Samsung's 5G smartphone sales are growing fast - but Apple still dominates
Samsung had by far the fastest-growing 5G handset shipments worldwide in the first quarter of 2021, according to analyst firm Strategy Analytics – although Apple continues to dominate the market.
Samsung's 5G smartphone sales grew a whopping 79% between Q4 2020 and Q1 2021, far ahead of the 5G category's overall growth of 6% and way ahead of Apple, whose 5G iPhone sales declined 23% quarter on quarter, according to Strategy Analytics, although that largely reflected how strong iPhone sales were in Q4 of last year.
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And Apple is still by far the biggest vendor of 5G smartphones despite the drop in shipments. In Q1 2021, it shipped 40.4 million 5G iPhones, while runner-up OPPO shipped 21.5 million. Vivo shipped 19.4 million, Samsung shipped 17 million, and Xiaomi shipped 16.6 million.
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According to the firm, global 5G smartphone sales reached a record 136 million units in Q1 2021.
Analyst Canalys estimates 5G handsets made up 37% of global smartphone shipments in Q1 2021 and predicted them to account for 43% of the 610 million smartphones it reckons will be sold this year. Part of the reason for the growth is that a third of all 5G handsets shipped by the end of the year will cost less than $300.
Samsung's Galaxy S21 5G, S21 ultra 5G and S21+ 5G performed well in South Korea, North America, and parts of Europe, says Ville-Petteri Ukonaho, associate director at Strategy Analytics.
"Vivo was the second fastest-growing 5G smartphone vendor in Q1 2021, jumping 62% QoQ to 19 million units shipped, driven by its iQOO U3 5G and U7 5G smartphones," he noted.
Vivo's 5G smartphone did best in China and Europe. OPPO grew 55% over the period, while Xiaomi increased 41% thanks to China sales.
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While Apple did see shipments drop off in Q1 2021, that's because it had stellar sales in Q4 2020 when it launched the iPhone 12 series – it's first line-up of 5G iPhones. "Apple dipped 23% QoQ, following a blowout Q4 2020 where the new 5G iPhone was wildly popular as a gift during the holiday season," he says.
Strategy Analytics notes that China is a weak spot for Samsung's 5G sales.