Smartphones sell briskly in PH as Pinoys snap up cheap models

THE PHILIPPINES was Southeast Asia’s fastest-growing smartphone market in the first quarter of 2016, with a big boost coming from local brands selling inexpensive models, research firm International Data Corporation (IDC) said.

IDC, citing its Asia/Pacific Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, said a total of 3.5 million smartphones were shipped to the Philippines in the first three months of 2016. That translated to a year-on-year growth of 20 percent.

“While many of the more mature smartphone markets of the world already displayed signs of saturation, the Philippines smartphone market continues to enjoy robust growth owing to a relatively low smartphone penetration rate, active local brand presence, and healthy consumer spending,” Jerome Dominguez, IDC Philippines market analyst for mobile devices, said in a statement.

He said local handset makers still dominated the Philippine market, flooding it with affordable smartphone options.

“Smartphones priced below P3,500 still make up the majority of smartphones shipped to the Philippines,” he said.

He noted MyPhone’s successful budget my28S model was the most purchased model during the first quarter.

“However, this is no reason for the homegrown brands to rest on their laurels as global and Chinese vendors are gradually catching up on the budget segment,” Dominguez said.

The past few quarters have shown vendors like Samsung and Asus playing more aggressively in the lower-than-P6,000 space, IDC noted. China-based vendors Oppo and Huawei are also on a “steady growth track” as they continue to expand channel coverage.

“As the Philippines smartphone market matures and shifts from being an acquisition game to a replacement one, consumers are expected to demand more from a smartphone in terms of specs and performance,” Dominguez said.

He added vendors should not be complacent and foster innovation and improve product quality and after-sales services to stay ahead of the game.

“Defect issues and poor after-sales continue to plague the smartphone market. It is only a matter of time before majority of Filipino consumers put more premium on smartphones that are not just easy on the pocket but also offer good value for money,” Dominguez said.

IDC expects smartphone shipments to the Philippines to grow by 25 percent this year .

Moreover, telco operators should keep an eye out for further network congestion and adjust as the use of smartphones expand.

“Mobile data explosion is an inevitable consequence of the growing smartphone user base so telcos should carry on with further expansion of their capacity and footprint nationwide,” Jubert Albeto, IDC Philippines country head, said in the same statement.