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Apple Drops to Sixth Place in China's Smartphone Market

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For the first time in years, Apple has fallen out of the top five smartphone vendors in China, ranking sixth in the second quarter of 2024.

iphone-15-lineup-store.jpg

Data from Canalys, a market research firm, shows that Apple's iPhone shipments in China declined by 6.7% year-on-year. This drop has been attributed to fierce competition from domestic brands such as Huawei, Vivo, Oppo, Honor, and Xiaomi. Huawei, in particular, has seen a resurgence in the high-end smartphone market, fueled by advanced chips produced entirely in China.

Canalys reported that the overall Chinese smartphone market experienced a 10% year-on-year growth in the second quarter of 2024, with shipments exceeding 70 million units. Vivo reclaimed the number one spot by shipping 13.1 million units, capturing a 19% market share. Oppo followed with 11.3 million units, Honor with 10.7 million units, and Huawei with 10.6 million units. Xiaomi re-entered the top five with a 17% year-on-year increase, shipping 10 million units. In contrast, Apple's shipments dropped to 9.7 million units, representing a 14% market share.

The increased competition and market dynamics in China have posed significant challenges for Apple. The company's market share decreased from 16% in the previous year to 14%, pushing it from third to sixth place. Despite promotional efforts, including significant discounts of up to 23%, Apple has struggled to maintain its market position. The competitive landscape has been further complicated by the overall growth of local vendors, which have benefited from their localized supply chains and strong brand loyalty among Chinese consumers.

Apple's Chief Operating Officer Jeff Williams recently visited China, meeting with officials in Beijing and Shenzhen to reinforce Apple's commitment to the Chinese market. Canalys analyst Lucas Zhong emphasized the importance of the company localizing Apple Intelligence for China within the next year to regain market share. The anticipated release of the iPhone 16 lineup later this year is also expected to drive demand and potentially improve Apple's market position.

Article Link: Apple Drops to Sixth Place in China's Smartphone Market
 
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https://www.macrumors.com/2024/07/26/apple-drops-to-sixth-place-in-china/
The real reason is Apple is behind in most aspects in Smartphone market.

1. Poor displays (Dull colours and glare issues) People don't care about XDR and fancy terms.
2. Poor Battery life
3. Slow charging speed
4. No easy way to transfer downloaded random files from iPhone to PC/Mac
5. Basic cheap non-Pro models artificially limited to 60hz while $250 androids are pushing 120hz
6. Brand fatigue
7. Patriotism and feeling amongst Chinese that USA = Bad
 
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d5aqoëp said:
The real reason is Apple is behind in most aspects in Smartphone market.

1. Poor displays (Dull colours and glare issues) People don't care about XDR and fancy terms.
2. Poor Battery life
3. Slow charging speed
4. No easy way to transfer downloaded random files from iPhone to PC/Mac
5. Basic cheap non-Pro models artificially limited to 60hz while $250 androids are pushing 120hz
6. Brand fatigue
7. Patriotism and feeling amongst Chinese that USA = Bad
Click to expand...

Some truth to "these", but political pressures are certainly not helping.
 
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d5aqoëp said:
The real reason is Apple is behind in most aspects in Smartphone market.

1. Poor displays (Dull colours and glare issues) People don't care about XDR and fancy terms.
2. Poor Battery life
3. Slow charging speed
4. No easy way to transfer downloaded random files from iPhone to PC/Mac
5. Basic cheap non-Pro models artificially limited to 60hz while $250 androids are pushing 120hz
6. Brand fatigue
7. Patriotism and feeling amongst Chinese that USA = Bad
Click to expand...

#7 is a big one, at least according to the Chinese students/interns I occasionally work with. Samsung is doing even worse than Apple, at 1%, because they aren't a Chinese company.

A lot of Chinese are very patriotic and want products from Chinese-owned companies.
 
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It's not hard to see why, Pro models (the only ones that even worth considering this days) are usually way more expensive than their original $1200 price tag in China, and $800 base model still has 3000mah battery and 60hz display which is laughable compared to even $200 low end phones.
Not sure how iPhone 16 is supposed to change any of that. it's literally going to be the same phone, same 60hz display, same 3000ish battery, no telephoto, and most likely Apple intelligence will not be available in China anytime soon.
 
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d5aqoëp said:
The real reason is Apple is behind in most aspects in Smartphone market.

1. Poor displays (Dull colours and glare issues) People don't care about XDR and fancy terms.
2. Poor Battery life
3. Slow charging speed
4. No easy way to transfer downloaded random files from iPhone to PC/Mac
5. Basic cheap non-Pro models artificially limited to 60hz while $250 androids are pushing 120hz
6. Brand fatigue
7. Patriotism and feeling amongst Chinese that USA = Bad
Click to expand...

China escalating its iPhone ban across government agencies and state-owned companies is a major factor.
 
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d5aqoëp said:
7. Patriotism and feeling amongst Chinese that USA = Bad
Click to expand...

