OnePlus has had a highly successful first half of 2021. Research firm Counterpoint Research recently reported that the Chinese firm was the fastest-growing smartphone OEM in the US during the first six months of the year, registering a staggering 428 percent year-on-year (YoY) growth. The numbers for the global market are now in and they are equally impressive as well.
According to an Android Centralreport (via), OnePlus grew 257 percent YoY globally in the first half of 2021. The company achieved outrageous growth all over the world. There’s still no topping its growth rate in the US. But OnePlus maintained sales momentum in other regions as well.
In Europe, OnePlus saw its smartphone shipments grow 304 percent during the period between January to June 2021, compared to the same period last year. It was unsurprisingly the fastest-growing smartphone brand in the region.
That was followed by an impressive show in India, one of the strategically important markets for OEMs. OnePlus registered a 229 percent YoY growth in shipments in the country during the second quarter of the year. Driven by the OnePlus 9 Series, the Chinese brand led the premium market with a 48 percent share. Three of the top five premium smartphone models sold in India between April and June 2021 were OnePlus phones.
The story is largely similar in China as well, despite the company only selling its latest flagship models in its home country. OnePlus’ smartphone shipments in China jumped 124 percent YoY in the first half of 2021.
“The growth we see now demonstrates that our approach to offering a premium experience together with competitive pricing is in line with our community’s needs,” said Pete Lau, OnePlus CEO.
Critical strategic decisions have helped OnePlus in recent years
After focusing on the premium segment only for several years, OnePlus finally entered the lower-price smartphone tier last year with the Nord lineup. The devices have been an instant hit across nearly every major smartphone market. It launched a US-exclusive Nord N series and seems to have hit the right spot with them. The company has reportedly sold over one million Nord N smartphone units in the first half of this year.
The US smartphone market has been traditionally dominated by two brands: Apple and Samsung. This is one market that the Chinese OEMs have always found difficult to penetrate. But OnePlus seems to have cracked the code. It will now be interesting to see if the company could keep this momentum in the coming years. OnePlus has big plans going forward and it seems to be well on track.