Apple ends Samsung’s lengthy reign at No. 1 | EUROtoday

Samsung’s grip on the smartphone crown lasted so lengthy that it appeared unbreakable. The South Korean tech big achieved 14 unbroken years because the world’s high shipper by quantity.

That sample, nonetheless, was lastly damaged as Apple reclaimed the quantity‑one spot final 12 months. According to full-year information from the Hong Kong-based Counterpoint Research, Apple achieved a 20% share of worldwide shipments, versus Samsung’s 19%.

Yes, it is razor-close, however some analysts consider this might mark the start of a sustained restoration for the iPhone maker, whose aggressive edge had been eroded by Chinese rivals and customers conserving older telephones for longer.

Apple targets mid-range cellphone consumers

While Samsung is steering additional into the premium finish of the smartphone market, Apple is shifting in the wrong way, pushing into the mid-range for the primary time in years with lower-priced fashions geared toward successful over price-sensitive Android customers.

With the North American and European markets now saturated, Yang Wang, a senior analyst at Counterpoint Research, sees the hole between Apple and Samsung widening additional because the iPhone maker expands its vary of mid-tier telephones to fulfill rising demand in rising markets like India, the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

“[Apple] already dominates the premium end of the market. If they want to increase shipments, they have to go lower,” Wang instructed DW. “If you want to go after these markets, you can’t expect everyone to afford a $1,200 iPhone 17 Pro.”

New iPhone 17 debuts at pivotal second

With 10% year-on-year progress, in comparison with Samsung’s 5%, Apple’s fourth quarter was its highest ever. The new iPhone 17 sequence drove a lot of that momentum, impressing consumers with a notable efficiency leap and a daring redesign, together with a headline-grabbing Cosmic Orange end on Pro fashions.

That quarter noticed Apple account for round 25% of all international smartphone shipments, in line with Counterpoint, marking its strongest efficiency ever in a single three-month span.

As properly because the pivot to rising markets, Apple surprisingly benefited from fears over US President Donald Trump’s tariff menace on China and different nations within the iPhone provide chain. At one level, the proposed new levies threatened 30 to 40% value will increase and induced a rush of early shopping for. A parallel surge in long-overdue cellphone replacements added additional momentum.

Millions improve getting old telephones

During the pandemic, international smartphone shipments surged as lockdowns drove distant work and the necessity for higher connectivity. This created a brief spike in demand, with hundreds of thousands of customers shopping for new telephones forward of their regular schedule.

But the surge led to a subsequent lull, with alternative cycles stretching to three or 4 years or extra. By final 12 months, that pent-up demand hit an inflection level, with COVID-era consumers lastly needing to interchange their outdated fashions simply because the iPhone 17 went on sale in September and earlier fashions acquired cheaper.

“We’ve been seeing record levels of holdout periods across the world, but the tide is changing now — iPhone users are starting to think it is the right time to upgrade,” Wang mentioned.

US sanctions give Apple a China enhance

Apple additionally continued to learn in China from US sanctions on Huawei, which minimize the home rival off from superior chip provides, forcing a collapse in gross sales of its premium‑tier telephones. As China’s smartphone market contracted sharply between 2021 and 2023, Apple grew to become the nation’s high premium model, helped by former Huawei customers upgrading to iPhones.

“Apple has been relatively resilient despite how the total [Chinese] market has been doing,” Bryan Ma, vice chairman of gadgets analysis at IDC, a number one tech market insights agency, instructed DW. “They got some windfall from the fact that Huawei was absent in China and were able to pick up some of that premium position.”

IDC’s personal information displays an ongoing tussle between Apple and Samsung for the highest spot, with the US tech big taking the lead in 2023.

Could a foldable iPhone be subsequent?

Despite Huawei’s sharp rebound in China final 12 months — sufficient to reclaim the highest spot there — Apple can be rumored to be making ready its personal foldable telephones, shifting into an space the place Huawei is already energetic and which, Ma famous, has captivated Chinese customers.

“If Apple really does roll out a foldable and makes it available in China, that becomes a very powerful combination that can help put them in a good position [for more growth],” he added.

Apple should nonetheless navigate essentially the most aggressive smartphone market on the earth. Alongside Huawei, Chinese rivals launch new fashions way more continuously than Samsung and Apple. Brands like Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo are identified for budget-friendly telephones and options like super-fast charging and high-resolution cameras.

“The Chinese market is extremely competitive and consumers are very picky,” Wang mentioned. “If companies don’t innovate, they disappear.”

Counterpoint Research argues that 2026 is unlikely to be a powerful 12 months for the smartphone market total, with decrease shipments resulting from rising reminiscence prices and stress on mid-tier producers.

Apple bets massive on AI

But IDC’s Ma argues that the iPhone maker might nonetheless strengthen its place if its long-promised synthetic intelligence (AI) improve lands properly. Apple Intelligence, launched two years in the past, is the agency’s on-device AI system that makes Siri smarter, affords extra customized options and handles many duties instantly on the cellphone as a substitute of sending them to the cloud.

“Tim Cook has publicly said, ‘We’re going to be rolling out the new, improved Siri early ’26.’ A lot is resting on how well they deliver on that,” Ma mentioned.

Edited by: Rob Mudge