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New data from Gartner shows that Android and iOS are dominating the smartphone operating system market, while Windows Phone has slumped to less than a 1 per cent market share.Gartner figures show that second quarter global smartphone sales to end users totalled 344 million units, up 4.3 per cent year-on-year, with Samsung enjoying a strong quarter and Apple declining.
Apple’s decline has contributed to Android regaining share over iOS in the operating system market. Android captured an 86.2 per cent share of the market in the quarter, while Android and iOS (12.9 per cent) captured over 99 per cent of the market.
Windows Phone, meanwhile, has slumped to a 0.6 per cent market share.
Gartner states that Android’s performance was boosted by demand for mid-to-lower-end smartphones in emerging markets, while premium smartphones also recorded a 6.5 per cent increase in the quarter as key Android players, including Samsung with its Galaxy S7, introduced new high-end devices.
Chinese brands including Huawei and Oppo also are “pushing their premium smartphone ranges with more affordable devices”, Gartner notes.
Worldwide Smartphone Sales to End Users by
Operating System in 2Q16 (Thousands of Units)
|
Operating System |
2Q16 Units |
2Q16 Market Share (%) |
2Q15 Units |
2Q15 Market Share (%) |
|
Android |
296,912.8 |
86.2 |
271,647.0 |
82.2 |
|
iOS |
44,395.0 |
12.9 |
48,085.5 |
14.6 |
|
Windows |
1,971.0 |
0.6 |
8,198.2 |
2.5 |
|
Blackberry |
400.4 |
0.1 |
1,153.2 |
0.3 |
|
Others |
680.6 |
0.2 |
1,229.0 |
0.4 |
|
Total |
344,359.7 |
100.0 |
330,312.9 |
100.0 |
Source: Gartner (August 2016)
“Google is evolving the Android platform fast, which allows Android players to remain at the cutting edge of smartphone technology,” Roberta Cozza, Gartner research director, commented.
“Facing a highly commoditised smartphone market, Google’s focus is to further expand and diversify the Android platform with additional functionalities, like virtual reality, enabling more-intelligent experiences and reach into wearables, connected home devices, in-car entertainment and TV.”
In terms of smartphone sales, Samsung led the way, commanding a 22.3 per cent market share, growing unit sales by 6.5 per cent, with Gartner noting Samsung’s Galaxy A and Galaxy J series smartphones sales competed strongly with Chinese manufacturers, while its new portfolio also helped win back share recently lost in emerging markets.
Apple, meanwhile, continued its downward trend, with a unit sales decline of 7.7 per cent in the quarter, capturing a 12.9 per cent market share, ranked in second position, followed by Huawei, Oppo and Xiaomi (see table below).
Oppo recorded the highest unit sales growth among the top five smartphone vendors at 129 per cent, which Gartner states was due to strong sales of its R9 handset in China and overseas.
Worldwide Smartphone Sales to End Users by
Vendor in 2Q16 (Thousands of Units)
|
Company |
2Q16 Units |
2Q16 Market Share (%) |
2Q15 Units |
2Q15 Market Share (%) |
|
Samsung |
76,743.5 |
22.3 |
72,072.5 |
21.8 |
|
Apple |
44,395.0 |
12.9 |
48,085.5 |
14.6 |
|
Huawei |
30,670.7 |
8.9 |
26,454.4 |
8.0 |
|
Oppo |
18,489.6 |
5.4 |
8,073.8 |
2.4 |
|
Xiaomi |
15,530.7 |
4.5 |
15,464.5 |
4.7 |
|
Others |
158,530.3 |
46.0 |
160,162.1 |
48.5 |
|
Total |
344,359.7 |
100.0 |
330,312.9 |
100.0 |
Source: Gartner (August 2016)
