Omdia exec: China's premium smartphone market thriving amid rising competition

China's high-end smartphone market has yet to show any signs of reaching its growth ceiling, with both market share and shipment value continuing to rise, according to global technology research and advisory firm Omdia.

However, the leading positions of certain manufacturers are being challenged, with the direction of change in this landscape likely to be influenced by the combination of AI and elite imaging features, Liu Yixuan, head of mobile phone industry research at Omdia, told China Daily.

"In the Chinese market, Huawei and Apple are still the leading high-end brands, but we've also seen OPPO, Vivo, Xiaomi and Honor pursuing high-end strategies over the past three to five years," Liu said.

"We've seen the high-end smartphone market shift its focus to new areas of competition, moving beyond just camera improvements, design and brand awareness," Liu added. "One of the more recent frontiers is the development of AI-powered smartphones."

Liu noted that although AI functions have not yet become a major factor for consumers to upgrade their phones in the Chinese market, more than 80 percent of consumers consider AI features to be important when they are thinking about their next smartphone.

According to Omdia's research, released earlier this month, the smartphone market on the Chinese mainland saw a 3 percent year-on-year decline in the third quarter of this year, indicating that the market is still in an adjustment phase.

Although the market has seen consecutive declines, Omdia predicts that smartphone shipments on the Chinese mainland for 2025 are expected to achieve moderate growth, supported by the country's trade-in initiatives.