Apple Inc. became the top 5G smartphone handset supplier pushing down Samsung Electronics Co. in the global 5G smartphone market. Samsung fell to rank fourth in the first quarter of the year, as per Strategy Analytics, a company which estimates the phone and device sales worldwide. Apple and Chinese smartphone makers expanded their presence with new devices.
Samsung’s share in the 5G smartphone market stood at 12.7 percent in the January-March period, down from 34.6 percent a year ago. Apple iPhone garnered a 30% 5G smartphone market share globally in the quarter. Apple iPhone 12 5G is immensely popular across China, Europe and the United States, due to its sleek hardware design and surprisingly competitive pricing.
Samsung was not the only casualty in the rankings. Chinese handset maker Huawei’s troubles in 5G smartphones proved to be a boon for the domestic competitors OPPO, Vivo and Xiaomi. Huawei sold its budget smartphone unit Honor last November amid US restrictions. Honor as a standalone brand is not more a big player in the smartphone market.
OPPO was the biggest beneficiary of Huawei’s collapse by capturing 16% global 5G smartphone market share in Q1 2021, which is more than doubling its share from 7% in Q1 2020. OPPO’s A55 5G and Reno 5 5G have become very popular in China.
Apple shipped 52 million, Oppo shipped 21.5 million, Vivo shipped 19.4 million, Samsung shipped 17 million and Xiaomi shipped 16.6 million 5G smartphones in the first three months of 2021.
As per TrendForce, Samsung, Apple, Xiaomi, OPPO, Vivo and Transsion are expected to be the top six smartphone makers in 2021, accounting for 80 percent of the global market.