This should have been #1

WarmWinterHat said:
#7 is a big one, at least according to the Chinese students/interns I occasionally work with. Samsung is doing even worse than Apple, at 1%, because they aren't a Chinese company.

A lot of Chinese are very patriotic and want products from Chinese-owned companies.
Click to expand...

This!

The Chinese are allowed or "encouraged" to have national pride and are not called racist or xenophobic for doing so.
 
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I am surprised apple held on to a top 5 spot for so long. The Chinese phone market is very competitive with many brands, many form factors, and the domestic brands have some very compelling offerings. Huawei in particular in the Chinese domestic market has made quite a comeback.
 
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JohnRckr said:
I said this a milion times - keeping high market share in a market where a phone that costs 1/3 of what newest iPhone does and has same or higher overall performance is impossible.

Plus Chinese are quite broke
Click to expand...

Most of the Chinese interns/residents I work with are quite wealthy, even by our (US) standards, and they rarely have or want iPhones. It's not because of the price, it's because Apple isn't a Chinese company. We end up talking about it because I have to help them install certain apps applicable to the workplace.

Sometimes they will buy an iPhone while they are here, but they get rid of it before going back.
 
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I know people like to say that the reason the iPhone isn't doing as well in China is due to politics, but I think it's more that Chinese phone manufacturers are trying all sorts of new and interesting things and pushing the boundaries of mobile technology...

...and meanwhile, Apple is set to release the iPhone 12SSSS this year. :p
 
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I suspect that Chinese people are not blind to the fact that there is a bright white line at the bottom of the iPhone screen.

That "home bar" is annoying. It obscures text beneath it. That white line shows up in screenshots. It interferes with gaming. It's a sign of Apple arrogance because despite years of complaints they won't respond to customers by fixing it.

No other phone has this artifact on the screen. And you can't turn it off.
 
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WarmWinterHat said:
#7 is a big one, at least according to the Chinese students/interns I occasionally work with. Samsung is doing even worse than Apple, at 1%, because they aren't a Chinese company.

A lot of Chinese are very patriotic and want products from Chinese-owned companies.
Click to expand...
On the surface only, and I’d argue their patriotism is not real patriotism. But that’s beside the point.
 
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coffeemilktea said:
I know people like to say that the reason the iPhone isn't doing as well in China is due to politics, but I think it's more that Chinese phone manufacturers are trying all sorts of new and interesting things and pushing the boundaries of mobile technology...

...and meanwhile, Apple is set to release the iPhone 12SSSS this year. :p
Click to expand...

This seems most logical to me, I tried out an iPhone 15 at an Apple Store and it was like using a ten year old phone but with a big screen. And they charge a premium for that! I pull my old beat up cheap Android phone out of my pocket, and it runs circles around this brand new iPhone 15, in every way.

So yea big surprise here..
 
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Data from Canalys, a market research firm, shows that Apple's iPhone shipments in China declined by 6.7% year-on-year. This drop has been attributed to fierce competition from domestic brands such as Huawei, Vivo, Oppo, Honor, and Xiaomi. Huawei, in particular, has seen a resurgence in the high-end smartphone market, fueled by advanced chips produced entirely in China.
Click to expand...
coffeemilktea said:
I know people like to say that the reason the iPhone isn't doing as well in China is due to politics, but I think it's more that Chinese phone manufacturers are trying all sorts of new and interesting things and pushing the boundaries of mobile technology...

...and meanwhile, Apple is set to release the iPhone 12SSSS this year. :p
Click to expand...
It's hard to get people to upgrade when iPhone 15 is an incremental upgrade from iPhone 14 and 13.

And it's not just China that's seeing a slowdown in iPhone sales. Both Verizon and AT&T said this week that they're seeing slower handset (i.e. iPhone) sales/upgrades too.


However, slower phone upgrades in the U.S. weighed on AT&T's revenue, mirroring comments from Verizon.



The hit to profit came partly from a decrease in wireless equipment revenue as customers continued to delay upgrading their devices. Total upgrades fell 13% in this quarter from a year ago. In the first quarter, they were down nearly 21%. Promotions on previous generations of iPhones have also extended the period customers hold onto their devices.


Samsung AI-enabled handsets are selling quite well though according to Best Buy.

I think that's why so many analysts are hopeful that Apple will see strong sales/upgrades with AI iPhone 16
 
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WarmWinterHat said:
#7 is a big one, at least according to the Chinese students/interns I occasionally work with. Samsung is doing even worse than Apple, at 1%, because they aren't a Chinese company.

A lot of Chinese are very patriotic and want products from Chinese-owned companies.
Click to expand...

Absolutely, and that used to be a thing here as well. Now, Americans often claim they want products produced domestically and cite faux patriotism, but that evaporates once something costs about 8 cents more than any alternative.

Citation: the sock drawer, closets, and desks of literally anyone in the USA.
 
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