Strong iPhone 6 and 6 Plus Sales Lead to Smartphone Market Share Growth for Apple

[Cloudsurfer]

It's interesting to see how divided those systems are per country. In the USA it's almost 50/50, in Germany it's not even 1/4th.

Maybe it has something to do with advertising? Apple doesn't advertise much in Europe.

 

[Poisonivy326]

The number that always confuses me is Germany. Why does Android do so well there and iOS do so poorly? I understand in China it's because most people there have relatively little discretionary income so buy cheaper products, but my understanding was Germans were comparable to those in the UK and US in terms of discretionary income. Is there a major German phone manufacturer that many Germans buy out of national pride or something? I thought the major Android manufacturers were all either Asian or US.

It's pretty much that way in the EU. Same in France, Spain, Italy. I don't know why exactly this is, but Android has been dominating there for a long time now.

 

[minimo3]

The number that always confuses me is Germany. Why does Android do so well there and iOS do so poorly? I understand in China it's because most people there have relatively little discretionary income so buy cheaper products, but my understanding was Germans were comparable to those in the UK and US in terms of discretionary income. Is there a major German phone manufacturer that many Germans buy out of national pride or something? I thought the major Android manufacturers were all either Asian or US.

That's because in general Germans tend to be frugal and have a culture of saving their money. Even Wal-Mart was too expensive for them.

http://www.dw.de/those-frugal-germans/a-16398388
http://www.newyorker.com/business/the-balance-sheet/the-frugal-germans
http://qz.com/129770/germans-may-be-too-cheap-to-keep-their-economy-growing/

(also look up "the Swabian housewife")

 

[timber]

The number that always confuses me is Germany. Why does Android do so well there and iOS do so poorly? I understand in China it's because most people there have relatively little discretionary income so buy cheaper products, but my understanding was Germans were comparable to those in the UK and US in terms of discretionary income. Is there a major German phone manufacturer that many Germans buy out of national pride or something? I thought the major Android manufacturers were all either Asian or US.

Probably because in Europe (or in most European countries) users are exposed to the phones true price and Apple's phones are in reality very expensive.

Paying 700, 800, 900 or around 1000 euro for a phone is just crazy for a lot of people. You could buy 2 iPads or almost a MBA with that kind of money.

Nowadays no phone is that good to deserve that premium expecially in Europe where Apple's services and ecosystem are a lot worse than in the USA. My country doesn't even have Siri... At least the Germans haver that.

 

[gnasher729]

It's pretty much that way in the EU. Same in France, Spain, Italy. I don't know why exactly this is, but Android has been dominating there for a long time now.

Android phones in the UK now start at £20. One top-of-the-range iPhone makes Apple more revenue than twenty really cheap Android phones make. So what do you call "dominating" here?

What do you think is Apple's market share among "phones that are permanently kept in the glove compartment of a car for emergencies"? I bet Android is totally dominating that category compared to the iPhone.

----------

That's because in general Germans tend to be frugal and have a culture of saving their money. Even Wal-Mart was too expensive for them.

http://www.dw.de/those-frugal-germans/a-16398388
http://www.newyorker.com/business/the-balance-sheet/the-frugal-germans
http://qz.com/129770/germans-may-be-too-cheap-to-keep-their-economy-growing/

(also look up "the Swabian housewife")

Well, Walmart had some other problems. In the USA, Walmart tends to go to suppliers factories unannounced and inspect them (probably to find reasons to drop what they pay). In Germany, when Walmart employees turned up unannounced at suppliers' factories, they were told to ******* off.

The other problem was that the two major "cheap" German chains, Lidl and the Aldis, tend to sell _quality_ products at low prices, which Walmart doesn;t.

 

[Narcaz]

The number that always confuses me is Germany. Why does Android do so well there and iOS do so poorly? I understand in China it's because most people there have relatively little discretionary income so buy cheaper products, but my understanding was Germans were comparable to those in the UK and US in terms of discretionary income. Is there a major German phone manufacturer that many Germans buy out of national pride or something? I thought the major Android manufacturers were all either Asian or US.

Funny. No there is nothing like a Siemens or BMW phone. Apple products are simply overpriced in Germany. 16GB iPhone 6 = 828$ (including taxes). Best retail price is 768$ while you can get a Samsung Galaxy S5 for 496$. 128GB storage versions from the 6Plus are even worse and are sold for a hefty 1183$. The problem for Apple is that carrier stopped a few years ago the subsidization of cellphones. So most private customers pay a high initial fee or buy without contract. And Apple doesn't have a huge traditional user base over here. They waited until the iPhone 4 to offer it without a 2 year T-Mobile contract.

