While Samsung held a launch event in the US for the Galaxy S24 mobile phones, Apple was pleased to have won with its iPhones.
According to a report from research firm IDC, Apple was the top-selling smartphone manufacturer in 2023, pushing Samsung off the mobile throne it has held since 2010.
A few nice improvements, but is anyone really going to be queuing up to upgrade their 14 Pro Max?
However, the gap between the two arch-rivals is small. Apple sold 234.6 million units in 2023, giving them a market share of 20.1% according to IDC. In comparison, Samsung with 226.6 million units had a share of 19.4%. So, just half a per cent separates the two mobile giants.
Third place went to Xiaomi, which with 145.9 million units achieved a market share of 12.5%. Oppo was in fourth place with 8.8%, while fifth was Transsion, an unknown brand in Europe, with 8.1%. All other manufacturers had to fight for the last 31% of the market.
But the iPhone wasn’t just the best-selling mobile phone brand in the world. It was also the only major one to experience growth. In 2023, Apple increased its iPhone sales by 3.7 per cent. Samsung, by comparison, suffered a 13.6 per cent decline in mobile sales. Xiaomi lost 4.7 per cent, while Oppo declined 9.9 per cent.
More info: IDC