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The rugged smartphone market size is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 4.46% between 2022 and 2027. The rugged smartphone market size is forecast to increase by USD 274.56 million. The growth of the market depends on several factors, including the increasing demand from defense sector, the growing adoption of rugged smartphones by mobile workforce, and the strategic collaborations among market participants.
This rugged smartphone market report extensively covers market segmentation by type (semi-rugged, fully-rugged, and ultra-rugged), end-user (industrial, commercial, military and defense, and government), and geography (North America, Europe, APAC, South America, and Middle East and Africa). It also includes an in-depth analysis of drivers, trends, and challenges. Furthermore, the report includes historic market data from 2017 to 2021.
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The strategic collaborations among market participants are notably driving the market growth, although factors such as use of consumer-grade devices in place of rugged devices may impede the market growth. Our researchers analyzed the data with 2022 as the base year, along with the key drivers, trends, and challenges. A holistic analysis of drivers will help companies refine their marketing strategies to gain a competitive advantage.
Strategic collaborations among market participants is the key factor driving the growth of the global rugged smartphone market. Vendors in the global rugged smartphone market are forming strategic partnerships with market participants to expand their customer base and geographic footprint, enhance their product offerings, and explore new opportunities for rugged handheld devices. doing. These strategic collaborations aim to accelerate product development of rugged smartphones and address demanding applications in various end-user sectors.
For instance, in June 2022, Zebra Technologies Corp announced its Partner Connect Public Sector Specialization Program for Channel Partners. The Public Sector Specialization Program, created as a strategic component of Zebra's Partner Connect program, will provide assistance to federal, state, and municipal governments, as well as K-12, schools, and universities. Thus, such strategic collaborations will increase the profit margin of vendors, which will boost the growth of the global rugged smartphone market during the forecast period.
Growing preference for feature-rich devices is the primary trend in the global rugged smartphone market. The convergence of technology in retail, manufacturing and logistics has increased the demand for rugged smartphones. Most rugged smartphones run on Windows CE or Windows Mobile OS. Over the past five years, there have been increasing attempts to offer Android-based industrial handhelds. From a hardware perspective, manufacturers upgrade processors, memory, memory, and displays to accommodate newer, more versatile operating systems (OS).
Some of the modern technologies, including radio-frequency identification (RFID), global positioning system (GPS), high-quality imagers and scanners, multi-sensor technology, and integrated high-resolution cameras, are being introduced in rugged smartphones. Newer models of rugged smartphones are coming equipped with additional features, such as built-in barcode scanners and RFID readers, to enable easier data acquisition during heavy machinery maintenance and tracking/management of inventory within manufacturing and distribution environments. Thus, such feature developments in rugged smartphones will positively impact the growth of the global rugged smartphone market during the forecast period.
Use of consumer-grade devices in place of rugged devices are major challenge to the growth of the global rugged smartphone market. The growth of the global rugged smartphone market is hampered by the fact that many companies are using consumer grade smartphones instead of rugged smartphones. The reason for this decision is that the new consumer smartphones on the market are not only significantly cheaper, but they are also just as robust as rugged smartphones. As such, several end-user sectors that do not involve extremely harsh working environments, such as hospitality, healthcare, and retail, are opting for consumer-grade smartphones. Additionally, consumer smartphones offer more features than rugged smartphones.
For instance, the new consumer-grade smartphones available in the market have functionalities such as barcode scanning, multiple IoT applications, and advanced technologies such as AR, artificial intelligence (AI), gesture recognition, voice recognition, and virtual reality (VR). Thus, the increasing adoption of consumer-grade smartphones in end-user industries such as hospitality compared with rugged smartphones will negatively impact the growth of the global rugged smartphone market during the forecast period.
The report includes the adoption lifecycle of the market, covering from the innovator’s stage to the laggard’s stage. It focuses on adoption rates in different regions based on penetration. Furthermore, the report also includes key purchase criteria and drivers of price sensitivity to help companies evaluate and develop their growth strategies.
Global Rugged Smartphone Market Customer Landscape
Vendors are implementing various strategies, such as strategic alliances, partnerships, mergers and acquisitions, geographical expansion, and product/service launches, to enhance their presence in the market.
AGM: The company offers rugged smartphones such as AGM Glory Series. Also, the company is engaged in developing and manufacturing rugged mobile devices for outdoor enthusiasts and practitioners.
