Counterpoint Research’s report for the first quarter of 2018 is in. And it shows an interesting detail.
Xiaomi bucked the declining smartphone-shipment trend the past two quarters to become the fourth largest brand in the world, at the expense of fellow Chinese manufacturer OPPO. It shipped 27 million units from January to March this year, 101 percent up from the same period in 2017.
SEE ALSO: Top smartphone brands in the Philippines in 2017, according to IDC
The company’s notable performance was driven by strong sales in China (+51%) and India (+134%), where it grew 51 percent and 134 percent, respectively.
Xiaomi is one of four in the top 10 smartphone brands that grew in the first quarter last year — a list that includes Apple, Huawei and its sub-brand Honor, and iTel. The latter is part of Transsion Holdings, which also owns Infinix and Tecno.
READ ALSO: Honor returns to the Philippines with P10,990 ($212) Honor 7X, P7,990 ($154) Honor 9 Lite in tow
Apple’s 3-percent growth was attributed mainly to the iPhone X, the company’s bestseller during the quarter. This is consistent with yesterday’s report revealing that the 10th-anniversary handset was doing pretty well. According to Apple CEO Tim Cook, “Customers chose the iPhone X more than any other iPhone each week in the March quarter, just as they did following its launch in the December quarter.”
SEE ALSO: OPPO introduces new phone brand to take on Xiaomi
Huawei’s 14-percent increase was because of its continuous efforts to expand in markets outside its native China. The move resulted in strong growth in Europe (up 46 percent), the Middle East and Africa (up 38 percent), and India (up 146 percent).
READ ALSO: 10 best-performing Android phones on Antutu in March 2018
iTel’s strategy of concentrating on the emerging markets in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia paid off as smartphone shipments ballooned to 213 percent in the first quarter of 2018.
You can see last quarter’s worldwide ranking of smartphone brands below.
Global smartphone-shipments ranking and market share in Q1 2018, according to Counterpoint Research
Counterpoint’s ranking — at least for the top five: Samsung, Apple, Huawei, Xiaomi, and OPPO — is the same as the ones released by other market research firms IDC [International Data Corporation] and Strategy Analytics. You can check them out below.
Worldwide smartphone market, top 5 company shipments, market share, and year-over-year growth in Q1 2018, according to IDC
Global smartphone-vendor shipments and market share in Q1 2018, according to Strategy Analytics
Are we going to see a different ranking next quarter? Which brands will surprise us? Will OPPO and Vivo overtake Xiaomi by then? Will Samsung retain its crown, or will Apple take it? We can’t wait to find out. If you’re interested in more smartphone technology related articles you can find some at https://techdaily.ca/.
Share this Post
Learn About This Author
