Apple may be one of the more popular electronics makers out there with have one of the most recognizable household brands, but an interesting piece of data from Gartner shows that Apple’s share of the smartphone market shrank in 2013 Q1 compared to last year. Rivals like Samsung and LG saw their hold respective holds over the market increase, as did Huawei and ZTE.
The rivalry between Apple and Samsung extends to pretty much all facets of their products including smartphones, tablets, and their software. In Q1 of 2012, the tech giants were neck-and-neck in the smartphone market with Samsung taking a 27.6% share and Apple a 22.5% share. Together the makers of the ever-popular iPhone series and Galaxy series held an impressive stranglehold on the market. One year later, the gap between the two is widening.
Apple’s iPhone which touts itself as being user-friendly with a complete vertical integration of all its products from the iPads to the iMac, could seemingly be found in everyone’s pocket but its popularity is certainly correlated with Apple’s market share. The current iPhone 5 lacked any real innovation upon release while glitches in its mapping feature and complete lack of NFC made people wonder if the Cupertino-based company’s creative spark went the way of the late great Steve Jobs. The upcoming iPhone 5S rumors have been mild and lacked any hard evidence of anything new, but a “flatter” UI redesign signifies Apple is looking to completely overhaul how its users employ its devices in a last ditch attempt to clot the market share bleeding.
Samsung, on the other hand, has since released the Galaxy S4 as its flagship smartphone operating on Android’s operating system and undercutting the iPhone in terms of price. Apple used to rely on its built-in audience for sales but as Gartner’s data shows, Apple increased its shipments while its market share dwindled. The Galaxy has received near-all positive reviews with a crystal clear display, powerful processor, and plenty of storage and memory space. Samsung is even gearing up to release a mini version of the GS4.
Even LG, which was once considered a B-list smartphone manufacturer, is upping the game with its Optimus G Pro and Optimus G2 handsets, both beastly devices with larger screens and improved imaging technology.
Apple will debut its latest iPhone 5S at its WWDC conference next month and we’re all waiting on bated breath for something exotic. Jony Ive has been in charge of all-things design since the departure of Scott Forstall and Ive, a Jobs disciple, is taking his designs in a different direction. It’ll be interesting to see if the technology follows suit.
