HAMPSHIRE, UK — Global shipments of smartphones reached 338 million units in the second quarter of 2015, but growth in the smartphone market slowed to 16% year-over-year, according to UK-based mobile analyst firm Juniper Research.
According to a press release issued Thursday by Juniper Research, the launch of Huawei’s P8 smartphone helped the Chinese manufacturer to surge ahead of its midrange rivals with more than 30 million smartphone shipments in Q2 2015, representing nearly 50% year-over-year growth. Huawei’s nearest Chinese rival, Xiaomi, shipped 20.5 million smartphone units in the second quarter, representing an increase of one-third compared to this time last year.
According to Juniper, Samsung’s launch of its S6 smartphone helped to revive the company’s revenues but did not boost sales volumes. The launch for the S6 and S6 Edge, expected to ship between 60 and 70 million units by the end of 2015, was blunted by reports of delays in components, Juniper said. As a result, because it has not been able to ship the smartphone volumes it anticipated, Samsung will be “adjusting the price” of the devices to boost sales ahead of new high-end model launches planned for the third quarter, according to Juniper.
While other smartphone vendors struggle, Apple has experienced a “record-breaking streak” with its iPhone, Juniper said. Apple shipped 47.5 million iPhones in the second quarter, fuelled by growth in China, with year-over-year revenues for the region increasing 112% to more than $13 billion.
In comparison, LG posted 14.1 million smartphone shipments in the second quarter, representing a year-over-year decline of just under 3%. In addition, BlackBerry’s decline continued, with shipments just above 1 million as the company’s release schedule has been slashed from four phone models a year to only one or two models.
According to Juniper, Microsoft has been steadily increasing shipments of its Lumia smartphones in the lead-up to the Windows 10 Mobile release, shipping 8.4 million devices in the second quarter, representing a 12% increase in Lumia sales over last year.
http://www.juniperresearch.com
