Samsung Reclaims the Smartphone Top Spot in 3Q20

Samsung Reclaims the Smartphone Top Spot in 3Q20
Samsung

The worldwide smartphone market showed signs of improvement in the third quarter of 2020 (3Q20) with shipments declining just 1.3% year over year, according to preliminary data from the IDC. In total, 353.6 million smartphones were shipped during 3Q20 and while the market declined, the results were stronger than IDC's previous forecast of a 9% year-over-year decline. This is largely attributed to the re-opening of economies around the globe as COVID-19 restrictions were gradually relaxed.

An important trend on the road to market recovery is a faster than expected rebound in some key emerging markets. India, which is the second largest market globally, witnessed very strong volumes during the quarter despite further concerns around the COVID pandemic. Other emerging markets, such as Brazil, Indonesia, and Russia, which rank fourth, fifth, and sixth in the world, also experienced strong growth.

"Although there was an element of pent-up demand that fueled market growth, it was mainly the array of heavy promotions and discounts that accelerated growth in these markets," said Nabila Popal, research director with IDC's Worldwide Mobile Device Trackers. "In India, distance learning has actually boosted the demand for low-end smartphones as they are a more affordable option compared to tablets. The increased low-end demand only further increases competition and adds pressure to the vendors' bottom line.

Larger, more developed markets like China, Western Europe, and North America all witnessed the largest declines in 3Q20. Given these are the largest markets for Apple, the month delay in the iPhone 12 launch contributed to the decline. However, across many of these markets 5G promotions are starting to heat up and a full array of products is quickly becoming available to consumers at all price points.

Samsung reclaimed the top position in 3Q20 with a market share of 22.7% after shipping 80.4 million smartphones, up 2.9% year over year. Huawei lost the top spot and settled into the second position in 3Q20 with 51.9 million smartphones shipped and 14.7% share. 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. 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. vivo returned to the Top 5 this quarter with 31.5 million units shipped for 4.2% year-over-year growth and 8.9% market share.