With their deep marketing pockest, Apple and Samsung still maintain consistency in preserving top two smartphone vendor rankings and their dominance is not expected to end anytime soon as both vie to launch updated versions of their devices.
A report from ABI research revealed that Apple and Samsung accounted for the majority of the top 20 smartphone models sold during the first quarter, with their respective flagship devices like the iPhone 5s 16GB and Galaxy S4 i9500 16GB topping the list.
Despite immense technical success and analysts’ admiring the device, Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC was far behind Apple and Samsung in the global overall smartphone market.
ABI Research senior practice director Nick Spencer said that Samsung’s dominance is driven by its market leading 27% market share and despite Apple’s lower market share its small, clearly tiered portfolio creates significant volume for just a few SKUs.
"The presence of the Samsung Galaxy S3 i9300 16GB and iPhone 4s 8GB in the top five is testament to the enduring appeal of these models and the vendors strong brand, enabling a long and profitable lifecycle, that other vendors can only dream of," Spencer added.
During the quarter, Xiaomi graced the top 20 smartphone sales list for the first time ever dropping out Huawei, while joining LG and Sony as the global leaders in handheld gadgets.
"The much talked about Chinese vendor Xiaomi’s top device by shipment volume is the Redmi, which is now available outside of China, at a very affordable $130," Spencer said.
Further, Huawei and HTC are anticipated to bounce back in to the top 20 following the launch of their flagship devices the HTC One M8 and the Huawei Ascend P7 in second quarter.
