Xiaomi and Apple see decline in Q2 smartphone shipments
Chinese vendor Huawei shipped a total of 19.1 million smartphones in the local market during the second quarter of the year, climbing 15.2% compared to the same quarter the previous year, according to a recent report by tech consultancy firm IDC.
Huawei ended the second quarter with a market share of 17.2% in terms of units shipped.
Meanwhile, local smartphone maker Oppo shipped a total of 18 million smartphones in Q2, surging 124.1% compared to the year-ago period, for a total market share of 16.2% in the quarter.
Vivo also saw a shipments growth of 74.7% and improved its market share from 7.9% to 13.2% in Q2.
IDC also revealed that Xiaomi and Apple both lost market share in China’s smartphone market in the second quarter. The Chinese device maker shipped 10.5 million smartphones in Q2, down 38.4% year-on-year.
U.S. giant Apple shipped 8.6 million smartphones in China in the second quarter, down 31.7% compared to 12.6 million units in the year-ago period. Apple also lost market share over the year, dropping from 11.9% in Q2 2015 to 7.8% in Q2 2016.
According to IDC’s study, the iPhone SE was not a hit in China, where consumers prefer phones with larger screens. In Q2, nearly 90% of phones shipped in the Chinese market had screen sizes measuring five inches and larger.
“The success of Huawei, Oppo and Vivo in the market can be attributed to their concerted effort to build their brand and aggressive marketing to attract the consumers, along with the focus on product differentiation,” said Xiaohan Tay, senior market analyst of client devices research, IDC Asia/Pacific.
Despite the Chinese smartphone market being saturated and driven mainly by replacement users, vendors are still aggressive with their marketing tactics, experimenting with new ways to win over consumers, the study added.