 

[ani4ani]

What amazes me is that Apple has chosen to leave the low end to the Android universe and yet commands this kind of market share overall. One would think the high end would limit Apple’s presence to also-ran but the opposite is true.

The only success metric the competition can tout is market share. Apple controls the rest of those metrics by a wide margin. Developers are still, to this day, iOS first and Android later. This is NOT the Windows/Mac debacle of the 90’s in terms of software availability. The talking heads were wrong and the Fandroids here on MacRumors are left with touting the TOTAL OEM output of all manufacturers when making their point.

Yes...and this is why the is the share of smartphone sales, not all phone sales. The "low end Android" universe is not being measured here. Apple DO NOT sell one in every 2 phones in the UK.

 

[MasterRyu2011]

It would be more enlightening if we see a breakdown of actual OEMs not operating system.

I would like to see market shares of the below:

Apple
Samsung
LG
Motorola
HTC
Sony
Lenovo
Asus
Xiaomi
Kyocera (LOL)
OnePlus (LOL)
OPPO
Sharp
...Etc...

Regular people buy phones based on phones, not on operating system.

 

[jrswizzle]

I'm kind of surprised that the USA gains were so small, to be honest. It seemed like everyone that I knew got an iPhone 6.

4.3% gain is not "small".....consider the number of smartphone users/smartphones sold over the course of the year. It's a big number.

Apple will shatter their own quarterly sales record and could potentially creep toward Samsung's overall record of roughly 82 million.

Think about that. Samsung releases dozens of devices across dozens of price points and sizes each year. Apple sold 4 iPhones this quarter.

Would be pretty amazing.

 

[JohnLong]

This is exactly what I was thinking about, too. Coming from Germany, I'm wondering why the iPhone performs so poorly here.
There isn't any big German android device manufacturer, so I think your first suggest won't explain the issue.
I got the iPhone 6 myself but did see only 3 or 4 other guys with this device. I think, apple and its products lost part of their image here. People are not ready to pay more for the apple on the device any more. Furthermore the price difference to android devices is higher here. Due to the poor euro dollar conversion and in general the Euro price politics of apple, the iPhone pricier than Asian devices.
iPhone6 64gb = 800€
Htc one m8 32gb = 480€

I don't know at which conditions the iPhone's are offered on contract elsewhere, but in Germany T-Mobile (even after loosing exclusive marketing) sells the iPhone as premium device so you pay 50€ a month for a phone+sms flatrate+Cellular"flatrate"(500MB traffic included)(plus 270€ Once). And this is the cheapest one. But the other contracts are even more rediculous. So many people choose cheaper contracts with a 1€ device.

 

[jrswizzle]

Probably because in Europe (or in most European countries) users are exposed to the phones true price and Apple's phones are in reality very expensive.

Paying 700, 800, 900 or around 1000 euro for a phone is just crazy for a lot of people. You could buy 2 iPads or almost a MBA with that kind of money.

Nowadays no phone is that good to deserve that premium expecially in Europe where Apple's services and ecosystem are a lot worse than in the USA. My country doesn't even have Siri... At least the Germans haver that.

I've never understood why these prices are so shocking.

I tend to think about the products I buy in terms of how much I'll use them. If I'll use a product a lot, I'll pay more. If I won't use a product that much, I get miffed when they are expensive.

I use my phone AT LEAST twice as much as I use my iPad (and I use my iPad a lot) and FAR MORE than I use my laptop or desktop.

For me, paying the $1000 that I did for my 128 GB 6+ wasn't a big deal because I use it constantly, every day for all kinds of things.

 

[Poisonivy326]

Android phones in the UK now start at £20. One top-of-the-range iPhone makes Apple more revenue than twenty really cheap Android phones make. So what do you call "dominating" here?

What do you think is Apple's market share among "phones that are permanently kept in the glove compartment of a car for emergencies"? I bet Android is totally dominating that category compared to the iPhone.

Actually the market share of "glove compartment phones" are usually not smartphones, but dumbphones that can be used in a pinch to call/text. Most android smartphones (whether low-end or high-end) are used the same way iphones are. So that's sort of a straw man argument and anyway it doesn't answer the question of why iOS is still doing poorly in the EU compared to GB and the U.S.

 

[Col4bin]

I must admit, the iPhone 6 is the best overall iPhone expereince to date. (It's not even an argument here). Unless of course, you were born little-handed.

 

[Septembersrain]

It's just easier and more affordable to get an android. Think of how many different offerings of the iPhone there is. Then compare that to how many androids.

That's probably a huge reason.

