As challenging as the last year has been for virtually everyone on planet Earth, there are signs that a true recovery has begun to take place in all the industries that suffered throughout the pandemic. One such sign is a recent report from Counterpoint Research, which revealed that global smartphone revenue topped $100 million in the first quarter for the first time ever.
“Global smartphone segment clocked a record first-quarter wholesale shipment revenues of $113 billion, up 35% YoY,” said Counterpoint senior analyst Harmeet Singh Walia in a press release. “This is coming at a time when the industry was facing supply chain constraints. Apple captured a record first-quarter revenue share driven by the strong performance of the iPhone 12 Series and demand spill-over from the previous quarter due to delayed launch.”
Last week, Counterpoint Research shared an update regarding Q1 2021 revenue, and it turns out that Apple’s smartphone lineup was an even bigger hit than it at first appeared.
According to Counterpoint’s press release, Apple’s latest iPhone models dominated the competition in terms of volume share and revenue share through the first quarter of 2021. The iPhone 12 was the best-selling phone, capturing 5% of the market, while the iPhone 12 Pro Max came in second with 4% and the iPhone 12 Pro came in third with 3%. The iPhone 11 and Redmi 9A tied in fourth with 2%, and no other phone topped 1%. Keep in mind that these are global sales figures.
The revenue share split was nearly identical, although the iPhone 12 Pro Max leapfrogged the iPhone 12 with 12% compared to 11%. The iPhone 12 Pro Max is $300 more expensive than the standard model, so this doesn’t come as much of a surprise. Samsung also has a slightly more impressive showing on this list, with the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G climbing up to fifth place with a 3% revenue share, but every vendor once again pales in comparison to Apple’s unbeatable iPhone lineup.
Beyond the top ten list, there were a few interesting revelations in the press release. For example, higher-priced variants were more popular in some regions than in others — in the US, the iPhone 12 Pro Max and the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G were the most popular models from Apple and Samsung, respectively. Also, the iPhone 11 and iPhone SE were the only two models on the list without 5G.
“Unlike the revenue list, the volume list also features devices from the affordable segment,” research analyst Varun Mishra wrote. “The volumes for the Redmi 9A were driven by its strong performance in China and India, while the Redmi 9 performed well in the South East Asian market. The strong performance of the Redmi 9A, Redmi 9 and Redmi Note 9 helped Xiaomi maintain its pole position in the sub-$150 price band globally, capturing a 19% share in the segment.”
