Shipments for the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone have increased by 23% over the same period from last year. However, shares for the worldwide market have slipped, thanks to competition from Chinese vendors.
Lenovo benefited from Apple’s fall
The last quarter, over 30 million iPhones were sold to customers, however a significant leap in the smartphone market (about 46 percent) diluted Apple’s share from the 14.3 percent a year ago to the 12.1 percent today. Lenovo Group Limited (OTCMKTS:LNVGY) (HKG:0992) benefited from Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s fall with a 85 percent market share increase.
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (LON:BC94) (KRX:005930)’s position as market leader has remained the same with the 32.1 percent share it had from last year.
These new numbers include a week’s worth of sales for the new iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C. However, the numbers could have been greater if the devices were shipped earlier. Anshul Gupta (principal research analyst for Gartner) explained, “Sales of feature phones continued to decline. [Customers in China and Latin America] rushed to replace their old models with smartphones.”
Lenovo capable of hanging with the big boys
Asian tech companies have a growing presence in the market and China accounts for about almost half of the Android gadgets sold during that quarter. What’s more is that nine of ten Android vendors are from China. Haydn Shaughnessy wrote in a recent report for Forbes, “Earlier this month Lenovo Group Limited (OTCMKTS:LNVGY) (HKG:0992) announced it has grown revenues in Q3 in mature markets like the US and Europe by and 37% and 26%,respectively, year on year. That came about in higher-end consumer markets with devices like the Flex notebooks and Yoga 2 Pro. In a market where competitors are looking to reduce price dramatically and find ways to disrupt the Samsung-Apple model, Lenovo looks capable of playing well within it. Margins are increasing.”
The market for mobile technology is changing fast and it’s crucial for companies to stay on top. Right now it looks like Lenovo Group Limited (OTCMKTS:LNVGY) (HKG:0992) will continue to trail-blaze but that doesn’t mean Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has to worry. The tech giant still has a large segment in the market and is still in the lead.
