Stats show iPhone 7 outsold all other models on the market

Oct 9, 2017 11:18 GMT  ·  By

Apple’s iPhone 7 (the 4.7-inch model) was the top smartphone on the market in terms of sales in the first half of 2017, managing to beat all the other devices from rival companies, including Samsung.

While the smaller iPhone was the leading choice for buyers worldwide, the bigger iPhone 7 Plus was the runner-up in the first six months of the year, followed by Samsung Galaxy Grand Prime Plus, iPhone 6s and Samsung Galaxy S8. This means Apple’s devices took three out of the first five places in the charts.

While no specifics on the actual sales of each device were provided, a research from IHS Markit indicates that devices manufactured by both Apple and Samsung recorded declining sales as compared to their predecessors.

And yet, 4.7-inch iPhone models topped the charts for 3 consecutive years starting 2015, despite its market share dropping from 10 percent in 2015 to 7 percent in 2016, and 5 percent in 2017.

Samsung Galaxy S8 launched in April

One thing that’s worth having in mind when analyzing the performance of the Samsung Galaxy S8 is that this device arrived on the market in April, so its results in the first half of the year were substantially impacted.

The research firm also notes that no less than 22 smartphones managed to surpass one million sold units this year, up from 17 in 2016.

“This is a direct result of smartphone OEM efforts to select and concentrate in order to improve product portfolios and increase profitability. In addition, more Chinese OEMs are selling their smartphone models outside of China, which intensifies competition and generates more globally popular models,” says Jusy Hong, associate director - mobile devices for IHS Markit.

Chinese phone manufacturers are also doing particularly well, with no less than 8 models surpassing sales of 6 million units in the first half of the year: five from Oppo, two from Xiaomi, and one from Huawei.