The iPhone 15 isn’t even out yet, but it brings high hopes to Apple, as the Cupertino firm could become the largest smartphone brand by 2023 and 2024 and take off the crown from Samsung.
According to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, Samsung’s smartphone shipments have been cut to 220 million units this year. That said, if Apple keeps its orders unchanged for the second semester, the iPhone shipments are expected to reach 220–225 million units in 2023, surpassing Samsung as the largest smartphone brand.
With Apple’s outlook being optimistic for 2024, with a shipment target of 250 million units, Ming-Chi Kuo sees a 5-10% YoY increase. He also notes that Samsung’s internal view of 2024 market demand is “still conservative,” so it could also make Cupertino the largest smartphone brand next year.
Although Apple could see itself as the largest smartphone brand in 2023 and 2024, Kuo reiterates that the maker is “concerned that iPhone 15 shipments will be further cut due to supply chain issues.” He expects 80 million units shipped, while conservative views expect something between 70-80 million. The main issue could be iPhone 15 Pro Max delays.
Lastly, the analyst says the iPhone 15 Pro Max mass shipments should start this week, and with Apple increasing shipments of “legacy models” simultaneously, he even expects the company’s stocks to have a rebound opportunity in the near term, as Cupertino could sell even more iPhones than anticipated.
Early today, BGR reported that the iPhone 14 Pro Max was the most shipped smartphone in the first half of the year, followed by other iPhone models. Even though shipment was slightly lower than last year, Apple has dramatically outperformed Samsung.
Jusy Hong, Senior Research Manager at Omdia, also mentioned how the upcoming iPhone 15 models could help Apple ship more devices than other Android manufacturers: “The increasing portion of the premium market is expected to continue in the second half of this year with the launch of the new iPhone 15 series. Therefore, shipments of Android-based smartphone OEMs, which have a high portion of mid- to low-priced smartphones, will inevitably see another round of negative growth this year. On the other hand, Apple’s shipments of Pro and Pro Max will increase due to solid demand for premium models, but overall iPhone shipments this year will be similar to last year or decrease slightly due to weak demand for standard and plus models.”
BGR will keep reporting the latest news regarding Apple’s upcoming iPhone models.
