Strategy Analytics Stats indicate Apple and Samsung both losing smartphone Market to wearables

As the Demand at home in Jamaica continues to grow for low-end smartphones, specifically the DL600 and the DL700 smartphone as noted in my blog article entitled “Digicel to invest US$85 million in 4G LTE Network - 25% of Total revenue from ICT as 4G LTE Investments designed to weather the coming Summer WhatsApp Storm”, globally the story appears increasingly to be the same thing.

Samsung and Apple are now facing market erosion for the first time since the Fourth Quarter of 2009 as statistics for the First Quarter of 2014 from analyst Strategy Analytics seem to suggest in the article “Apple, Samsung see drop in global smartphone market share”, published April 28, 2014 8:20 PM PDT by Steven Musil, CNET News.

You can read the Stats yourself on the Strategy Analytics Blog  in their latest publication “Samsung & Apple Slip as Global Smartphone Shipments Reach 285 Million Units in Q1 2014”, published April 29, 2014 02:50, Strategy Analytics Blog.

So let’s get straight to the Strategy Analytics Stats for the First Quarter of 2014:

1.      285 million units shipped Globally, an increase of 33% compared to First Quarter of 2013

2.      89 million units shipped for Samsung

3.      43.7 million for Apple

In terms of marketshare, the news is beginning to look bearish:

1.      31% of the Global smartphone market belongs to Samsung, a 1% decline from 32% compared to First Quarter of 2013

2.      15% of the Global smartphone market belongs to Apple, a 2% decline from 17% compared to First Quarter of 2013

3.      5% of the Global smartphone market belongs to Huawei and Lenovo

These stats are a bit of a surprise and may mark a turning point for smartphones sales and strategies. For one, this is the first time since the Fourth Quarter of 2009 that Samsung or Apple have BOTH seen a decline in their collective markershare, which has now dropped from 50% to 47%.

Their marketshare erosion is apparently due mainly to low-tier smartphones makers such as Huawei and Lenovo, who are apparently poised to purchase Motorola from Google for US$2.91 billion whole Google retains US$12.5 billion worth of patents as stated in “Google sells Motorola unit to Lenovo for $2.9B”, published January 29, 2014 1:22 PM PST by Roger Cheng, CNET News.

That explains the 33% increase in smartphone sales overall; it's not due to Apple and Samsung, but rather to Budget Google Android smartphone makers such as Huawei, Lenovo, LG Electronics and Xiaomi, about who I’d penned my blog article entitled “Xiaomi launches US$134.07 Xiaomi Redmi smartphone in Singapore - Perfect Storm for Apple and Samsung as the Xiaomi Redmi is Katy Perry's Dark Horse” about their US$134.07 Xiaomi Redmi smartphone.

Nokia is also joining the Google Android fray with their US$120 Nokia X, albeit with a different agenda, as they are using Android as Cannon Fodder to gain more users interested in their higher-end smartphones as noted in my blog article entitled “US$120 Nokia X along with US$135 Nokia X+ and US$150 Nokia XL coming by Second Quarter of 2014 - Nokia's Trio of smartphones Perfect Windows Phone Trojan Horse for Developing World”.

Social Media, News and Wearable Computing - Perfect Storm for smartphone Extinction in the Year of the Sheep

So with so many Barbarians at their Gates, Apple and Samsung's empires is now finally showing signs of crumbling at the seams. But fret not; the Wearable Computing revolution will see smartwatches tethered to smartglasses coming to replace them quite soon as predicted in my blog article entitled “Google Glass launched early as a Product - Google pre-empting Samsung Galaxy Glass and Facebook's Oculus Rift replacing the smartphone in 2015 the Year of the Sheep”.

Thus these statistics are an early sign of a coming predicted Trend towards smartphones in the Developing World and Waning interest in the Developed World. The Americans and Europeans are slowly become bored and are awaiting the Next Big Thing to satiate the tech-obsessed existence that says they’re ahead of the rest of the World.

So whether it’s VoIP Video Calling from WhatsApp or any other mobile Social Network such as Snapchat as stated in my blog article entitled “Snapchat introduces Video Calling and Instant Messaging - You have 10 seconds before this Video Call or IM explodes as Snapchat gears up for WhatsApp VoIP Calling”, the demand for a simpler device that has a more human interface is evidently there. 

Thus Wearable Computing that offers AR (Augmented Reality) or VR (Virtual Reality) via a pair of tethered smartglasses and delivers the News, such as Facebook’s Oculus Rift cum smartglasses as predicted in my blog article entitled “Facebook launches FB Newswire with Verified News from Storyful - Facebook's a bonafide Social Media Newspaper coming soon to a Oculus Rift Smartglasses near you”, will be their Next obsession come 2015.

Social Media, News and Wearable Computing are the Perfect Storm for smartphone Extinction in the Year of the Sheep!