Xperia rises to the top of the Android smartphone sales share-Anxiety factor in the strong "Xperia View" now: Ishikawa On's smartphone industry newspaper

MM Research Institute announced the shipment volume of domestic mobile phone terminals in the first half of 2021 (April-September 2021). In the number of smartphone shipments, Sony became the number one Android smartphone, and Sharp, which had kept the number one so far, fell to the second place.

This article is partly reprinted from the mail magazine "Ishikawa On's Smartphone Industry Newspaper" delivered every Saturday. This article was delivered on November 27, 2021. Click here to apply for an e-mail magazine subscription (550 yen per month including tax).

For Sony, the Xperia 10 III and Xperia Ace II are probably doing well. It seems that the number of units sold has increased due to the low-price route, which is easy for users to reach, and the expansion of sales channels such as sub-brands and MVNOs.

The strategy of "earning the number of units in the middle class", which other companies were good at, seems to be finally succeeding at Sony.

As a smartphone maker, it is becoming a standard winning pattern to "earn the number of units in the middle class while appealing the brand power as a high-end manufacturer". For 10 years in a row, Apple, which has been the number one smartphone manufacturer in terms of shipments, also launches new high-end products every fall, but it is the iPhone SE that is steadily earning sales this year, and recently sold for 1 yen. Isn't it the iPhone 12 mini that is no longer rare to be stolen?

As for Sony, while high-end routes such as Xperia 1 III and Xperia 5 III are also supported, Xperia PRO-I has also been introduced. Sony seems to have a global presence with regards to the Xperia PRO-I, and YouTube has uploaded review videos from all over the world.

Looking at the comments, it seems that users are recognizing it as "a smartphone that is easy to understand and has Sony's personality" when it is praised as a "Sony-like product" in English.

However, on the other hand, I still don't understand why the VR headset "Xperia View" was released at this timing. VR headsets using smartphones have been widely appealed by Samsung Electronics on the Galaxy, and at CES and MWC venues, sports and games, etc. It was also deployed in Harajuku and others. However, in the end, it did not spread, and Samsung Electronics has a history of simply giving up.

It is true that "Metaverse" is attracting attention in the world, but Xperia View can not do so many functions. It is only possible to watch limited video content, and the "nowadays" feeling is strong.

It would be nice if there was a way to participate in VR chats a little more, or that developers could create content, but it's a shame that it doesn't seem to have that much expandability.

Since the sales of smartphones, which are essential, are increasing, and the Metaverse is also a tailwind, it would have been nice to carefully develop the product strategy for Xperia View.