Samsung’s tenure as the world’s number one smartphone vendor has come to an end after 13 incredible years. Apple has now taken the top spot for annual global smartphone shipments. This shift was fueled by Samsung’s underperformance combined with Apple’s impressive performance in many major markets. However, this doesn’t mean Apple has the upper hand everywhere. In a major market like India, iPhones are not even among the top five most popular handsets.
The top five vendors in India for 2023 are Samsung, Xiaomi, Vivo, Realme, and Oppo. This signals a significant change from 2022, when Xiaomi was at the top, and Samsung had to settle for second place.
Smartphone shipments in India dipped by 2 percent in the last year, a significant improvement considering that the market had been seeing a decline for five consecutive quarters prior to Q4 2023. Q4 2023 saw a surprising growth of 20 percent in sales. Samsung, Xiaomi, Vivo, and Realme were crucial in driving this growth. Apple’s mass appeal in India is steadily improving, especially in the premium market segment. The iPhone 15 series had a strong start in India, and even older models like the iPhone 13 and iPhone 14 are still performing well, as their prices have dropped.
Apple, with 7 percent of Q4 2023 smartphone sales in India, is making its mark in the country, while Samsung continues to have a strong presence in the premium market segment with the successful launch of the Galaxy S23 FE.
Overall, premium smartphones are expected to continue growing in popularity in India, ensuring healthy profit margins for Apple, Samsung, and other brands.
