Skip to main content

The context you need, when you need it

When news breaks, you need to understand what actually matters — and what to do about it. At Vox, our mission to help you make sense of the world has never been more vital. But we can’t do it on our own.

We rely on readers like you to fund our journalism. Will you support our work and become a Vox Member today?

Join now

The iPhone is gaining ground on Android in the U.S.

However, Apple’s market share dipped below 20 percent in China, according to a market research firm.

An Apple iPhone using the pressure-sensitive 3D Touch feature.
An Apple iPhone using the pressure-sensitive 3D Touch feature.
Apple

It looks like the iPhone had a pretty decent holiday quarter.

In the U.S., Apple’s iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus and iPhone 6s were the three most popular smartphones and accounted for 31.3 percent of smartphone sales for the three months ended Nov. 30.

Samsung’s Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge were the next two best-selling phones, giving the Korean firm 28.9 percent of the market, according to data released Wednesday by Kantar WorldPanel.

The iPhone also did well in the major European countries, Kantar said, accounting for nearly a quarter of the market. Android also gained market share, to 72.4 percent, as Windows continued to fade, now accounting for just 3 percent there.

China continued to be a challenging market for the iPhone, with its market share dipping below 20 percent, down from more than 25 percent in the same period of 2015.

While Android continues to grow its share of the global smartphone market, it is actually losing share in the U.S. Kantar’s data shows Android phones making up 55 percent of U.S. smartphone sales compared with more than 60 percent in the same period a year ago.

Google’s Pixel phone accounted for 1.3 percent of smartphones sold, Kantar said, with more than half of its sales coming through Verizon.

It’s worth noting that Apple tends to gain market share in the holiday quarter, though Kantar notes that Android has lost share in the U.S. for the past six quarters. Apple’s full quarterly results, which should provide a fuller picture on how the iPhone did in the final quarter of the year, are set to be released on Jan. 31.


This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

More in Technology

Podcasts
Are humanoid robots all hype?Are humanoid robots all hype?
Podcast
Podcasts

AI is making them better — but they’re not going to be doing your chores anytime soon.

By Avishay Artsy and Sean Rameswaram
Future Perfect
The old tech that could help stop the next airborne pandemicThe old tech that could help stop the next airborne pandemic
Future Perfect

Glycol vapors, explained.

By Shayna Korol
Future Perfect
Elon Musk could lose his case against OpenAI — and still get what he wantsElon Musk could lose his case against OpenAI — and still get what he wants
Future Perfect

It’s not about who wins. It’s about the dirty laundry you air along the way.

By Sara Herschander
Life
Why banning kids from AI isn’t the answerWhy banning kids from AI isn’t the answer
Life

What kids really need in the age of artificial intelligence.

By Anna North
Culture
Anthropic owes authors $1.5B for pirating work — but the claims process is a Kafkaesque messAnthropic owes authors $1.5B for pirating work — but the claims process is a Kafkaesque mess
Culture

“Your AI monster ate all our work. Now you’re trying to pay us off with this piece of garbage that doesn’t work.”

By Constance Grady
Future Perfect
Some deaf children are hearing again because of a new gene therapySome deaf children are hearing again because of a new gene therapy
Future Perfect

A medical field that almost died is quietly fixing one disease at a time.

By Bryan Walsh