• Flash drive remained the top contributor with 70% share.
• Type C Flash drive shipments increased by 112% YoY.
• 32GB capacity was most popular with 38% share.

Gurugram/New Delhi, May 22, 2023: According to CMR’s India Consumer Storage Flash Devices Market Review Report for Q1 CY2023 released today, the India Consumer Storage market (Micro SD, Flash drive and SD card) shipments witnessed 4% YoY decline in Q1 CY2023. However, the market shipments increased by 16% QoQ.

Shipra Sinha, Lead Analyst, CyberMedia Research said “The primary reason for the YoY decline is attributed to a decrease in the MicroSD base. In Q1 CY2023, 25% of smartphones without an external memory card slot were shipped, indicating a shift in the market trend. Furthermore, Q1 CY2023 witnessed a significant shipment of smartphones with internal memory capacities of 128GB and above, accounting for 57% of total shipments. This surge in smartphones with ample internal storage has disrupted the MicroSD market. Conversely, the Flash drive market experienced a modest YoY growth of 4%.”

Q1 CY2023 Highlights

The top contributor in the overall market was SanDisk, holding a dominant share of 70%. HP secured the second spot, while Kingston occupied the third position. The lesser-known brands collectively captured 11% market share, demonstrating a remarkable YoY growth of 84% in their shipments.

The 32GB capacity segment continued to be the top contributor, holding a significant market share of 38%. Following closely, the 64GB capacity segment was the next preferred choice, capturing 27% of the market share. Notably, shipments of smartphones with 64GB capacity experienced a YoY growth of 29%.

Future Trends

CMR anticipates the Micro SD cards market to experience single-digit growth by the end of CY2023. On the other hand, the flash drive market is expected to witness a YoY growth of 10-15% by the end of CY2023. This growth can be attributed to the rising popularity of OTG (On-The-Go) drives, which offer increased convenience and compatibility with various devices.

“As we enter the new financial year, it is expected that shipments will grow in Q2 CY2023. However, the Micro SD card market will continue to be affected by the increasing internal memory capacities of smartphones. On the other hand, OTG drives are anticipated to be the driving force behind the future growth of flash drives. There will be a clear shift towards larger capacities as users seek more storage space. Nevertheless, the growing reliance on smartphones for both work and entertainment purposes will create a substantial demand for large-capacity storage, thereby supporting the future growth of MicroSD cards,”added Shipra.

Notes for Editors

1. CyberMedia Research (CMR) is a pioneering market intelligence and consulting firm that runs a comprehensive quarterly market update on the India Consumer Storage market. CMR’s India Quarterly Consumer Storage Flash Memory Market Review covers Micro SD cards, SD cards and Flash drives sold via distributors and retail outlets. The report accounts for ‘legal’ shipments, but does not include bundled or ‘grey’ market shipments or units brought from abroad by individuals as a part of personal baggage.
2. CMR uses the term “shipments” to describe the number of consumer storage flash memory devices leaving the factory premises for OEM sales or stocking by distributors and retailers. For the convenience of media, the term ‘shipment’ is sometimes replaced by “sales” in the press release, but this reflects the market size in terms of units of consumer storage flash memory devices and not their absolute value. In the case of flash memory devices imported into the country, it represents the number leaving the first warehouse to OEMs, distributors and retailers.

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