The smartphone market saw a decline in shipments in 2019, which also affected the refurbished phone market.
Data from Counterpoint Research shows that in 2019 manufacturers sold 137 million refurbished devices, representing 9 percent of total sales. The figure was down 1 percent year-over-year, the first decline in four years.
Markets such as Europe, China and the U.S. were down, while India, Latin America and Africa showed growth.
Counterpoint Research Director Jeff Fieldhack said the trend is changing as Many consumers prefer cheaper new smartphones, and major markets such as the United States and Europe now have a wide selection of new phones available.
There are also factors influencing this, such as the economic downturn and the inability of refurbishers to make proper ecological margins, he claims.
These types of devices are still preferred in less penetrated markets such as the LATAM (Latin America) region, where You can get quality equipment at an affordable price.
However, the growth of this market will be severely impacted by the emerging coronavirus epidemic, and refurbishment of the equipment in these regions is expected in 2020. The sales of the machine market will also decline.
Refurbished smartphones are usually newer devices that are returned due to a fault and then repaired.
The difference between a refurbished device and a used one is that the manufacturer will test it and restore it to factory standard operation.
