According to research firm IDC, iPhone sales dropped nearly 10% in the first quarter of this year. That means Samsung has regained the smartphone throne from Apple in terms of shipments. While iFan remains famously loyal, IDC’s report suggests that could change as competition heats up.
iPhone on sale in India’s first Apple Store, April 17, 2023. Photo: Reuters
Here are three names that are threatening our position Apple:
Xiaomi
On the Fortune Global 500 list, Xiaomi ranked 360th, higher than Netflix and Uber. The company’s latest flagship – Mi 14 – received strong support in its home country of China. Xiaomi is also behind the popular Redmi Note series of phones.
Theo Reuters, Xiaomi is the 5th largest phone manufacturer in China, behind Vivo, Huawei, Honor and Apple in terms of market share. However, the company also has a solid presence in international markets, especially India.
Xiaomi does not sell smartphones in the US, partly due to political concerns, according to IDC researcher Nabila Popal. Responding to the Android Central blog in 2022, Mr. Popal said that, after witnessing what happened to Huawei, no Chinese company wants to risk making large investments in a market that can ban them at any time.
Xiaomi also sells electric cars. The debut model Speed Ultra 7 or SU7 shows that Xiaomi succeeds in an area where Apple failed. In the first quarter of 2024, Xiaomi smartphone sales increased by 33.8%, firmly ranked third globally.