 

[69Mustang]

It would be more enlightening if we see a breakdown of actual OEMs not operating system.

I would like to see market shares of the below:

Apple
Samsung
LG
Motorola
HTC
Sony
Lenovo
Asus
Xiaomi
Kyocera (LOL)
OnePlus (LOL)
OPPO
Sharp
...Etc...

Regular people buy phones based on phones, not on operating system.

If this report is out, the report you want to see is not far behind. Give it a day or two. Every quarter it's basically the same reports. We provide the same excuses depending on where our favorite manufacturer stands in the rankings.

Pro tip: When reading these reports, even though totally unrelated to the topic, it's completely acceptable to deflect by mentioning profits. It's the answer to every report on MR.

 

[69Mustang]

I've never understood why these prices are so shocking.

I tend to think about the products I buy in terms of how much I'll use them. If I'll use a product a lot, I'll pay more. If I won't use a product that much, I get miffed when they are expensive.

I use my phone AT LEAST twice as much as I use my iPad (and I use my iPad a lot) and FAR MORE than I use my laptop or desktop.

For me, paying the $1000 that I did for my 128 GB 6+ wasn't a big deal because I use it constantly, every day for all kinds of things.

You use your phone a lot. Some German uses his phone a lot. You paid $1000 and he paid $500. You both can do exactly what you want to do, and often they are the exact same things. Could it be something as simple more Germans like Android phones? Or at a minimum, they see more value in purchasing a less expensive Android? Smartphones are commodity items. There's not much that can be done on one that can't be done on any other.

 

[throys]

It's wonderful to see everyone now using an iPhone here in the UK. SO MUCH FOR SAMSUNG AD BASHING. Surprisingly they been quiet over the last few months.

 

[proline]

Makes sense. Android is a cheap way to dip ones toes in the smartphone world, but ultimately people want more than what an ad company can give them. Over time Apple keeps selling more and more...

 

[jrswizzle]

You use your phone a lot. Some German uses his phone a lot. You paid $1000 and he paid $500. You both can do exactly what you want to do, and often they are the exact same things. Could it be something as simple more Germans like Android phones? Or at a minimum, they see more value in purchasing a less expensive Android? Smartphones are commodity items. There's not much that can be done on one that can't be done on any other.

Oh sure - completely agree. I'm just making the point that just because something costs $1000 doesn't mean it's prohibitively expensive. Oftentimes people who think it would be crazy to spend that much on a phone, think that because they don't see/value a smartphone like I do.

It all comes down to the value proposition. Different for everyone.

 

[stewy]

Makes sense. Android is a cheap way to dip ones toes in the smartphone world, but ultimately people want more than what an ad company can give them. Over time Apple keeps selling more and more...

Whatever you have to tell yourself dude.

 

[kdarling]

Probably because in Europe (or in most European countries) users are exposed to the phones true price and Apple's phones are in reality very expensive.

This. It's all about upfront cost.

Surprisingly, it doesn't seem to matter if a person is poor or wealthy. The overwhelming majority of people all around the world do not like to pay more than about $250 upfront.

This price barrier has been true for at least a half decade, if not more.

Last time I checked, over 90% of iPhones were sold in countries with subsidies (or loan programs) which lower its upfront price to anywhere from zero to a couple of hundred dollars.

In places without subsidies, expensive phones do not sell very well, because when paying full cost upfront, people are forced to take a harder look at cost vs features.



The absolute numbers go up and down depending on the quarter, but the relative subsidy effect is always the same.

 

[creediddy]

It would be more enlightening if we see a breakdown of actual OEMs not operating system.

I would like to see market shares of the below:

Apple
Samsung
LG
Motorola
HTC
Sony
Lenovo
Asus
Xiaomi
Kyocera (LOL)
OnePlus (LOL)
OPPO
Sharp
...Etc...

Regular people buy phones based on phones, not on operating system.

I agree! Android is small in scale in terms of overall usage when going from OEM to OEM. This should help...http://www.androidbenchmark.net/30dayshare.html

 

[imacken]

I always find it staggering when I see the UK figures.

Maybe it's a geographical thing, but I see infinitely more iPhones out and about than I do Androids.

Though I suppose that could be influenced if iPhone users just spend longer actually USING their phones than Androiders

Agreed. I see nothing but iPhones, and about 90% of my contacts are 'blue' on messaging!

 

[TigerMSTR]

Wow. iPhone US Marketshare is now equal to Android.

 

[AlecZ]

I'm kind of surprised that the USA gains were so small, to be honest. It seemed like everyone that I knew got an iPhone 6.

But I only know a few people who got an iPhone 6.