Apple led the global phone market with 82 million iPhone shipments in Q4 2020
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Apple led the global phone market with 82 million iPhone shipments in Q4 2020
Following Apple's confirmation of an ongoing upgrade super-cycle for the iPhone, market research firm Canalys also confirmed with its own data.
According to its market research data, Canalys stated that Apple shipped its most number of iPhones ever in Q4 2020 with a record 81.8 million units. This is 4% higher than the previous year. Canalys analyst Vincent Thielke cited the following factors for the surge in iPhone demand:
“Apple is better positioned than its competitors on 5G, being heavily skewed towards developed markets, and mobile operator sales channels. But it also made savvy moves behind the scenes to propel its sales and profitability. The omission of a power plug from the iPhone retail box, which reduces weight and size, is making logistics significantly more efficient, amid the ongoing high cost of air freight due to the pandemic. And it also implemented channel-centric growth initiatives to target SMB customers, which have bolstered demand for its entire range of iPhones.”
Samsung came in at second position with 62.0 million units shipped, which represents a YoY decline of 12%. However, the South Korean company kept its leader position for the full year with 20% market share.
Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo rounded up the top five with respective shipments of 43.4 million units, 34.7 million units, and 32.1 million units. Due to the U.S trade restrictions, Huawei has fallen out of the top five.
Overall, the worldwide smartphone shipments hit 359.6 million units which is a small decline of 2% compared to a year ago. Canalys expects the smartphone market to rebound this year as the industry has braced itself after the initial wave of Covid-19. Online channels has been scaled with teams experienced in virtual launch events and online meetings. The work-from-home and remote learning environments will continue to drive smartphone demand.
Source: Canalys
