In recent years, we have seen a huge shift in trends – totally different from what we had 7 years ago – no one would have thought or envisioned this. The Nigerian populace is now a huge contender for most users of smartphones in any country. Not to distance from the likes of USA, China, India and so on. Nigerians are now heavy users of mobile phones as their presence on social media as well as the web in general is now very pronounced.
In this post, I will be sharing my top five mobile brands currently rocking 2014 in Nigeria.
Nokia
Honestly, you can not mention mobile phones in Nigeria without mentioning Nokia phones. Back in the day, they were the hottest phones on the block. Their very strong battery lives as well as unbeatable durability made them the phone company to beat in Nigeria. Their reign as king was not to be for ever – they lost it in late 2000s only to make a comeback in 2012 when they began rolling out the Lumia models with Windows OS. It is fair to give it to Nokia, they have gained some acceptance but market share is still not as it was – we have loads of Nigerians rocking Nokia Lumia in Nigeria. Well-done, but more can be done.
Blackberry
In as much many would have loved to see the Blackberry up this list, we cannot deny; it has lost it. Despite becoming hot trend in Nigeria after being nearly phased out in Europe and America, the blackberry was really a hot one in Nigeria, last 5-7 years. After losing out big in African markets to WhatsApp, then the rest of the world – they have managed, in recent years to stage a comeback. With the Blackberry range now quite affordable, compare to recent years, they are doing quite well in Nigeria. The Blackberry 10 family which consist of the likes of the flagship Blackberry Z10, Blackberry Q10, Q5 and many more.
Apple
To start with, I am not an ‘Apple Fan Boy’ – to be fair, it is a reason they are 3rd on my list. They have loads of loyalist around the world – I am not one of them. Apple are usually very slow with releasing new phones, hence the rush for the few they ever release. They have always been around, doing really well in vying for smartphone market share in most parts of the world. Nigeria, not to be left out has loads of youths and the young at heart using Apple phones like the iPhone. More recently, they have been the talk of the town with the newly launched iPhone 6 that is quite pricey – will be available on most top online shops in Nigeria like Kaymu as soon as it is available to the public on September 19, 2014.
Tecno
A few years back, anyone, or let me say: I would never have pictured me writing this: Tecno as a top phone in Nigeria? Today, Tecno is one of the best top selling devices in shops on the streets as well as online shopping sites in Nigeria like Kaymu. Few years ago, Tecno was a poorly made phone from a terrible phone company. The Hong Kong phone company has shown what it takes to be innovative and competitive in ever changing markets. Upgrading to making quality android devices for African markets that is also pocket friendly is what has brought them this far. With devices like the Tecno Phantom, Tecno R7 amongst other Tecno phones, they truly deserver their own share of the market.
Samsung
In Nigeria, Samsung has proved itself to be a super brand. When it comes to the Android OS, they have shown exceptional skill and knowledge of the OS in the way they customize the devices as well as the hardware. With super powered devices like the Samsung Galaxy S3, Note 3, Samsung Galaxy S4 and the more recent Samsung Galaxy S5, they have shown the ability to make quality devices that people buy not minding the cost. Competitive? Yeah – they have also come up with equally quality devices that are very pocket friendly and can do battle with cheaper phones like Tecno phones.
In conclusion, no disrespect to phones not mentioned here and the positon of Apple on my list. To all fairness, Apple make decent devices that go toe-to-toe with Samsung. Acceptance is not widespread like Samsung and Tecno in 2014. Other top mobile phone makers like LG, HTC, Huawei and others still have to rethink their market penetration strategy in Nigeria.
