Apple Inc retook the lead in smartphone sales. In the fourth quarter of 2012, the corporation’s share in this market segment constituted 42.7%, mainly due to high demand for iPhone 5, the latest smart mobile device.
Samsung, with its 28.7% market share, was left behind. It should be mentioned, however, that in the third quarter Apple only held some 14.6% of global smartphone sales versus Samsung’s 23.8%.
And yet, experts do not think the statistics show new disposition of power on the market. They draw attention to the dates the two giants introduced the devices to the market on. Samsung launched its Galaxy S III in spring with Galaxy S IV announcement. Whereas Apple’s iPhone 5 appeared on sale in autumn, so the corporation netted really huge profits ahead of Christmas and the New Year.
The Samsung Galaxy S IV launch may well change the situation in this market segment. Galaxy S IV is going to feature a 5-inch display, a higher resolution camera, and a Super AMOLED screen. Samsung has long been a smartphone market leader in China. In 2011, the country saw 11 mln Samsung‘s smartphones sold, while in 2012 this figure swelled to about 30 mln. The South Korean giant is number one in sales in China, and Apple is ranked third in this region. The reasons why Samsung’s devices are so popular in the People’s Republic of China are a wide price range varying from model to model and high-quality materials. Apple can hardly boast of cheap and affordable gadgets.
The Chinese market is said to be increasingly important for electronics producers and smartphone manufacturers in particular. As official estimates show, over 240 mln Chinese citizens use smartphones, while in America just 230 mln devices are employed.
