Realme bucks the downward trend in Indian first-quarter smartphone shipments for 2022

IDC has reported that smartphone companies in India shipped about 37 million units in 1Q2022, or 4.8% less YoY. This makes it the third quarter in a row in which this figure has shrank. Furthermore, the average sale price (ASP) of a new phone hit ~INR 16,500 (~US$211) for the first time.

This unprecedented hike is attributed to supply chain disruptions and the latest wave of the global pandemic. As a result, all top-5 brands in the country saw reductions in their shipment volumes - with one exception. Realme's share of the market grew by 46.3%, with shipments of 6 million compared to 4.1 million in 1Q2021.

Therefore, it has been able to leapfrog its sister brands OPPO and Vivo into third place for the latest quarter, although it has not managed to move Samsung or Xiaomi out of the top 2, even with final YoY growth stats of -4.7% and -18.2% respectively.

This news comes as Realme gears up to launch the latest, and probably most premium, variant of its new Narzo 50 series in India. It is to be the only one with 5G thus far, and is said to have the MediaTek Dimensity 810 SoC, a 6.58-inch FHD+ 90Hz AMOLED display, Android 12 out of the box and a 13+2MP camera hump most like that of the OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite, but without the tiny third lens.

Therefore, it is likely to fit in somewhere under the country's new ASP, especially with its rumored, nothing-special 33W charging tech for a 4,800mAh battery. The Narzo 50 5G is now officially set for launch, although Realme has yet to say when exactly.