40mn JioPhones sold so far, 21mn in Q1 2018: Report
According to a survey by financial services company Credit Suisse, it is estimated that 40 million JioPhones have been sold till date. This was based on the findings of another survey by research firm Counterpoint that noted JioPhone led India's feature phone market for Q1 2018 with 36% market share. This means that between January and March alone, 21 million JioPhone units were sold.
According to the Credit Suisse report, this not only breaks down JioPhone sales to 7 million units per month between January and March, but also indicates that the exit run rate for March could be even higher than 40 million. JioPhone was first unveiled in July last year. It instantly shot to fame because it was the only feature phone offering 4G connectivity.
JioPhone features a 2.4-inch display, 512MB RAM, 4GB storage, 2MP rear camera, 0.3MP front camera, and 2,000mAh removable battery. It is powered by a 1.2GHz dual-core SPRD processor and runs the Linux-based KaiOS software. It can run apps like Facebook, Google Assistant, and the official JioStore. A potential WhatsApp launch on JioPhone could also add to its sales in the future, the report stated.
It is difficult to predict if JioPhone is grabbing rival's market share or users are buying it as a second device. Regardless, the numbers indicate that JioPhone has passed the early adopter stage and is well accepted, which is reason enough for incumbents to worry.
With 36% market share in Q1 2018, Reliance Jio became the first brand to have the highest ever hold on the feature phone market in a single quarter, since Nokia's peak stage. In fact, due to the JioPhone's shipment numbers, the feature phone segment doubled in Q1 2018. Jio beat competition like Samsung (9.8%), Itel (9.4%), Nokia (7.3%), and Lava (5.6%).
