My Thoughts on Technology and Jamaica: IDC Stats for Second Quarter of 2014 points to Asian Smartphone Rise – How cheaper smartphones are slowly killing BOTH Apple and Samsung marketshare

Wednesday, July 30, 2014

IDC Stats for Second Quarter of 2014 points to Asian Smartphone Rise – How cheaper smartphones are slowly killing BOTH Apple and Samsung marketshare

It’s not shaping up to be a good year for either Samsung or Apple as both are seeing declines in the Second Quarter of 2014. This as their competitor, mostly Asian based smartphone makers such as Huawei, Lenovo and LG Electronics are recording record-breaking numbers according to the figures presented by IDC in the article “Chinese phone makers gain amid smartphone surge”, published July 29, 2014 11:40 AM PDT by Rachel King, CNET News.


According to the IDC in the Second Quarter of 2014:

1.      295.3 million units shipped worldwide
2.      23.1% annual growth
3.      2.6% Quarterly growth

Take a gander at the IDC Stats Table below and it all becomes clear when the Second Quarter of 2013 is compared to the Second Quarter of 2014:


Huawei, Lenovo and LG Electronics are all seeing growth in shipments while shipment has declined slightly for Samsung. Huawei’s shipments have even doubled from 10.4 million in the Second Quarter of 2013 to 20.3 million in Second Quarter of 2014. Apple's shipments are up for the first time this year but like Samsung, their marketshare is declining even as their competition’s marketshare is inching forward.

IDC Stats points to Asia – Cheaper smartphones taking away Apple and Samsung marketshare

Clearly the cheaper smartphones being made by Huawei, who'd practically double their shipments, means that they're on their way to becoming the Smartphone of choice. With IDC cautioning explosive quarterly growth, collectively Asian Smartphone makers have still managed to sweeten the expectations of analysts by pointing to the smartphone makers collectively cracking the 300-million-unit mark during the Third Quarter of 2014.

Here in Jamaica, we don't have to be told this, as it's become obvious which smartphone is the clear winner on specs and choice. This is already becoming a summer of the Huawei Ascend Y330 smartphone in Jamaica.

Their competitive pricing on offer by Telecom Provider LIME as I'd reported in my comparison entitled “JA$3999 Huawei Ascend Y330 vs JA$7599 Digicel DL700 this Summer of 2014 - Waggonists Transfer Form not Required to get new smartphone” makes the choice of a smartphone a no-brainer.

But what of Tablets? Well here’s a teaser!

I’ll be doing another article analyzing their progress this Second Quarter, as if the trend holds from the First Quarter of 2014 as explained in my blog article entitled “IDC and NPD Group record Tablet Decline and Phablet Rise - “White Box” Chinese Tablets and Wearable Computing in First Quarter of 2014 making Tablets obsolete in the Year of the Sheep”, cheaper Chinese Tablets will continue to by stealing the show.

Keep following my blog for more details!!

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