Global 5G smartphone shipments grew to 24.1 million in Q1 2020, significantly more than all 5G smartphones shipped in the full year in 2019 (18.7 million). Demand for 5G smartphones was strong, particularly in China, despite the emergence of the Covid-19 epidemic.  China is the leader in demand for 5G smartphones, but demand is also growing South Korea, the US and Europe.

Samsung vaulted into the lead in Q1 2020, shipping 8.3 million 5G smartphones globally in Q1 2020. Samsung has strong global distribution networks and operator partnerships and new 5G smartphones in Q1 2020. Popular 5G models for Samsung include the S20 5G and the S20 Ultra 5G.

Huawei is number two. Nearly all of Huawei’s 5G smartphones were shipped in China, where it is the smartphone market leader. The top 5G smartphone from Huawei is the Mate 30, Honor V30 Pro and Mate 30 Pro.

Vivo, Xiaomi and Oppo rounded out the Top-5, taking 27% of global 5G smartphone shipments in Q1 2020. Vivo is number three, capturing a 12 percent marketshare. Vivo’s IQOO and X30 5G smartphones were popular affordable alternatives in China in the quarter.  Xiaomi captured fourth place, with a 11 percent marketshare. OPPO took fifth place with a marketshare of 5 percent.

Exhibit 1: Global 5G Smartphone Vendor Shipments and Marketshare in Q1 2020 

Chinese smartphone vendors captured 61 percent of top 5 vendor 5G smartphone shipment volumes in Q1 2020, with the majority of those volumes going to the Chinese market. This reflects the speed with which Chinese operators have rolled out 5G networks, as well as the underlying demand for 5G smartphones, despite the Covid-19 pandemic that shut down large parts of China during the Q1 2020 period. As China continues to ramp up economic activity, we expect 5G shipments to this market to continue to expand dramatically in 2020.

Clients of Strategy Analytics' Device Technologies practice can access the full data sets here.