The iPhone accounted for almost half of all US smartphone sales
While Counterpoint Research has chosen not to share a shipment number for the US smartphone market in Q1 2021, it’s reporting that sales were down 6% compared to the same quarter in 2021. This slowdown can be attributed to three main factors: a lack of stimulus money, decreased demand for premium smartphones following the holiday season, and continued supply constraints that affect both 4G LTE and 5G devices.As well as this, it’s worth noting that most of the US smartphone market’s decline was concentrated around the iPhone, which lost a significant chunk of market share following stronger performances from its rivals.
Samsung reached its highest market share since 2014
The second most popular brand in the US continues to be Samsung. It managed to increase its market share and close the gap with Apple in the first three months of the year, with the two companies controlling a combined share of 75%.Samsung alone accounted for an impressive 28% of all smartphone shipments in the market, representing its highest level of market share in almost a decade — since Q1 2014, to be exact. This success is attributed to the Galaxy S22 series and refreshed Galaxy A line. A recent report revealed that the Galaxy S22 Ultra was Samsung’s best-selling phone at carrier stores in February, with the Galaxy S22 and S22+ following closely behind.
Motorola, Google, and OnePlus doubled their market share
Despite Samsung and Apple’s dominant positions, the biggest winners so far this year have proven to be smaller brands like Motorola and Google, as well as OnePlus and TCL.
Similarly, OnePlus saw demand for its smartphone rise 21% thanks to its continued success at T-Mobile with low-end smartphones. Interestingly, the flagship OnePlus 10 Pro has experienced a rather disappointing launch in the US.
Last on the list is TCL, which saw its market share triple from 1% to 3% by the end of March. It suffered heavily last year because of supply constraints but has since managed to recover with the help of its distribution deal with Metro by T-Mobile.