According to latest IDC report, Samsung beat Huawei to regain the position as the top smartphone maker in the world with 22.4% market share in the 3rd quarter. Though there was a slight decline in number of devices shipped this quarter due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Samsung shipped 80.4 million smartphones, up 2.9% year over year. India, the largest market for Samsung, accounted for 15% of total volume.
In the U.S., Samsung’s second largest market, momentum was strong for the A series with good performances from the recently launched Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra as well, which contributed to almost 20% of total volume in 3Q20. Samsung
Huawei shipped 51.9 million smartphones in the 3Q2020 accounting form 14.7% of the market share.
Huawei suffered a large drop – down 22% year over year – with continued declines in international markets and a drop of more than 15% in China. The company continues to face challenges due to the ever increasing impact of the U.S. sanctions, which are taking a toll on its performance even in China as the brand is trying to pace out its shipments over a longer period.
Xiaomi shipped 46.5 million devices to grab the number 3 position globally, beating Apple for the first time with 13.1% share and 42.0% growth. This is due to strong gains in India and a continued strong presence in China, which accounted for 53% of the company’s volume in 3Q20.
Apple shipped 41.6 million iPhones in 3Q20, down 10.6% year over year, which placed the company in fourth for the first time with 11.8% share. This drop was expected and is mainly due to the delay in the launch of the new iPhone 12 series, which is usually in the third quarter. Regardless, the iPhone 11 series did exceptionally well, contributing the majority of Apple’s volume, followed by the SE device
“While some of the topline numbers may not seem pretty, we are seeing a lot of improvement in the smartphone market both in terms of supply chains and consumer demand,” said Ryan Reith, program vice president with IDC’s Worldwide Mobile Device Trackers. “In the large developed markets, it is very clear that 5G will be positioned to most consumers as their next phone regardless of which brand or price point they are focused on. Marketing has ramped up significantly. Products are widely available. Promotions are happening. And it’s clear that the top sales initiative in these markets is to push 5G. Having said this, we still believe consumer demand for 5G is minimal at best, which only adds to the price pressure on channels and OEMs.”
