Galaxy S8 tests Android smartphone pricing limits, making Apple look interesting again….
Samsung continued to lead the worldwide smartphone market in the second quarter of 2017 with shipments of over 79 million units, leaving growth relatively flat. Meanwhile, Apple held on to second place by shipping 41 million iPhones, increasing its annual shipments volume by 2%, despite anticipation building for a significant product refresh later in the year, said Canalysys. This means that Apple has outperformed Samsung in growth this last quarter.
Worldwide shipments of 38 million units, for growth of 20% for Huawei, helped it close the gap with the leading pair and get within three million units of taking the second place from Apple. Oppo and Xiaomi were the top performers in fourth and fifth spot respectively, growing shipments 44% and 52%.
Over 340 million smartphones shipped in the first quarter of 2017, an increase of almost 4% year on year. “The smartphone market continued to grow in the second quarter, despite India and China both slipping into decline,” commented Canalys research analyst, Vincent Thielke. “Smartphone shipments to North America increased around 7% year on year, with Apple growing 10%. Apple outperformed Samsung despite the launch of the Galaxy S8, and growing anticipation for the next iPhone.”
Added Canalys senior analyst, Tim Coulling, on Samsung: “Shipments of the S8 have been strong in some regions, but there are signs that demand has been overestimated. Canalys’ channels research has revealed inventory build up in Europe, which when combined with discounting in the US, indicates Samsung may be testing the limits of Android smartphone pricing. As Apple looks to refresh the iPhone, even with its unique user experience, it too must justify any significant price increases with tangible improvements to both feature set and design.”
