The affordable offering by Apple, the iPhone XR, was the best selling smartphone in the third quarter of 2019 globally, Counterpoint Research has said, adding that it captured 3 per cent of market share in the quarter. According to Counterpoint Research’s Market Pulse, except for the launch quarter in September 2018, iPhone XR has been the top-selling model globally in every quarter since Q4 2018. The next most sold smartphone was the Samsung Galaxy A10 which captured 2.6 per cent share.
The XR alone contributed to over one-quarter of the total Apple sales during the quarter, making it the bestselling model for Apple across all regions. The research firm says that since Apple adjusted the price of the iPhone XR in China and several other markets, the demand for the phone remained strong during the quarter. The iPhone 11 also made its debut in the top 10 within the launch quarter.
Samsung had three models in the top 10, all from the A-series, and there were no flagships from Samsung in the top 10 list. Oppo also had three devices – A9, A5s, and A5, and an offering from its Chinese counterpart, Huawei P30, also featured in the list. The Redmi 7A also grabbed a spot on the list, thanks to its sales in India, which contributed to over half of the total sales of the model during the quarter.
The volume contribution in total sell-through for the top 10 models combined increased by 9% year-over-year (YoY) to capture 17 per cent of the total sales compared to 15 per cent in Q3 2018. However, the combined wholesale revenue of the top 10 models declined 30 per cent YoY. This is because the mix of mid-tier devices in the top models is increasing. There were five flagship devices in the top 10 in Q3 2018, but this year, there are only three.
Counterpoint Research says that part of the reason for having only three flagships in the top 10 list is the improved capabilities of devices in the mid-tier over the last year. Premium segment features are trickling down to the mid-segment at a faster rate. In fact, in some cases, smartphones in the mid-tier segment are now equipped with features that were absent in some premium segment products as recently as a year ago. Ironically, the increased mix of mid-tier products has also led to the fall in revenues for key smartphone OEMs during the quarter. The overall global handset profits declined 11 per cent YoY during Q3 2019.
