Hot off its climb to the No. 2 spot for Q2 2021, Xiaomi is the world’s biggest smartphone vendor for the first time. That’s according to July’s numbers from Counterpoint Research, which has Xiaomi in first with 17.1 percent of the global market, Samsung in second with 15.7 percent, and Apple in third with 14.3 percent.
Counterpoint says Xiaomi’s market share grew 26 percent month over month. Counterpoint Research Director Tarun Pathak explains why, saying, “Ever since the decline of Huawei commenced, Xiaomi has been making consistent and aggressive efforts to fill the gap created by this decline. The OEM has been expanding in Huawei’s and HONOR’s legacy markets like China, Europe, Middle East, and Africa. In June, Xiaomi was further helped by China, Europe, and India’s recovery and Samsung’s decline due to supply constraints.”
Huawei has been plummeting in the market share charts as the effects of the multi-year US export ban caught up with the company. Huawei keeps making paper announcements, but with the main brand lacking chips and software, plus the sale of sub-brand Honor, there’s not much left of Huawei in the current smartphone market.
Xiaomi covers every possible market segment, with 58 smartphone models currently listed on its global website. Its products include phones as cheap as $100, state-of-the-art foldables like the Mi Mix Fold, and flagship phones like the Mi 11 Ultra, which has a second rear screen in the camera bump and a massive 50 MP, 1/1.12-inch sensor. Xiaomi is aggressive in its home market of China—the world’s biggest smartphone market—and is a major player in India, the second-largest market in the world. The company doesn’t do smartphone business in the US.
It’s a shame this doesn’t include Huawei, but starting around 2020, you’d see Huawei go down as Xiaomi goes up.
It’s a shame this doesn’t include Huawei, but starting around 2020, you’d see Huawei go down as Xiaomi goes up. Credit: Counterpoint Research
As for Samsung, which Xiaomi blew by to become No. 1, Counterpoint says the company is facing temporary problems due to the resurgence of COVID-19 in Vietnam. Samsung has major phone manufacturing facilities in Vietnam, in addition to China and the company’s home country of South Korea. Counterpoint Senior Analyst Varun Mishra said, “Samsung’s production was disrupted in June, which resulted in the brand’s devices facing shortages across channels. Xiaomi, with its strong mid-range portfolio and wide market coverage, was the biggest beneficiary from the short-term gap left by Samsung’s A series.”