14 DAY TRIAL // The smartphone market is comprised of many players aiming to catch the attention of consumers, but the top two companies have been closely competing against each other for years now. According to a report from Strategy Analytics, Apple has taken the first spot in global market share and smartphone shipments in Q4 2016.
During the last quarter of 2016, smartphone shipments all around the world grew 3% annually and reached a record 1.5 billion units. Shipments grew 9% annually since Q4 2015, recording the fastest growth rate in the whole year. Apple’s iPhone regained its first position in the market with 18% in Q4 2016 and surprisingly Oppo was the company that grew the most, 99% in the past year.
Apple managed to ship 78.3 million smartphones in Q4 and rose by 5% annually from 74.8 million units during the last quarter of 2015. Apple seems to have capitalized on Samsung’s recent recall and attracted many more customers during the holiday season.
Huawei continues to grow its market share
Samsung shipped 77.5 million smartphones in Q4, dropping 5% annually and capturing 18% share for the quarter and 21% share per year. It’s the lowest level that the company reached since 2011 and it’s not surprising considering that it had to deal with the Galaxy Note 7 recall right before the holidays. Still, Samsung maintained its top position, shipping 309 million units worldwide for the whole year.
Huawei ranked third in the index with a 10 global smartphone marketshare in Q4, and it’s the first time that the company reaches double figures. Huawei continues to grow as a smartphone maker, the company’s Mate 9 was the star of the recent CES event, partly due to the fact that it integrated Amazon’s Alexa AI assistant.
Huawei will announce a new flagship in the next few weeks, which will surely improve the company’s results over the next few quarters. Samsung is also expected to announce the Galaxy S8 in March, while sales will start sometime in April. Oppo and Vivo rank fourth and fifth in the index, with Oppo gaining a 99% increase, while Vivo grew 2.1% in marketshare compared to 2015.