What could be better than one research firm revealing that you’re the the top smartphone brand in India, considered the world’s fastest-growing smartphone market? Two market-research companies saying that you’re No. 1.

Canalys and Counterpoint today released their respective data on the Indian market in the last quarter of 2017. Both show the same result: that Xiaomi overtook Samsung to become the country’s leading smartphone vendor.

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The two analyst houses had the Chinese company leading by 2 percent. A narrow lead, but a lead nonetheless. It’s nothing short of amazing, especially when you look at Counterpoint’s report. It reveals that in the same period in 2016, Xiaomi only had 9 percent shipment market share. However, from October 2017 to December 2017, its market share jumped to 25 percent.

Xiaomi vs. Samsung: Market share in the 4th quarter of 2017, according to Canalys

Xiaomi vs. Samsung: Market share in the 4th quarter of 2017, according to Counterpoint Research

Counterpoint disclosed that the affordable mid-end segment was the fastest-growing in India last year, driven by Xiaomi’s strong performance in the category. The Chinese vendor alone contributed almost 37 percent of the shipments in the segment.

This was echoed by Canalys, which noted that Samsung’s loss came from its inability to transform its low-cost product portfolio. “It has been unable to win over cost-conscious consumers, losing market share in the sub-₹15,000 (roughly P12,018 or $236) segment to Xiaomi quarter after quarter,” said analyst Rushabh Doshi.

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But make no mistake, Samsung is still a force to reckon with. In fact, together, the South Korean company and Xiaomi accounted for about half of smartphone sales in India. How dominant could these two manufacturers get?

SEE ALSO: Xiaomi is fastest-growing phone brand in Q3. Here are the top 7

The power struggle between Xiaomi and Samsung is expected to continue in 2018, and we can’t wait to see which of them will come out on top in the first quarter of this year.

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Alora Uy Guerrero

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Editor-in-chief: Alora Uy Guerrero is a 24-year media veteran who has survived the newsrooms of giants like Yahoo and a high-stakes detour into OPPO's digital marketing. She eventually returned to her journalism roots to helm REVU. A strict advocate for quality over quantity, Alora lives by a family-first philosophy — mostly because her babies are the only bosses she can't negotiate with. When she isn't chasing kids or deadlines, she's probably traveling, shooting, or passionately over-analyzing her favorite bands, films, and basketball teams.