Refurbished Smartphone Market Gains Momentum As Display Shipments Surpass New Phone Demand In 2026
· Free Press Journal
The refurbished smartphone market is becoming an increasingly important part of the electronics supply chain as high memory costs force manufacturers to scale back production of new devices.
Research firm Omdia reported that display panel shipments for refurbished smartphones overtook those supplied to smartphone manufacturers for the first time during the first quarter of calendar year 2026.
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Display shipments to the refurbishment market increased 20% year-on-year to 298 million units in Q1 2026. In comparison, smartphone manufacturers received 289 million display panels during the same period.
The development points to more than growing consumer interest in affordable refurbished devices. It also indicates that refurbishment is emerging as a channel through which component suppliers can manage excess capacity when demand for new smartphones weakens.
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Omdia attributed the shift partly to smartphone companies reducing production plans because of rising memory costs. The research firm expects demand for displays used in new smartphones to fall 12% in 2026.
Display manufacturers, however, cannot rapidly reduce their production capacity because fabrication facilities require substantial long-term investments. Redirecting surplus panels to repair businesses, refurbishers and aftermarket component suppliers therefore offers a practical alternative.
Omdia analyst Joy Guo described the refurbishment market as a “reservoir” capable of absorbing fluctuations in demand from smartphone manufacturers.
Higher memory prices have affected demand for both LCD and OLED panels used in new devices, encouraging suppliers to allocate a greater share of their output to refurbishment.
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The refurbishment industry is also facing higher costs for components such as displays, batteries and camera modules.
Mandeep Manocha, co-founder and CEO of Cashify, has previously said that rising component prices are increasing the expense of refurbishing smartphones. However, refurbishers are comparatively better positioned because their business model focuses on extending the useful life of devices already in circulation rather than manufacturing entirely new products.
The latest Omdia data suggest that refurbishment is evolving from a consumer-driven secondary market into a more significant part of the smartphone ecosystem.
As production of new devices slows, the refurbishment sector could increasingly help manufacturers and component suppliers manage inventory while meeting demand for lower-cost smartphones.