14 DAY TRIAL // Last year was adamant for some of the most prestigious brands in the smartphone business, as shipment volumes set a new record high with more than 1.4 billion units shipped in 2015.
According to preliminary data from the International Data Corporation (IDC), Samsung retains its leadership status with more than 85 million smartphones shipped in Q4 2015.
Driven by the launch of iPhone 6S and 6S Plus in the second half of the year and a strong holiday quarter, Apple came in second with 74.8 million units shipped in the fourth quarter of 2015, making it the most successful quarter yet.
Samsung and Apple retain their positions in the worldwide smartphone market for the year as well, but the Cupertino-based vendor had the strongest year-over-year growth.
Unlike any previous year, Apple reported an impressive number of Android switchers, which boosted iPhone 6S sales to hit a new high. Apple shipped no less than 231.5 million units in 2015, which represents 20.2% growth from 2014.
Samsung tops worldwide smartphone shipments with 324.8 million units, but that's a small 2.1% increase from 2014.
Huawei achieves almost double Apple's YoY growth
Surprisingly, the big winner is Huawei since the Chinese company confirmed the strongest YoY (year-over-year) growth among top five players in the market at 37%. That's almost double Apple's growth in its best year.
Huawei's achievements put the company in the third position with “only” 32.4 million units shipped in Q4 2015 and no less than 106.6 million devices shipped throughout the year, which represents a 44.3% growth from 2014.
If these numbers are accurate, then Huawei has just become the fourth company in the world that manages to ship more than 100 million units in a year, after Apple, Nokia and Samsung.
Lenovo is now the world's number four mobile phone vendor regarding shipments, with 20.2 million units in Q4 and around 74 million units in 2015.
After acquiring Motorola Mobility, the Chinese company is now in the process of refining its portfolio, which will allow Lenovo to penetrate out-of-reach markets like the United States.
LG drops from top five due to increased competition in China
Xiaomi is last in top five smartphone vendors, with 18.2 million units shipped in Q4 and 70.8 million devices shipped in 2015.
Even though the company finished the year with a 22.8% growth year-over-year, shipments were almost 90% domestic and less than 10% international.
Xiaomi is still struggling to expand its presence in other markets, but for the moment, India is the only country where the company has become genuinely popular thanks to its Redmi line.
Last but not least, let's not forget that LG inexplicably dropped from top five smartphone vendors. The South Korean company is now number six, probably due to increased competition in the low- and mid-tier range in China and other emerging markets.
