As smartphone wars heat up between Samsung and Apple, a new research shows that Samsung won at least one battle by beating Apple in the global smartphone market this past quarter. South Korean tech giant grabbed a bigger share of the world-wide smartphone market from its biggest rival Apple to make up one-third of all smartphone volumes globally. Apple, on the other hand, saw its share in the smartphone market fall to its lowest levels for three years in Q2, according to Strategy Analytics.
The Cupertino giant ranked second declining to a modest 14% market share during a record-setting quarter for the overall smartphone market which grew 47% annually to hit 230 million units shipped. The smartphone industry’s shipments accelerated due to a growing demand for 4G models in developed regions such as the US and 3G models in emerging markets like India, the analysts said.
Samsung saw annual growth of 56% and shipped a record 76 million smartphones globally, taking 33% market share in the second quarter of 2013. Strong demand for the S4 model of its flagship Galaxy smartphone helped lift Samsung’s shipment volumes. Apple shipped 31.2 million iPhones worldwide in Q2, over two times less than its Asian competitor. An annual growth of 20% shows that Apple’s current iPhone portfolio is under-performing, Strategy Analytics notes, saying that this puts Apple at risk of “being trapped in a pincer movement between rival 3-inch Android models at the low-end and 5-inch Android models at the high-end.”
According to the research firm, LG is a “star performer” doubling shipments from last year to 12.1 million units in Q2 2013. With 5% share, LG kept its position as the world’s third largest smartphone vendor, achieving this success mainly due to its popular Optimus and Nexus models. “If LG can expand its retail presence and marketing in major countries such as the US or China, LG could quietly start to challenge Apple for second position,” said Linda Sui, Analyst at Strategy Analytics.