14 DAY TRIAL // Apple really has a hard time slowing down Android’s growth, and new statistics provided by Kantar for the three-month period ending in May 2016 show that not only is Android improving its share, but iOS keeps going down.
It all starts with the United States, which is undoubtedly Apple’s number one market. iOS declined here from 30.9 percent in May 2015 to 29.3 percent in the same period of this year, so it lost 1.6 percent of its share. Android, on the other hand, posted an increase of 3.6 percent, growing from 64.9 percent to 68.5 percent.
The same thing happened in China, with a drop of 1.7 percent for iOS, but an increase of 2.4 percent for Android. Apple is currently at 19.7 percent in the country while Android is powering a shocking 79.3 percent of the phones here.
iOS’ market share is going down in Japan as well, despite the fact that a few months ago the mobile business was split evenly between iPhones and Android devices. Right now, Apple is owning only 40.6 percent of the market, down 4.0 percent, while Android is already aiming for the sky thanks to an increase of 6.2 percent to 58.8 percent.
Samsung Galaxy S7 outsells the iPhone
Similar trends have been experienced in Europe too, and the EU5 statistics clearly show how Android and iOS performed on the Old Continent. Android is currently at 76.5 percent, an increase of no less than 6 points, while iOS is the runner-up, but far behind with 18.3 percent, down 0.5 percent.
One of the main catalysts for Android’s growth is Samsung’s Galaxy S7, which continues to sell in high numbers all over the world. And what’s important is that, for the first time, it has managed to outsell the iPhone 6s, which had long been the leader of the mobile world.
“Sales continue to be dominated by Samsung and Apple, and the Top 10 list of smartphones reflects that. The Galaxy S7 has become the top selling device at 11.1%, followed by the iPhone 6s with about 10% of smartphone sales during the period. The iPhone SE captured 3.6%. Huawei accounted for less than 1% of sales,” Kantar’s data shows.
Samsung, Huawei, and other local players are driving Android’s share forward, and what’s surprising is that LG has become a more important brand in the United States, reaching sales of no less than 15.1 percent. Apple, on the other hand, seems to be on thin ice, and with the new iPhone only coming in September, more declines are expected to be recorded in the meantime.
Furthermore, existing leaks seem to point to rather small changes coming to the iPhone lineup, at least in terms of design, while Samsung continues to innovate in this regard. The iPhone 7 is very likely to look similar to the 6s lineup whereas Samsung has already adopted a full glass design with waterproofing and wireless charging, features that aren’t yet available in Apple’s portfolio.
Cupertino is believed to come up with a bigger overhaul next year, when a full redesign of the iPhone is expected, and there are signs that the company could go for a no-bezel approach, with all front-facing parts, including the FaceTime camera, to be featured on the screen.
