Low buying capacity and lack of brand confidence are the reasons why some smartphones are not available even at official flagship stores.
We see flagships arrive in the country every year. So, why do some smartphone models remain unavailable? It has something to do with confidence in both parties: consumers and brands. Below are the most common factors affecting that confidence, which prevent brands from going full force in our market.
Market Value
This is a fact: the Philippines isn’t a first-world nation, and phone brands know our economic demography.
Although many people are under the high- and middle-income bracket, the majority are within the low-income segment. This dictates how much money a person can shell out to buy a new phone.
Additionally, tax and other charges can easily balloon the SRP of the latest arrivals. Brands have two choices: shoulder those charges or charge them to the consumer.
Thus, some brands pulled out of the country while others haven’t established physical flagship stores due to the price of their devices.
One example that no longer exists in PH is Sony Xperia, which gained a consumer base for a time. Google has no solid physical presence for its Pixel devices while REDMAGIC only distributes its offerings via nubia Concept Stores.
Let’s highlight the REDMAGIC 9S Pro+, powered by Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. It’s a gaming phone with a large screen, big memory, and jaw-dropping design for an estimated PHP price of 46K!
If the brand offers it to you, can you buy it? Will you even dare if you only have 50K?
Brand Penetration
Besides market value, another issue is brand penetration. Markets with low consumer power are difficult to penetrate for certain brands because they are often more interested in affordable offerings. Not just the Philippines, but many countries in Southeast Asia demand such offerings.
Linked to brand penetration is the “taste” of buyers. Notice those stylish phones on store shelves? Some are great but many sport cheap hardware that only provide 4G, 720p resolution, 4GB RAM, 64-128GB ROM, and 10-18W charging.
Humans are visual creatures and the first thing they see leaves a lasting impression. Top it up with an amazing price tag, of course, peeps will be buying those units.
This ongoing trend saturates the country with familiar players, making it difficult for other brands to penetrate. Users are also unaware of the perks when investing in more expensive models, such as longer Android software support and enduring hardware. But we can’t blame them because they are just too pricey to begin with.
Here’s an example: the iQOO Z9 Turbo+ with a beautiful design and powerful specs. Too bad it’ll cost you 18K (without the taxes, etc). Pulling away because you don’t know the brand? Its parent company is vivo!
If you take your chances on this handset, you’ll get a 6.78-inch screen with 144Hz refresh rate, MediaTek Dimensity 9300 Plus, up to 16GB of RAM, up to 512GB of storage, and 6400mAh battery with 80W charging.
Priority Markets
If a market is saturated, a brand will decide to step up its game in established markets where consumer power is high. They know that selling there is guaranteed even without extensive marketing campaigns. Their loyal customer base is familiar with what to expect.
That same reality happens to brands with established footholds in low- to middle-income territories. Look at what OPPO, realme, and vivo have been doing for the past several years? Rotation of new series annually to keep their fans engaged and that’s consistency.
Infinix, itel, and TECNO are making similar advancements with aggressive pricing on mid-range models while maintaining a presence using low-end units. This is how they keep their appearance solid the entire year.
Samsung and Xiaomi can’t truly maintain the same level of appearance because of their branding. However, they launched several attractive series to empower their presence to the masses and shake up the competition. The numerous MediaTek and Unisoc chipsets are aiding this meta.
Speaking of Xiaomi, we don’t have the Civi Series here. The Xiaomi Civi 4 Pro, powered by Snapdragon 8s Gen 3, is an upper mid-range model with a 6.55-inch screen, up to 16GB of RAM, up to 512GB of storage, triple-rear cameras, and a 4700mAh battery. Its converted price in PHP is around 23K.
But Redmi and POCO are here, leaving Civi 4 Pro without a good spot. SD 8s Gen 3? We already have that on other phones.
Apple, as we know, only has one line per year and it’s designed for those willing to shell out. Google, on the other hand, seems uninterested in doing more in the Philippines, despite its more budget-friendly flagships.
Purchasing Power
The amount of money in your wallet, e-wallet, and bank account defines your purchasing power. Since the Philippines is a third-world nation, most people have limited financial capability, thanks to inflation across goods and services.
If shelling out 5K is already daunting, what more with paying out 15K or greater? Apple, Samsung, Xiaomi, Google, Sony, iQOO, and OnePlus know this. So, don’t expect them to hand over a top-tier product if your budget is only 5K.
Let’s insert an apex here – the OnePlus Open Apex Edition. It’s powered by Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, 16GB RAM, 1TB ROM, and a 4805mAh battery. It boasts a 6.31-inch cover display and a bigger 7.82-inch primary display.
But its price will stagger you at 100K! Practically, you’d rather buy two flagships, four mid-rangers, a dozen entry-levels, or perhaps get that down payment for housing.
These brands won’t waste a lot of resources knowing the cost of operating multiple flagship stores nationwide. They will rather go for third-party authorized sellers, online stores, or richer markets for stable profits.
But Samsung and Xiaomi have stores right? They do and that’s the result of their aggressive tactics years before. It solidified their foothold in the country yet they still can’t consistently offer top-tier series for the masses due to low purchasing power.
Tech Compatibility
Google could be a strong player here. The problem is the tech compatibility because Google services aren’t a hit in the country.
Did you know that using Google Messages for texting and MMS is free? RCS lets users exchange SMS and MMS over the internet to remove the usual charge. But how many people actually know this basic innovation?
Android is everywhere yet the go-to video call platform of users is Facebook instead of Google Meet. The app is viewed as the go-to for video conferencing.
Do you use two SIMs on one phone? Pixel series doesn’t support that as it’s limited to a single nano-SIM and eSIM. That said, eSIM isn’t mainstream here.
Meet the Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold, powered by Google Tensor G4. Heard of it? When people think about foldable phones, the first thing that comes to mind is the Samsung Galaxy Fold lineup. Samsung’s brand speaks volumes due to its popularity, tech compatibility, and plain presence.
The Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold stretches up to 8 inches with a 120Hz refresh rate and near 4K resolution. It has three rear cameras and runs vanilla Android. Isn’t the vanilla experience appealing or would you prefer a custom skin?
If there are specific models you want, wait until they appear on global online retailers. Just in case, be ready to pay with other currencies.
So why are some smartphones not available in the Philippines? Do you think it would benefit consumers if these devices were officially launched in the country? Let us know your thoughts