Infographic: How Much Did the Smartphone Market Lose in 2022?

Given that 2022 was challenging for consumers, manufacturers, and retailers alike, it’s no surprise that weakened demand for smartphones pushed that sector into a decline. 

In addition to pressures on spending created by inflation, consumer behavior around smartphone purchases is shifting toward purchase of premium smartphones that can last three to four years instead of needing to be replaced every one to two years.

With economies around the world in decline and supply chain issues set to continue, 2023 is going to be another turbulent year. So how did numbers look for the global smartphone market at the end of 2022, and what might we expect in 2023?

Additional U.S. pressures will come from slowing of new wireless subscriptions

In the United States, net adds of wireless subscribers are also predicted to slow significantly in 2023. In a recent note to investors, analysts at Evercore predicted sub growth to slow to 7.7 million in 2023, down from 9.1 million in 2022, due to high market penetration and slowdown in growth of business services.

It seems that about the only thing that can be said with any certainty is that 2023 will be another very uncertain year for wireless retail.