Leading mobile analyst firm Juniper Research estimates that the number of smartphone shipments reached over 290 million in Q2 2014, representing 26% y-o-y growth and 2% q-o-q growth. Both Apple and Samsung witnessed a decline in their global market share as other vendors including Huawei, LG and Lenovo made gains at their expense.
Samsung accounted for 26% of all smartphone shipments globally, with an estimated 75 million shipments during the quarter. While the company’s market share declined y-o-y and q-o-q, shipment volume were estimated to be up 4% when compared to Q2 2013. The company does not disclose shipment numbers.
Apple posted its best ever second quarter, shipping over 35 million iPhones, representing a y-o-y growth of 13%. However, Apple’s market share slipped from 15% in Q1 2014 to 12% in Q2 2014. A significant proportion of iPhone sales came from emerging markets, recording 55% y-o-y growth in the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China).
Huawei sold some 34.3 million smartphones in H1 2014, with the second quarter shipments reaching 20 million representing a market share of nearly 7%. The company is expected to meet its full-year target of 80 million smartphones.
Lenovo is estimated to have shipped 15.6 million smartphones for the second quarter, representing an increased market share of 5.5%.
LG meanwhile shipped a record 14.5 million smartphones in the second quarter, representing a 20% y-o-y growth and 5% market share.
The growth in economies of scale, innovation and the ‘trickle-down’ effect of technology opened up the market to a far wider variety of low-end, lower-priced smartphones which, in turn, facilitated their entry into emerging/developing markets. Juniper anticipates that emerging nations in Far East & China, Indian Subcontinent, Latin America and Africa & Middle East will account for over 50% of the global smartphones shipped this year.
