Samsung has regained its top position in the global smartphone market during the first quarter of 2024, IDC said.
Apple had captured the top spot in the global smartphone market — beating Samsung — at the end of 2023.
Samsung has a smartphone market share of 20.8 percent in Q1 2024. Apple has 17.3 percent share. This indicates that Samsung is well ahead of Apple in the global phone market. The other top smartphone vendors are Xiaomi (14.1 percent), Transsion (9.9 percent) and OPPO (8.7 percent), IDC report released today said.
Recently, Samsung reported significant growth in its sales during the first quarter of 2024, without indicating specific revenue from its smartphone business.
While Apple managed to capture the top spot at the end of 2023, Samsung successfully reasserted itself as the leading smartphone provider in the first quarter, said Ryan Reith, group vice president with IDC’s Worldwide Mobility and Consumer Device Trackers.
IDC expects Apple and Samsung to maintain their hold on the high end of the market.
“The resurgence of Huawei in China, as well as gains from Xiaomi, Transsion, OPPO/OnePlus, and Vivo will likely have both Samsung and Apple looking for areas to expand and diversify. We’re likely to see the top companies gain share as the smaller brands struggle for positioning,” Ryan Reith said.
The size of the global smartphone market in terms of shipments grew 7.8 percent year over year to 289.4 million units in the first quarter of 2024 (1Q24).
This marks the third consecutive quarter of shipment growth in smartphone business, a strong indicator that a recovery is well underway.
There is a growth in value and average selling prices (ASPs) as phone buyers opt for expensive devices knowing they will hold onto their devices longer.
There is a shift in power among the top 5 smartphone companies, which will likely continue as market players adjust their strategies in a post-recovery world. Xiaomi is coming back strong from the large declines experienced over the past two years.
Baburajan Kizhakedath
