Apple dethrones Samsung as No. 1 smartphone vendor for first time in history

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Apple dethrones Samsung as No. 1 smartphone vendor for first time in history

Published: 17 Jan. 2024, 14:29 Updated: 17 Jan. 2024, 14:37

JIN EUN-SOO
jin.eunsoo@joongang.co.kr

The Apple logo at the entrance to an Apple store in Washington, D.C., on September 14, 2021 [AFP]

Apple, for the first time ever, has dethroned Samsung to become the No. 1 smartphone vendor in 2023.

The Cupertino, California-based company sold 234.6 million units last year, a 3.7 percent increase over the previous year, according to market tracker IDC. Apple was the only company of the three largest smartphone manufacturers to display positive growth last year amid a struggling smartphone market.

Samsung Electronics shipped 226.6 million units in 2023, a 13.6 percent decrease from the previous year.

Apple accounted for 20.1 percent of the global market while Samsung accounted for 19.4 percent in 2023.

IDC attributed the results to the growing market for premium smartphones, a segment in which Apple dominates.

“Apple's ongoing success and resilience is in large part due to the increasing trend of premium devices, which now represent more than 20 percent of the market fueled by aggressive trade-in offers and interest-free financing plans,” said Nabila Popal, research director of IDC's Worldwide Tracker team.

The firm also noted that high-quality competitors in the Android space are pulling Samsung customers away.

“Apple certainly played a part in Samsung's drop in rank, but the overall Android space is diversifying within itself,” said Ryan Reith, group vice president of IDC's Worldwide Mobility and Consumer Device Trackers division.

“Huawei is back and making inroads quickly within China. Brands like OnePlus, Honor, Google and others are launching very competitive devices in the lower price range of the high end.”

The most recent year that Samsung didn't top the manufacturer list was 2010. Nokia held first place that year; Apple didn't make the top five.

Chinese brands continued to sell well: Xiaomi, Oppo and Transsion all followed Samsung on the list.

Xiaomi sold 145.9 million units last year, while Oppo and Transsion shipped 103.1 million and 94.9 million, respectively.

The overall smartphone market shrank last year. Global shipments declined by 3.2 percent on year in 2023 on-year, totaling just 1.2 billion units.

BY JIN EUN-SOO [jin.eunsoo@joongang.co.kr]