Samsung and Apple are the clear leaders when it comes to smartphone manufacturers. They are dominant not just here in the US, but all over the world. Chinese brand XiaoMi is making big moves though. Former Google VP Hugo Barra is now working with the Chinese OEM. They are doing something right, because XiaoMi has overtaken HTC as the fifth most used handset manufacturer in China. According to a market survey conducted by AVANTI, XiaoMi is now the fifth most used smartphone brand in China, bumping HTC down to number 6. AVANTI is a research division of TrendForce.
According to this survey from TrendForce, 60% of Chinese consumers are interested in purchasing the new HongMi Phone from XiaoMi. The interest in is driven primarily by the lower price point of the quad-core device. The HongMi Phone is attracting Chinese smartphone users that have typically carried devices from other manufacturers. Specifically, the HongMi Phone is drawing attention from Chinese consumers who currently use Lenovo and ZTE phones. Where ever the extra attention is coming from, it’s been enough to drop HTC down the rankings. These stats from TrendForce are something that manufacturers like ZTE and Lenovo should be looking at when assessing market value. There are reasons why Chinese consumers are making the shift to XiaoMi phones, and OEMs should be taking notice.
XiaoMi only sells its handsets through its website and only produces enough phones for the demand that it expects. Doing business this way allows them to keep overhead low, and it also creates supply issues because customers tend to buy out the stock of XiaoMi’s popular and inexpensive handsets, almost as soon as they become available.
Nokia ranked third in the TrendForce survey, with Huawei coming in at number four. The Chinese market has traditionally played a huge party in HTC’s success, so this slip to number 6 should be a cause for concern. Paired with the recent news of HTC losing more money in the third quarter of 2013 and the companies continued executive woes, the future does not look bright for the Taiwanese manufacturer. XiaoMi, on the other hand, is making big moves in the Chinese market.