Xiaomi Sinks As Huawei Dominates In Chinese Smartphones
With all the buzz and attention Xiaomi receives, one may expect it to be a dominant force in China’s smartphone world. But latest numbers show Xiaomi isn’t even in the top two of the number of devices recently shipped.
During the first quarter of 2016, China’s smartphone shipment reached about 104.9 million units, representing a decrease of 5% compared with the 109.8 million units in the same period of last year.
Statistics from market research firm Strategy Analytics show that Huawei smartphones were still leading the Chinese market. From January to March 2016, Huawei shipped 16.6 million smartphones, a year-on-year increase of 48%. Due to the wide distribution channels and its popular Android products such as Mate 8, Huawei achieved rapid development in China. However, there were signs that the company’s development in high-end market was slowing down and its major competitors like OPPO and Vivo became more powerful.
During the first quarter of 2016, OPPO exceeded Xiaomi to become the second largest smartphone maker in China. The company shipped 13.2 million smartphones, a year-on-year increase of 67%, and its market share reached 13% in China. OPPO’s R series and A series products were well-received in second-tier cities and rural areas.
Meanwhile, Xiaomi was facing severe competition from Huawei and Samsung in the medium-end market and its market share decreased from 13% to 12%, ranking third in the Chinese market. Xiaomi reportedly shipped 128,000 smartphones in the first quarter of 2016, a year-on-year decrease of 9%.
Vivo’s market share increased from 7% to 12%, ranking the fourth in the Chinese market. With good hardware design, powerful functions, high quality, and strong retailing distribution, Vivo’s consumer awareness was increasing in the mass market.
In addition, Apple’s Chinese market share decreased to 11%, ranking the fifth in this marketplace.