Counterpoint: MediaTek dominated the smartphone SoC market in Q2 2021, UNISOC beats Samsung

According to the latest report for Counterpoint Research, Taiwanese semiconductor giant MediaTek dominated the smartphone SoC market in Q2 2021.

File photo: MediaTek logo at MWC 2019

MediaTek dominates!

The report revealed that MediaTek captured its highest ever share of 43 percent and it was driven by a competitive 5G portfolio in the low-mid segment and it has no major supply constraints.

Top 5 in Q2 2021

Counterpoint notes that, unlike American rival Qualcomm, the world's number 1 mobile SoC brand MediaTek benefited from fewer supply constraints in the first half of 2021, including with RFICs (radio-frequency integrated circuits), power management ICs (PMIC), and stable production yields from TSMC.

Apart from 5G, MediaTek's 4G LTE chip portfolio also helped to strengthen its market position.

But, at number 2 Qualcomm is not going away that easily even if it only has 24 percent of the share. In fact, the company leads in the 5G baseband market with a 55 percent share. It also has started dual sourcing from foundries to mitigate the supply chain constraints.

Counterpoint said that we should expect it to increase share with more wafer orders from TSMC's leading nodes.

Number 3 brand Apple has a healthy demand for the premium iPhone 12 series with 14 percent of the pie.

UNISOC surprisingly bested Samsung's Exynos for the number 4 spot with 9 percent of the market share.

Counterpoint shared that has succeeded in expanding its customer base, securing a series of design wins with major OEMs like HONOR, realme, and Motorola. There is also an improved acceptance of UNISOC-powered smartphones by Chinese consumers, a positive signal for its growth.

Samsung slipped to number 5 with 7 percent of the pie. Huawei's HiSilicon chip brand was unable to make Kirin chipsets due to US restrictions.

Source: Counterpoint