Counterpoint

Read Cult of Mac’s latest posts on Counterpoint:

iPhone dominates 2021’s top-selling phones

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iPhone 12 review
Globally, more iPhone 12 units sold in 2021 than any other model.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

No less than seven of the ten best-selling phones in 2021 were made by Apple. What’s more, all of the top five models were iPhones.

The iPhone 12 topped the list by a significant margin.

Apple takes 75% of smartphone profits, despite fewer sales than Samsung

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iPhone 13 Pro
iPhone also made up 40% of all shipments.
Photo: Apple

iPhone is responsible for a whopping three quarters of all profits earned in the global smartphone market, according to a new report. That’s despite Apple seeing fewer sales than Samsung and Xiaomi.

Cupertino’s handset business actually accounted for just 13% of all smartphone shipments during the second quarter of 2021. But thanks to the large profit margins it enjoys on almost all of its products, it is by far the biggest earner.

Counterpoint: iPhone rakes in 66% of smartphone profits

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International governments plan to rethink tax rules for the ‘digital age’
Who knew? Turns out that the iPhone is quite the money-spinner.
Photo: Pixabay/Pexels CC

When you hear about declining iPhone sales and factoids like Huawei overtaking Apple as the world’s second biggest smartphone maker, it’s easy to lose sight of just how successful Apple is at selling phones.

A new report from Counterpoint Research is a reminder just what a profit-generating powerhouse the iPhone actually is. In Q3 2019, Apple captured a whopping 66% of industry profits. Second place winner Samsung, by comparison, pulled in just 17% of handset profits.

Apple Watch Series 4 was last year’s wearable ‘star performer’

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Apple
Apple Watch Series 4 was a big seller.
Photo: Apple

Apple Watch is going from strength to strength, with shipments of the device growing 22% last year. That’s according to Counterpoint Research, which pins the cause on the excellent Apple Watch Series 4.

Analyst Satyajit Sinha notes that the Apple Watch Series 4 was the year’s “star performer.” Sinha says that it sold 11.5 million units in 2018, making it the year’s best-selling smartwatch.

iPhone users hold onto aging handsets for longer than ever

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Apple display maker exec fired for embezzling millions of dollars
People are holding onto iPhones for an average of three years.
Photo: Kristal Chan/Cult of Mac

The global smartphone market is slowing down, but nowhere are things declining faster than the premium end of the market. According to new figures from Counterpoint Research, that end of the market fell 8% in the first quarter of 2019.

Apple suffered particularly badly, with shipments of the iPhone declining 20%. Counterpoint blames it on users holding onto their handsets for longer.

iPhone shipments dropped a ‘staggering’ 30% last quarter

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iPhone XR Spectrum ad
Those iPhones aren’t floating upward.
Photo: Apple

Although Apple no longer reports the number of iPhone units it sells, the company did admit there was a steep decline in handset revenue in the first three months of this year. Analysts are out with their exact estimates, and the number of iPhones shipped last quarter could have dipped as much as 30 percent.

iPhone X dethroned as world’s top-selling smartphone

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iPhone X laying down
The iPhone X isn't top dog any more. It remains Apple best seller though.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple’s flagship handset has passed its peak popularity. That’s not surprising, given that the iPhone X hit the market more than six months ago. Still, it once could boast of being the world’s best-selling smartphone.

The Galaxy S9+ took its place at the head of the pack. Samsung’s top-of-the-line model debuted early this spring.

Massive iPhone sales buck the trend in falling smartphone market

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iphone x
Suddenly Apple's record quarter seems even more impressive!
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple had an even better start to 2018 than you might think. While it’s now well known that Apple had a record first three months of the year, that doesn’t take into account what the rest of the smartphone market was doing during that time.

In fact, according to a new report by analysts at Counterpoint, the overall U.S. smartphone market declined 11 percent versus the same time last year. Apple, on the other hand, shipped a record 16 million handsets in Q1 — representing a 16 percent increase year-on-year.

iPhone still dominates global smartphone sales

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iPhone X laying down
Yeah! Apple is number one!
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

It’s tempting to look at the smartphone wars in terms of Apple vs. Android, but that’s really not telling anywhere close to the true story. The real competition is between the companies who actually build the smartphones — and those stats show that Apple is very clearly crushing it!

In a recent report from researchers at Counterpoint, the individual handset model sales are broken down for the month of October 2017, just before the iPhone X arrived. Even before Apple’s most anticipated smartphone of the year was released, they highlight just how far ahead of its rivals Apple is.

Apple loses spot as world’s second-largest smartphone maker

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Huawei
Chinese smartphone maker Huawei is on the rise.
Photo: AndroidCentral

The title of world’s second-largest smartphone brand no longer belongs to Apple.

New research data from analytics firm Counterpoint shows that Chinese smartphone company Huawei consistently surpassed Apple in smartphone sales during June and July to take over the No. 2 spot. Samsung remains at the top of the heap.

iPhone shipments rocket 133% in the Middle East and Africa

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iPhone 6s
After China, the Middle East and Africa is one of Apple's big focuses.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Apple is focused on expanding into new markets, and after its success in China, it seems the next focus is on the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region.

According to analysts at Counterpoint Research, Apple saw its market share in the region climb 3.9 percent in the third quarter of 2015, compared to 2.2 percent during the same period one year earlier. Overall, iPhone shipments grew 133 percent on-year in 2015 to enter the top 5 smartphone brands in the area.