People bought fewer smartphones around the world in the first quarter of 2025 \u2014 here\u2019s why<\/p>\n
China, usually a reliable engine for global growth, wasn\u2019t much help either.<\/p>\n
A phone that went for around $50 a year ago now costs closer to $54. On paper, that\u2019s a few dollars. But once you convert it into naira, the gap is crushing. Due to the currency\u2019s collapse after the Central Bank\u2019s 2023 reforms, a device that sold for \u20a644,000 in 2023 now costs about \u20a683,000 in 2024. <\/p>\n That\u2019s more than an entire month\u2019s paycheck for someone earning the \u20a670,000 ($46) minimum wage. If you\u2019re feeding a family, are you really going to spend that on a phone? So, it’s no wonder Canalys reported a 7% drop in Nigeria\u2019s smartphone market in Q1 2025, as households are picking food and rent first over phones.<\/p>\n What we don\u2019t talk about enough is that when phones become unaffordable, it\u2019s not just about fewer selfies or less TikTok. It\u2019s about the digital economy hitting a ceiling. Mobile is Nigeria\u2019s primary gateway to the internet, and 84% of broadband runs through phones. <\/p>\n So every app, whether fintech, e-commerce, edtech, or telehealth, depends on people actually owning a device. If most Nigerians can\u2019t afford one, fintech onboarding slows, online shopping stalls, and those learning apps never make it into the classrooms that need them most.<\/p>\n What\u2019s being done to solve this divide? <\/p>\n Companies are scrambling for answers. Transsion, the Chinese parent of Tecno, Itel, and Infinix, has built a 65% market share by focusing on sub-$100 devices. Financing schemes like Easybuy, M-Kopa, and Jumia Flex now let people pay in installments, and Canalys says that\u2019s already helped spark a 10% rebound in Nigeria\u2019s smartphone market in Q2 2025. <\/p>\n Even telcos are stepping in as MTN Nigeria and Airtel are pushing for cheaper 5G handsets, with MTN joining a GSMA coalition aimed at cutting costs further.<\/p>\n But let\u2019s be real, all of that only scratches the surface. GSMA argues the real breakthrough would be a $30 (\u20a645,150) smartphone. At that price point, mobile internet could suddenly become affordable for 1.6 billion people worldwide, including tens of millions in Nigeria. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Egypt leads as Africa\u2019s smartphone market kicks off 2025 with a promising first quarter<\/p>\n But the market leader, TRANSSION saw its first stumble after seven long quarters of growth.<\/p>\n The catch is that getting there would require big interventions: tax breaks, local assembly plants, subsidies, and far more aggressive financing models. This isn\u2019t just on manufacturers; governments, telcos, and banks also need to step up.<\/p>\n Another irony is that while the global industry obsesses over 5G rollouts and AI-powered devices, the battle that matters most in Nigeria is far less glamorous: making sure ordinary people can buy a basic smartphone. Until that happens, Nigeria’s digital economy will keep splitting into two worlds, a small, connected elite and a vast offline majority. And without serious action, that divide is only going to get wider.<\/p>\n
<\/a> <\/a> Link copied!
<\/a>The reason is painfully simple, and it’s affordability
Photo by Ahmed Nasiru<\/a> \/ Unsplash<\/a><\/p>\n
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\n September 11, 2025
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