phone Brand Share

In Q1’24 and Q2’24, Huawei is expected to overtake Samsung in the foldable phone market share for the first time on the strength of the Mate X5 and Pocket 2 and the lack of new products from Samsung. DSCC also showed BOE overtaking SDC in foldable panel procurement in Q4’23, as Huawei sourced more panels to drive its share gains. Strong performance from Huawei is expected to drive the Q1’24 foldable phone market to jump 105% Y/Y. However, Samsung is expected to regain leadership in 2H’24 and lead for all of 2024 with a large advantage over Huawei. In Q1’24, 25 different foldable models are expected to ship and for all of 2024, 27 different foldable models are expected.

While Huawei and Honor are expected to gain share in 2024, Oppo and Vivo are forecasted to lose share as they are not expected to refresh their clamshell foldables on concerns regarding lack of price elasticity, thickness, acceptance in China, etc. However, Huawei is expected to have at least two new clamshells in 2024 with Honor, Motorola, Samsung and others refreshing their clamshells. Overall, clamshells are forecasted to grow their share of the foldable market in 2024.

For more insight into Q4’23 results for foldable brand shipments and panel procurement as well as a monthly forecast for 2024 by model with an annual forecast out to 2028, please see our Quarterly Foldable Display Shipment and Technology Report or contact info@displaysupplychain.com for more information.