Smartphones are the personal computers of the 21st century. The performance and functionality of the device, the performance and capacity of cloud based servers, and the bandwidth of 4G cellular networks have created a $100B market in the developed world. Smartphone shipments are expected to grow 32.7% year over year in 2013 reaching 958.8 million units. The market for high-end phones, dominated by Apple and Samsung, will continue to grow at ~8% CAGR, but the next surge in growth will come from mid-range phones ($200 to $400), and low-end phones priced below $200. These segments are expected to experience ~15% CAGR according to analysts. Smartphones enabled a completely new computing experience supported by millions of apps conveying personal, commercial, educational, and social benefits. And you can still talk to a person or your personal assistant, e.g. Siri. The benefits are universally compelling but the >$500 price (unsubsidized) of a high-end smartphone restricts wide-spread adoption in low income segments and emerging markets. Feature phones in developing countries play a vital role in communication. Smartphones will enable access to new resources (market prices, weather, services), education, and rich media social features. Photosharing is rapidly becoming the lingua franca of the planet. A large number of sub $100 smartphones are launching this year in China, India, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, South America and Africa. China is aggressively pursuing this market in design, development and consumption. The leading Silicon suppliers are Qualcomm, Samsung, MediaTek, with many established and new entrants taping out application processors on low cost process nodes (e.g. 40nm). Application processors utilize a number of interface standards from JEDEC (e.g. eMMC) and the MIPI® Alliance (e.g. CSI, DSI, D-PHY) and rely on IP providers like Arasan Chip Systems to provide validated total solutions that ensure specification compliance and compatibility with a range of external devices. View the rest of the whitepaper here. Written by Sam Beal