The report also includes detailed analyses of the competitive landscape of the market and information about 20 market vendors, including:
Qualitative and quantitative analysis of vendors has been conducted to help clients understand the wider business environment as well as the strengths and weaknesses of key market players. Data is qualitatively analyzed to categorize vendors as pure play, category-focused, industry-focused, and diversified; it is quantitatively analyzed to categorize vendors as dominant, leading, strong, tentative, and weak.
The market share growth by the semi-rugged segment will be significant during the forecast period. Semi-rugged smartphones are a type of device that bridges the gap between traditional consumer smartphones and fully rugged, industrial-grade devices. They are designed to meet the needs of workers in a variety of industries who require a device that can withstand harsh environments and rough handling but do not necessarily need the extreme durability of a fully rugged smartphone.
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The semi-rugged segment was valued at USD 496.79 million in 2017 and continued to grow until 2021. The use of semi-rugged smartphones is driven by low-cost availability. These products are more expensive than consumer smartphones, but end users prefer them over consumer smartphones because of their ruggedness. As such, vendors in the market have introduced products for commercial users. Hence, increasing demand for semi-rugged smartphones from various end-user industries is expected to drive the growth of the global rugged smartphone market through the semi-rugged segment during the forecast period.
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North America is estimated to contribute 31% to the growth of the global market during the forecast period. Technavio’s analysts have elaborately explained the regional trends and drivers that shape the market during the forecast period. North America has always been an important market for vendors due to its higher level of technology adoption compared to other regions. The region's industrial and defense sectors are increasingly adopting advanced technologies to remain competitive in a fast-paced, technology-driven business environment. The region has some of the most advanced and advanced economies in the world. Thus, North America leads when it comes to market demand for rugged smartphones. Such factors will increase the market growth in this region during the forecast period.
In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic negatively impacted the regional rugged smartphone market. However, in H2 2020, due to the introduction of vaccines, the number of COVID-19 cases declined in the region. This led to the reopening of retail stores, warehouses, and manufacturing facilities across the region, which increased the demand for rugged devices from various end-users. Moreover, the digitization of business processes by vendors, the launch of technologically advanced products, and emerging applications of rugged smartphones will augment the growth of the regional rugged smartphone market during the forecast period.
The rugged smartphone market report forecasts market growth by revenue at global, regional & country levels and provides an analysis of the latest trends and growth opportunities from 2017 to 2027.
Technavio categorizes the global rugged smartphone market as a part of the global technology hardware, storage, and peripherals market within the overall global information technology market. The parent global technology hardware, storage, and peripherals market covers manufacturers of cellular phones, personal computers, servers, electronic computer components, and peripherals. Our market research report has extensively covered external factors influencing the parent market growth during the forecast period.
Rugged Smartphone Market Scope |
|
Report Coverage |
Details |
Page number |
171 |
Base year |
2022 |
Historic period |
2017-2021 |
Forecast period |
2023-2027 |
Growth momentum & CAGR |
Accelerate at a CAGR of 4.46% |
Market growth 2023-2027 |
USD 274.56 million |
Market structure |
Fragmented |
YoY growth 2022-2023(%) |
4.0 |
Regional analysis |
North America, Europe, APAC, South America, and Middle East and Africa |
Performing market contribution |
North America at 31% |
Key countries |
US, China, Japan, Germany, and UK |
Competitive landscape |
Leading Vendors, Market Positioning of Vendors, Competitive Strategies, and Industry Risks |
Key companies profiled |
AGM, American Reliance Inc., Atexxo Manufacturing BV, BARTEC Top Holding GmbH, Caterpillar Inc., CROSSCALL, Doke Communication HK Ltd., Getac, Honeywell International Inc., Kyocera Corp., OUKITEL, Panasonic Holdings Corp., Pepperl and Fuchs SE, RugGear GmbH, Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., Shenzhen Tinfull Technology Co. Ltd., Sonim Technologies Inc., Ulefone, Unitech Computer Co. Ltd., and Zebra Technologies Corp. |
Market dynamics |
Parent market analysis, Market growth inducers and obstacles, Fast-growing and slow-growing segment analysis, COVID-19 impact and recovery analysis and future consumer dynamics, Market condition analysis for forecast period. |
Customization purview |
If our report has not included the data that you are looking for, you can reach out to our analysts and get segments customized. |
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